Lesson 9: The Power of Music
Kidnapped: A Snippet from the Past
It was quite possibly the most horrible experience Baekhyun had ever went through in his life.
Well, for starters, he had never driven anyone in his motorbike before, with the exception of Jongdae and his best friend from school, Yixing. Driving Jongin on his motorbike shouldn't have been a very big problem, except for the fact that Jongin was drunk.
Very drunk.
Sitting on a motorcycle and driving along empty roads at speeds that cross 100km/h with an extremely heavy weight leaning against your shoulders wasn't a simple task. For starters, Jongin was much larger than Jongdae and Yixing, and Baekhyun was freaking out the entire journey because he was so afraid Jongin would fly off the motorbike.
But he managed to reach Jongin's place in one piece, and when he unloaded the drunk man from his vehicle, Jongin keeled over and promptly threw up on the ground.
Baekhyun could understand the relief Yifan felt when Jongdae opted to get sick all over the pavement instead of in his car the other day. It was truly, greatly relieving.
Dragging Jongin up to his apartment, unlocking it and dumping him onto his bed was a slow, tedious process, but Baekhyun managed it somehow. He loosened Jongin's tie and pulled off his shoes and socks, setting them neatly beside the bed.
"Baekhyun...." Jongin groaned, voice muffled in a pillow.
Lacing his fingers together, Baekhyun sat on the bed by Jongin and watched him drift in and out of sleep, his alcohol-addled mind leaving him unable to stay conscious for more than 10 seconds at a time.
Jongdae's words from the night before echoed in his mind. Was Jongin sad? They hadn't really talked much after Baekhyun initiated the breakup. In fact, they almost hadn't talked at all. It was Jongin that had asked him out, after all. It must have taken a blow to his self-esteem, as well as his heart. He probably had been rather upset about this whole issue, and therefore had taken to drinking to forget his troubles.
Jongin makes a really sweet boyfriend, Baekhyun thought with a small sigh. He just isn't the right one for me.
He made it a point to talk to Jongin properly when he was all sober and awake again some other time. Draping a blanket over the sleeping form, Baekhyun quickly took his leave, making his way back home.
-
Chanyeol was greeted with a pair of equally matching gloomy faces the next morning during breakfast. It was as if a dark cloud was hovering in the kitchen and ready to rain in torrents any second.
"Geez what's up with everyone?" He grumbled, a slice of bread wedged in his mouth as he filled a glass of milk from the refrigerator.
Baekhyun got up wordlessly and headed out towards the front door. A few moments after he did, Jongdae let out a huge frustrated sigh and plonked his chin on the table.
"Care to explain what's going on?" Chanyeol turned to him, cocking an eyebrow.
Jongdae whined helplessly. "I am stupid."
Chanyeol set down the glass on the table and pulled out a chair beside him. "What happened?"
"I refused to listen to Bae Hoon all of last night and this morning. He is pissed with me."
"Whoa, why?" Chanyeol leaned in with interest.
Jongdae shrugged sheepishly. "Hyung wanted to talk to me about Jongin coming over yesterday. Jongin looked like he was dying and he smelled really weird. And..." Jongdae's brow furrowed. "He wanted to kiss Bae Hoon."
Chanyeol pursed his lips as he processed Jongdae's statement. "Is there something I'm missing out on?"
Jongdae gripped onto the glass, nervously glancing up at Chanyeol's face before staring down at the milk in it. "Bae Hoon asked me to date him."
"Aha!" Chanyeol sprung out of his chair excitedly, almost knocking over his glass in the process. "So he finally got the guts and popped the question! That's my boy!" He did a victorious fist-pump and whipped his phone out of his pocket. "Sehun needs to know about this now..."
Jongdae sighed again and did a faceplant on the table.
"Wait, you..." Chanyeol set down his phone slowly, eyes widening. "You rejected him?"
"You clearly were not paying attention to me earlier, were you?"
Chanyeol froze, staring unblinkingly ahead as he pieced the bits of information in his mind. Baekhyun asked Jongdae out... Jongin came over... Tried to kiss him... Jongdae not speaking to Baekhyun...
Chanyeol grabbed his toast and shoved it quickly in his mouth, taking enormous chews before scarfing down his milk in record speed. Jongdae cringed at his sudden ravenous appetite.
"You're coming with me to the University," Chanyeol mumbled as he struggled to swallow his food. "Now. You're coming with me now." He pushed in his chair and started towards the door.
"What?!" Jongdae raised an eyebrow and didn't budge from his seat.
Chanyeol huffed irritatedly, backtracking to pull the alarmed boy out of his seat. "Now! You're coming with me to see Baekhyun now!"
"Now?!" Jongdae howled, trying in vain to resist Chanyeol's impossibly strong grip. "Why now? I am not prepared for this!"
Chanyeol rolled his eyes, pushing him towards the doorway. "You're going to wait until evening? You've got to be kidding me! What if a meteorite blows through our roof or a scale 8 earthquake hits us and you never get to see your beloved again?"
Jongdae gaped uselessly at him.
The medical student groaned. "Oh forget it! Just wear your shoes, no one cares about what you're wearing in a University so don't worry."
"You keep forgetting that I am not from your time period, hyung. I hate it when you talk in riddles..." Jongdae huffed under his breath as he put on his sneakers.
-
Chanyeol and Jongdae arrived at the University with barely seconds to spare. They had missed the bus due to unforeseen circumstances, and the taller boy was running late for class.
"I'll catch you later!" He waved at Jongdae and flashed him a bright smile before jogging off to the medical block.
Jongdae stood there staring at him for a whole minute, before belatedly realizing that he had forgotten to get directions to the history block. After some pointless and aimless walking, Jongdae gave up and decided to ask a passing professor for directions.
The elderly man crooked an eyebrow and pointed to a distant building, one that rose above others. "You go to the building beside that one."
"Thank you so much!" Jongdae bowed politely, and went off on his way.
It was not until he reached the tall building when he realized again that he forgot to ask the professor if it was the building on the left, or the right. Shrugging, he turned left and entered a building that was labelled "Beethoven Block".
What on earth is a Beethoven?
He ascended a flight of steps, and found himself in front of a long corridor of rooms. Upon closer inspection, they were music studios.
Jongdae froze, and blinked a couple of times. Studios? This must be the wrong place! He shook his head and laughed at his silliness, turning on his heel to head out of the corridor.
He was about to leave when something caught his attention.
It was a soft melody playing, a gentle, calming tune that was full of emotion. Jongdae hesitated by the entrance, tilting his head with curiosity. He had never heard such music before. Many a time he heard Chanyeol's stereo blasting some incredibly eardrum-bursting rock music, or Baekhyun's MP3 playing some jazzy songs, or even Luhan's strange knack for opera music that always gave him creepy goosebumps.
But this was different.
This was actually nice, and he liked it.
Jongdae found himself heading towards the source of the music, which came from one of the studios. He carefully opened the door and poked his head in. To his alarm, the music immediately stopped and a worried voice rang out from the other end of the room.
"I'm so sorry sir, I didn't mean to use this room without permission, I was just..."
Jongdae finally caught sight of a young man standing in front of a strange black machine of sorts. He was in a bowing position, and he seemed extremely flustered.
"I'll take my leave now, um..."
"No w-wait!" Jongdae quickly intercepted. The man paused at the sound of his voice, and he straightened his body with a look of surprise on his face.
Oh... The man appeared to be around Baekhyun's age, dressed casually with his hair pressed down neatly.
"Who might you be?" The man laughed sheepishly and scratched the back of his neck. "Sorry about that, I thought you were the grumpy old security guard doing his rounds."
Jongdae nodded stiffly. "Oh, I see. My name is Jongdae, nice to meet you."
"Jongdae, hi!" He waved this time instead of bowed, which made Jongdae feel a little more comfortable with him. He seems really friendly... "Are you a student here?"
Jongdae gulped nervously, debating whether or not to tell the truth. Well, I do not trust this person yet, so I will just make do with lying a bit. He nodded earnestly.
"Ahh!" The student chuckled a little. "My name is Yixing, by the way."
Yixing glanced behind him, and quickly motioned for him to close the door. Jongdae complied, before walking back to Yixing and the large black machine.
"I would like to know where the History building is," he politely enquired.
Yixing cleared his throat awkwardly. "It's actually two blocks away, to the right of the tall building." He bit his lip for a moment, and a faint blush spread across his cheeks. "Umm, I'm actually a History student. And there is class right now. So technically... I'm skipping class right now."
Jongdae cocked an eyebrow. "Oh, are you?" He asked cheekily.
The blush on Yixing's face deepened, coloring his cheeks into a cute pink hue. "Uh, well... Yeah..." He leaned forward with a finger on his lips. "Keep it a secret for me, will you?"
Jongdae pondered over it for a while. Since Yixing said that the History students were having lessons now, he would not be able to meet Baekhyun even if he went over to the History building right then. His thoughts reverted back to Yixing, who was patiently awaiting his answer. Then he peered behind him at the large black machine, and he got a brainwave.
"I promise not to tell... If you tell me how you make that lovely music."
Yixing's eyes widened. "You mean the piano?"
Piano...? Is that what it is called? Jongdae bobbed his head excitedly.
A good-natured smile crept onto Yixing's face as he beckoned for Jongdae to come closer. "Maybe I'll show you instead."
-
Luhan leant against the counter, fingers flying across the keypad of his handphone. At the corner of his eye, he could see a certain apron-clad dude puzzling himself to death over a large coffee machine, and he chuckled under his breath.
"Do not panic, Kim Minseok, you can do it, stay calm, do not agonise..." He was constantly mumbling to himself. Then he ran a hand through his neatly-pressed locks, ruffling it up cutely.
Luhan set his phone aside and nestled his elbows on the table. "Minseokkie..." He called out in a sing-song voice.
"Hush, do not disrupt my train of thoughts!" Minseok exclaimed.
Luhan said nothing after that, watching with amusement as Minseok stressed himself out to a state of mental anguish before finally producing a cup of hot coffee from the machine. After wiping the sides of the cup, he decorated the coffee surface with a pretty squiggle, and brought the cup over to Luhan for a taste.
"How is it?" He enquired with curiosity, peering anxiously at his boyfriend as he sipped cautiously at the coffee.
Luha scrunched his forehead in deep thought. "Not bad..." He commented, foam off the side of his lips. He paused dramatically, before shaking his head regretfully. "But I'll have to fail you."
"WHY?!" Minseok's expression fell tremendously, looking like a puppy who had just been kicked.
Luhan reached over to cup his chin, and a slight tint of blush blossomed on Minseok's cheeks at the lightest touch. Luhan angled his face left and right, trying to conceal his growing smile of affection as Minseok continued to pout bitterly.
"Your facial expression is important, Minseok. With such a serious face, no one will get a good impression of you."
Minseok's lips twitched. "Facial expression?" He bared his teeth emotionlessly. "Like this?"
Luhan rolled his eyes, playfully pinching one of Minseok's cheeks. "Smile with more emotion!"
Minseok laughed, pushing Luhan's fringe away from his eyes. His fingers lingered along the side of his temple, softly his skin, bringing a slight shiver down his spine. A gentle smile spread across his face, one filled with warmth and radiance, and it made Luhan tingle with happiness all over.
"Minseokkie..."
"I will do my best," he murmured, eyes set with confidence. "I will not let you and Sir down. I will put in my all for this competition."
Luhan nodded, pride swelling in his chest. "I know you will."
He brought their faces closer for a chaste kiss, brushing their lips together and savoring the sweetness of his boyfriend's cherry-tinged breath. He felt Minseok smile into the kiss, shifting his hands to cup the back of his neck...
There was the sound of a throat clearing, which made the two of them pull away reluctantly. They turned in unison, coming face to face with the amused expression of the Head barista.
"S-sorry sir!" Minseok bowed hastily, a furious blush developing on his cheeks. "I will get back to work immediately!"
The Head barista sat down beside Luhan and folded his arms across the table, watching the flustered man bustle about in the counter. Luhan chuckled softly when he accidentally knocked his elbow against a small pot and almost toppled it over in the process.
"This guy's got the drive and the talent," the instructor casually commented, "but he needs more confidence. That's something that needs to come from deep down, I can't train him for that."
Luhan nodded. It was an extremely daring move of Minseok to step up and take up the challenge of competing in such a prestigious contest. After all, most of the baristas in the competition boast years of experience, while Minseok only had a couple of months of training.
But Luhan knew that Minseok was okay. Minseok was going to be okay, because he was gifted. Almost as if he was born to be a barista.
That sudden thought wiped the smile off his face. Minseok wasn't born to be a barista. If he hadn't manipulated the time periods, Minseok would have become a well-respected scholar serving the King. Not clad in a white apron and fiddling with large whirring machines twice the size of himself.
Luhan swallowed the uneasy feeling lodged in his throat. Everything would be alright. He smiled to himself at the irony of it all - instead of feeling worried about Minseok's upcoming competition, he was feeling all jittery about Minseok and the time period he was originally from.
Minseok spilled some coffee on the tabletop, and his yell jolted Luhan back to reality. Watching his boyfriend blush and blot the spill with paper towels and seemingly apologize to the cup for some strange reason, he found it easy to smile.
Everything will be alright.
-
Glancing at his watch, Baekhyun let out an impatient huff as he descended the staircase to the first floor.
"Goddamn where is Yixing? He promised to have lunch with me!" Baekhyun grumbled under his breath, slinging his bag around his shoulder, rounding the bend to exit the building.
Yixing skipping class probably wasn't the most outrageous thing he had ever done, in Baekhyun's eyes. But setting a lunch date and not turning up is.
Muttering to himself about piano-hugging best friends and that cheeseburger waiting for him at the canteen, Baekhyun dragged himself towards the music studios, where he was sure his best friend would be.
The studios were supposed to be unoccupied today- music students don't have lessons on Mondays. Sure enough, the building was almost deserted. Soft piano music floated down the long corridor, and Baekhyun quickened his pace towards the sound, a small smile growing on his face. Because as much as Yixing annoyed him with his insane love for the piano, he really does play well.
Baekhyun stopped at the door, slowly and noiselessly pushing it open. Well, if Yixing's going to stand me up because of his piano, I'm going to give him the fright of his life.
But he was surprised to notice that Yixing wasn't alone.
There was another person, a slim figure wearing an unsettlingly familiar shirt, sitting beside Yixing and had his head leaning against his shoulder.
Yixing started to speak suddenly, slow and gentle. "This song is called Raindrop, and it's by Chopin."
"Hmm? Why raindrop?" The other boy asked, and Baekhyun realized with a jump of his heart that it was Jongdae.
"I don't really know how composers come up with titles," Yixing replied with a laugh. "But I guess this song is sad, like when it rains, everything is dreary and sleepy and romantic..."
Baekhyun would have rolled his eyes at Yixing's ridiculous speech, if not for the burning fact that his- Kim Jongdae was currently draped over his best friend like they had known each other for years.
"I like rain. Bae Hoon took me out on a rainy day once and it was fun." Jongdae muttered sleepily. Baekhyun felt his heart clench in a weird way. He almost felt relieved that Jongdae hadn't revealed his name properly.
Then it dawned on him that Jongdae was here- in his school. Why was he here? How did he come here? Jongdae had never come to Baekhyun's school before.
"This Bae Hoon person sounds important to you," Yixing remarked as he casually poked the side of Jongdae's cheek. Baekhyun bristled with annoyance.
"Hmm..." Jongdae shifted closer and yawned. "We are fighting now. I am supposed to - I mean, I have not made up with him yet."
Yixing chuckled. "Is he your boyfriend?"
"No..." Jongdae replied with a exasperated sigh.
Baekhyun felt his jaw clench, his hands bunching up into fists against his sides. No? Did that mean he was planning to reject him in the end? He slipped out of the room silently and leaned against the door, emotionless and numb.
So that's what it is...
Swallowing thickly, he pushed himself off the surface and trudged away from the studio, feeling like he had just been doused with a bucket of cold water and left without a towel to freeze.
-
"... But I do want him to be," Jongdae replied with a sigh.
Yixing cocked an eyebrow, looking down at the younger boy on his shoulder. Jongdae was staring soullessly at the piano keys and his lips were pulled down into a frown.
"So that's what it is," Yixing nodded in understanding. "Heartbreak?"
Jongdae frowned a notch or two deeper. "No... I mean, maybe..."
Yixing laughed quietly, deciding not to pursue the subject anymore. It wasn't the first time Jongdae mentioned of this Bae Hoon person, and from the dreamy look in his eyes, he was someone Jongdae liked a lot.
Speaking of which... With a gasp, Yixing grabbed his handphone on the side of the piano and glanced at it. "," he muttered, dialing Baekhyun's number rapidly and pressing the phone to his ear.
"What's wrong?" Jongdae lifted his head from Yixing's shoulder, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.
"Answer me... Answer me..." Yixing worried his bottom lip between his teeth, anxiously pounding his knee with his other hand. To Jongdae, he groaned, "I'm supposed to meet my friend for lunch ages ago, and he's probably really pissed off with me."
Jongdae looked traumatized with fright, leaping to his feet and bowing hastily. "Oh, I am very sorry for keeping you here!"
Shaking his head and pocketing his phone, Yixing got up from the seat as well. "No, it's okay. I'll just... Um, go first?" He gestured towards the door, and then remembered something. "Actually, don't you have classes too?"
Jongdae blinked a couple of times before the news finally hit him. "Ah, yes! Class!" He bowed again and scratched his head sheepishly. "I do have class... I do."
This guy is a little weird, Yixing thought with a chuckle, but quite cute. He pulled out his phone again and dialled the number of another classmate. "Hey, do you know where Baekhyun is?"
Yixing darted his eyes to Jongdae, who seemed to have stilled suddenly, expression morphing into one of surprise.
"He left school already."
"What? He left school? Why? ... Crap, could it be because of me?"
There was a laugh on the other end. "Why would it be? He told me he wasn't feeling well."
Yixing sighed with relief. "Okay, thanks."
Jongdae was watching him with steady questioning eyes when he hung up. Yixing raised an eyebrow. "What?"
"Nothing..." He quickly shook his head, pursing his lips in thought.
Yixing smiled, tilting his head towards the door. "My friend has left, so... How about going for lunch together?"
Jongdae's eyes widened, and he poked his chest. "Me?"
"Nope, the piano." Yixing rolled his eyes exaggeratedly before bursting out laughing at Jongdae's perplexed expression. "Let's go."
-
The tiny café was bustling with activity, attracting many customers with the delicious aroma of brewing coffee and baking cookies.
Baekhyun leaned against his elbows on the table, quietly taking in his surroundings. He caught sight of the busy barista lady at the counter, and his lips curved into a tiny smile. Luhan had spoke to him excitedly over the phone about Minseok taking part in a huge barista competition, bragging about how successful his boyfriend is and how all the credit should go to his own genius brain for signing them up for barista classes. Baekhyun had wanted to smack Luhan's head for being so shameless, but that's the way he always was, anyway.
With a despondent sigh, he thought about Jongdae earlier in the day. He doubted that the young prince was trying to hit on Yixing, given his innocence about dating and stuff like that. But he wasn't sure about Yixing's side. Yixing was, after all, the popular playboy who happened to love music and pianos.
Why Yixing didn't just become a music major instead was beyond him. But if he had, Baekhyun wouldn't have met him and became his best friend.
His thoughts were interrupted by someone clearing his throat, and he looked up slowly to see the person he had been waiting for.
"Hey Jongin."
Jongin fixed his eyes unwaveringly at his cup of coffee, and the air around them was anything but comfortable.
Baekhyun decided to stop abusing his lips with his teeth and break the awkward tension once and for all. "Jongin, I'm sorry."
Jongin rolled his eyes slightly. "If this is the 'important talk' you have with me, I'm leaving." He moves to sling his bag over his shoulder, but Baekhyun quickly shot his hand out to grab his wrist.
"Wait."
He hesitated a while before setting his bag down again. This time, there wasn't impatience and doubt in his eyes, but exhaustion and defeat. "Baekhyun, just leave me alone," he pleaded. "I feel bad enough about that night, as it is."
"That's why we need to talk," Baekhyun pressed on, slightly frustrated. "I don't want a repeat of that night, Jongin."
Jongin bristled. "Because of that Jongdae? Didn't he set us up? What happened there?"
Baekhyun hunched his shoulders, sighing. "I don't know, but... That wasn't supposed to happen."
"What? What wasn't supposed to happen?" Jongin raised his voice a little, causing a few customers' heads to turn.
Us, Baekhyun wanted to whisper. Us. We weren't supposed to happen.
But he couldn't.
He didn't have the courage to tell Jongin that he wasn't serious in him. That he had dated Jongin on a whim of jealousy. That he never intended to go steady with Jongin, never once considered it properly.
Instead, he squared his shoulders, putting on as brave a front as he possibly could. With a confident smile, he offered out a hand.
"Let's put the past behind us, and be friends."
Jongin furrowed his brows and his jaw fell open in shock. "What?"
Baekhyun felt his resolve waver a little. He took a deep breath. "Friends."
Shaking his head, Jongin sat back as a wave of dejection flashed across his features. "Don't be an idiot, Baekhyun. I can't do that."
The smile slipped from his face at Jongin's words. Jongin didn't look at him, instead focusing on the napkin and paper coaster on the table.
"You broke up with me without even telling me why, you just took off with my heart and my self-esteem and now you're trying to shove it back into my face and be my friend?!" He folded his arms, unfolded them, refolded them again. "It's not easy, hyung. It's not easy, especially when you haven't gotten over that person."
Jongin looked all shades of miserable, and Baekhyun felt absolutely terrible.
"I know, I've been an idiot. I... That's why I want to fix it." He reached over to touch Jongin's arm. "I don't want this to end on a bad note. I want us to be okay with each other."
He hoped he had put the message across in a nice enough way. Jongin looked hesitant, torn between tearing his arm away and running out of the shop, and staying behind to listen to Baekhyun's pathetic attempt of a friendship-after-a-failed-romance.
Thank goodness Jongin seemed more inclined towards the latter. Baekhyun squeezed his arm with a reassuring smile. "Stay?"
The taller male sighed heavily, wrenching away from his grip, but remained seated. At least that's progress, he thought with relief.
Hi guys!! Here's an extra long chap to make up for me being missing in action for so long :/ I hope it isnt too confusing :)
I'm sooooo excited about the laychen dynamics here! i absolutely adore laychen and I can't wait to start on them ^^ don't worry, baekchen won't be neglected:)
Thank you for staying subbed to me even though I've not updated for so so so long :) you all deserve hearts!
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