Once again he stood there, behind the line. The line that everyone was kept from crossing. The line that was supposed to separate people from danger--  although he couldn't really tell if it was to keep him from danger or from the mysterious guy ahead.

 

He stood there again, same spot right behind the yellow line of the platform, and even though Baekhyun had no clue who he was, he was just simply drawn in.

 

The mysterious man who always stood behind the yellow line-- not a step or two away, not even crossing the line for at least a bit.

 

He always wondered if the guy was just simply a good citizen or maybe he just liked that position or maybe he's just really stupid. Baekhyun couldn't really care less about him--at least that's what he told himself-- but somehow his eyes always found themselves staring at the bright red sneakers planted exactly behind the yellow line everytime, the chill that filled the air brought the smell of morning dew along with it.

 

 As time went on, his eyes started wandering further up only to notice the long legs, the skinny yet fit build, the way his lips would ever so slightly curve or pout whenever he played with his fingers-- sometimes tapping them against his thigh as he listened to music-- and those mesmerizing brown eyes. Those eyes so deep and dark that they seem distant most of the times.

 

He couldn't care less about the guy behind the yellow line of the opposite platform but why does his heart skip a beat the minute those same brown eyes met his?

 

"Hi." the unknown male mouthed to him, a smile slowly making its way to his lips. Baekhyun simply gazed, not sure how to react after being just caught staring.

 

"Hi." he found himself whispering back-- almost inedible even for him to hear but still, the guy smiled, making his heart almost halt into a permanent stop.

 

 The other started talking once more but Baekhyun's head was still swimming, his ears ringing, his heart thumping and he had to force himself back to reality-- slightly shaking his head and oh god, please dont let him be so obvious.

 

"Your train's late tonight, huh?" the stranger continued, his voice a little louder-- just enough for Baekhyun to hear the childish ring to it which surprised him but found endearing nonetheless. He nodded his head-- still in a trance.

 

"y-yeah.." he said in yet another whisper but was now completely unheard when the bells and the announcement for the two oncoming trains came on.

 

 The boy was no longer in sight once he entered his train.

 

After that day, the mysterious guy on the other side dissappeared. He never came to wait for the train-- behind the yellow line like he usually did. He was just simply gone as if he never existed in the first place. And the smell of morning dew that Baekhyun later then found himself drawn to was now non-existant.

 

It bothered Baekhyun a bit-- quite a lot actually-- that the boy just vanished like that. What if he noticed him staring and was creeped out? Or maybe he just simply didnt exist in the first place and he was just a fragment of Baekhyun's imagination.

 

Maybe, maybe not. Deciding to push it to the back of his mind, Baekyun huffed as he waited for his friend to show up because Chanyeol got a boyfriend 2 months ago and it was just important to show him off.

 

 And apparently, it was a best friend thing to introduce the boyfriend. Baekhyun is happy for his friend but he just didn't feel like being the third wheel at the moment.

 

"Baekhyun!" he heard an all too familiar cheery yet deep voice call out. He turned, a scowl playing on his face.

 

"Yah! Why are you so late?" he scoffed but Chanyeol just rolled his eyes at him.

 

"Something came up." the taller male said, avoiding the other's gaze but Baekhyun knew he was lying. One look at the dishevelled hair the doe eyed male had and the crimson red colour that slowly creeped up his face, Baekhyun simply knew without needing to be told.

 

"You just couldn't keep off of each other could you?" Baekhyun half growled at his friend who gave him a startled look. He wanted to laugh at his friend, looking like a deer caught in headlights at the middle of the road. The taller male opened his mouth to talk and Baekhyun just knew another lie was to come out of him so he narrowed his eyes at his friend.

 

"You dare try to lie to me, you little rascal!" he growled, making the latter flinch and give him an apologetic look.

 

"Sorry." Chanyeol muttered, giving him the puppy dog eyes that always worked on him-- but he can't say that to his best friend because its weird and he just simply knew Chanyeol would use it to his advantage if he knew.

 

"Where the hell are you taking me?" he changed the subject, earning a stupid grin from his friend.

 

"You're going to meet Kris." his grin grew wider and Baekhyun couldn't help but roll his eyes at the lovesick boy in front of him.

 

"Really, now?" he said sarcastically " I meant where? Where are we meeting him?" he continued.

 

"He's waiting outside! He's gonna drive us to some restaurant. I don't know and apparently a close friend of his would be waiting there too." Chanyeol shrugged before he started leading Baekhyun out to where Kris was waiting.

 

Baekhyun couldn't help but see the worry in his friend's eyes and sighed.

 

"Don't worry, I bet this close friend of his will like you. Just act like you normally do-- like a doofus." Baekhyun joked, earning a playful hit on his shoulder and a couple insults back from the taller male until they reached the car with a tall and handsome man standing in front of it. The man was stunning-- and damn Baekhyun would have to be a log if he said the man was not attractive at all. He congratulated his friend inwardly, as the older male held out a hand gracefully greeting him.

 

They soon left for the restaurant and somehow, in some weird coincidental way the universe worked, he found himself sitting in front of a familiar male-- not to mind that he was staring too but who cares?

 

Baekhyun was baffled-- he never would have imagined finding the guy from the station sitting right in front of him in this type of situation. He wasn't used to it either. Seeing the boy like this--not  in the station behind the yellow line-- was unsettling and uncomfortable for him. Especially since the usual carefree and peaceful aura the guy has when he thinks no one was looking is now gone, and is replaced by something else that Baekhyun couldn't really put his finger on.

 

Baekhyun kept staring, lodged deep in his own thoughts when pain suddenly shot right through his gut. He let out a strangled choke and glared at the man beside him.

 

"What?" he growled.

"Stop staring the boy down. You're scaring him." Chanyeol growled back at him and he flushed, being caught staring.

 

"No, no!" the boy--Tao. Yes Tao was his name. And NO Baekhyun does NOT think the name and the owner of the name are both gorgeous-- shook his head and smiled a bit, his eyes turning into small cresents, making Baekhyun's stomach flutter-- something that he would never admit, even to himself.

 

"I think I might have seen him at the train station a few days back." the boy continued.

 

'3 days ago to be exact' Baekhyun stopped himself from saying. Its not like he was counting in the first place. He just simply has a good memory.

 

Chanyeol turned to him and Baekhyun knew that all too familiar way that Chanyeol raised an eyebrow, mouth curling into a smirk and eyes glinting with nothing but plain mischief. He might as well have worn a huge target sign on himself.

 

He knew his friend would never let this down-- not in a million years. Knowing it was of no use to try reviving himself, he ignored his friend and went back to his food.

 

"Oh. That's nice to know." his friend started and Baekhyun wished for the ground to open and swallow him then and there. He expected his friend to continue with the taunting but to his surprise, Chanyeol just changed the subject and continued as if nothing happened.

 

'What? That's it?' Baekhyun thought to himself but the anxiety was still there. Chanyeol wouldn't just let something like that go. As much as they were best friends, the taller male lived to watch him be miserable. He even believed that Chanyeol was sent to make his life a living hell in the first place. The boy is just evil.

 

He tried to push it out of his head, not sure if he should be greatful or afraid of his friend's actions.

 

Baekhyun found himself being stiff and jumpy for the rest of their dinner and by the time they were done, he somehow breathed a little better.

 

                   .~.~.~.

 

"We'll be going then." Chanyeol said and he was about to follow them when Chanyeol put a hand on his shoulder, pushing him towards the other direction.

 

"You should probably walk with Tao-ssi to the station. You can go get a ride from there too!" Chanyeol smiled sweetly, sending chills up Baekhyun's spine.

 

He stared at his friend in disbelief but the latter simply turned the smaller boy's body and pushed  him forward with brute force. Baekhyun smiled awkwardly towards the quiet male in front of him before turning back to his best friend with a death glare.

 

Chanyeol mouthed a 'you're welcome' to him, followed by the stupid grin he usually wore. Baekhyun rolled his eyes at his friend and started walking a bit faster to catch up with Tao's big steps.

 

Baekhyun swallowed before sneaking a glance at his companion only to have him turn at the same time, shooting him a smile.

 

'Chanyeol you piece of .' Baekhyun continued to curse his friend in his head, his heart beating faster than a bullet train.

 

'This is going to be awkward.' He thought to himself as they walked to the station in complete silence.

 

However, it surprised Baekhyun how the two of them were able to hit it off right away. Although it was mostly Tao trying to start conversation and him not being able to stop his mouth from saying  sarcastic remarks, they were able to establish a comfortable atmosphere between them--which soon lead to them spending more time together even without Chanyeol and Kris around.

 

Baekhyun found that there was more to the mysterious boy behind the yellow line and he was drawn in deeper and deeper the more he found out.

 

But in one particular night when they decided to hang out with Chanyeol and Kris, he was finally able to figure out the look that Tao was always giving the older male.

 

The way that the young boy's eyes shine when Kris was talking to him, the way that his smile was a little bit brighter than normal, the way that he would turn and listen intently whenever Kris did or said anything. Baekhyun finally figured it out and it bothered him more than it was supposed to.

 

It wasn't even supposed to bother him at all but on their way to the station, where he usually parts way with Tao, he couldn't help but let the question slip out of his mouth.

 

"Do you like Kris?" He asked and he wanted the ground to eat him up then and there.

 

Tao gave him a confused look and a smile that Baekhyun established to be his awkward smile-- Tao always smiled in an awkward way but somehow, Baekhyun was able to differentiate them from the sincere laughs Tao barely gives away.

 

"Kris hyung?" Tao started "Of course I like him. He's cool." He continued with a small laugh.

 

"I know. I like him that way too..." Baekhyun hesitated but then decided to push a little bit more. 

 

"But do you like him the way Chanyeol does?" He said carefully-- not really sure if he was being cautious for the younger male or himself.

 

The younger stood frozen where he was, his eyes now full of fear. It reminded Baekhyun of a deer caught in the headlights of a car. Trapped and caught-- that was what Tao looked like and Baekhyun's heart squeezed a little bit tighter.  

 

Letting out a sigh, Tao nodded his head slowly like a child that was being scolded. He looked at Baekhyun who stood there staring and smiled a small, weak and broken smile. 

 

Baekhyun took a deep breath, hoping that it would help subside the pain in his chest and walked towards the latter without thinking. He walked with quick steps and once he reached the younger, his arms reached out, cupping the back of the latter's neck, pulling him in. 

 

As much as Baekhyun loved the feeling of Tao's lips against his--it was soft and warm afterall-- he had to pull away. He looked up-- praying deeply that everything was just in his imagination-- and saw Tao staring at him, a small frown creasing his forehead. It was like a slap in the face, making Baekhyun take another step back.

 

Muttering something that sounded close to 'I'm sorry', Baekhyun turned and ran up the stairs--thanking the heavens for having the train waiting there when he reached the top.

 

He didn't know why he did it. What could have gone in the small excuse of a brain he has to do that? They were friends-- at least he considered them that-- and he wanted to at least keep it that way but what could have been a more obvious way of showing your feelings than kissing the guy?

 

                   .~.~.~.~.

 

He tried apologizing to the younger boy but all his calls were ignored. He guessed the boy wasn't ready to see or talk to him yet-- or ever.

 

But when Chanyeol invited him to hang out, he immediately accepted, hoping that the boy would be there when he entered the restaurant where he first met Tao for real. But it seems like luck wasn't on his side and he couldn't help but let his face fall when he didn't see him there.

 

Apparently, he had a project due the next day. Chanyeol asked him what was wrong and for the first time in his life, he didn't tell his best friend. Chanyeol was hesitant but let it go nonetheless, which Baekhyun was greatful for.

 

He tried calling Tao but failed all 13 times-- or was it 17? He lost count already. He tried texting too but all he got were short and curt replies that said that the younger was busy or wasn't feeling well or were just completely ignored. 

 

Baekhyun laughed at how pathetic he felt and tossed his phone on his bed, diving in after it. He burried his face in his pillow, muffling the sobs that came out of his mouth.

 

Atleast he got to kiss Tao-- he told himself the next few days. That was still better than getting nothing and being ignored. 

 

He gave up on calling or texting, not even bothering to think of looking for him at the station or at his school. Baekhyun just completely gave up on Tao. It's not like he had a chance either way.

 

He started declining Chanyeol's invitations to hang out, knowing that Kris would be there. He wanted to hate Kris but simply couldn't. The man was decent and nice to him after all and he wouldn't risk his best friend's happiness just because he wanted to be selfish and blame Chanyeol's boyfriend for his heart break. So he declined politely, using school as an excuse to say no.

 

Chanyeol tried talking to him again but he just shrugged it off with a small laugh. He was greatful to have Chanyeol but he wouldn't want to hurt Tao or make Chanyeol uncomfortable so he laughed it off.

 

                   .~.~.~.~.~.

 

Baekhyun walked up the stairs up to the train platform and he could smell the familiar scent of the morning dew. The cold wind, blew against him and he shivered, pulling his jacket closer to his body. And just like before, he found himself staring at the yellow line from the platform across from him. 

 

He let out a weak laugh, missing the now familiar red shoes that used to be planted right behind that line. Tears started pricking his eyes and he tried to laugh it off  like he usually does-- but the all too familiar place caused his heart to squeeze even tighter. He stepped back--the tears now threatening to fall-- and turned away from the nostalgic scene in front of him. How could he think it would be easy to go back to the way it was before?

 

He forced himself to look away and focus on something else-- not daring to look up for the tears would fall and people would stare-- only to be met by the bright red shoes that started it all. He really hated those shoes now. He blinked, thinking that it was all in his imagination but was surprised to find them closer when he opened his eyes again. He didn't dare to look up and watched as the owner of the shoes walked over near the edge of the platform. He stood there, behind the yellow line. Not a step or two away, not even crossing it a little bit.

 

Baekhyun finally let his eyes look up and saw the familiar tall male looking at him, a small hesitant smile on his lips.

 

"Hi." he let out. Baekhyun stared at the boy who is standing behind the yellow line, only this time he wasn't on the opposite platform. 

 

 

Extra Krisyeol!!!!!