Chanyeol decided to give it a week or two before he actually went over to Kris’s place. Not only did it give him time to gather his wits and do a bit more coursework, but it allowed his bruises and scars to heal. He didn’t really want Kris seeing him like that again.

He chose a reasonable time to go over; late afternoon, ensuring his friend would be there and hopefully not out somewhere. ‘Friend...’ Chanyeol still calls him this but he’s not so sure if they are friends. Friends hang out together, have fun and share jokes, and help with coursework. It’s been so long since Chanyeol did anything like that with Kris.

At first it was awkward. Chanyeol turning up there and ringing the doorbell, bouncing on on his feet, feeling jittery as he waited for Kris. The taller man answered the door with a mouthful of toast but grinned brightly too.

“Oh hey, man. Come in.” Kris stepped aside, letting Chanyeol in to take off his shoes. “I was just working on some papers.” He led Chanyeol through a wide, open-plan room to what he assumed was the dining room, but with all the books and paper strewn over the table, it could be described more as an office.

“I don’t want to interrupt,” he scratched the back of his head nervously. The last thing he wanted to do was be rude.

“No it’s cool. I was having a break anyway.”

Kris offered him something to drink so he choose cola which he gratefully accepted since he suddenly felt so hot for some reason. He downed it quickly and it managed to calm him somewhat. Being in Kris’s space felt odd. It almost felt as if he didn’t belong.

The dining room was tucked in the corner next to the living room and kitchen. You could tell with just one look where the most time was spent. The kitchen was full of bits and bobs littering the counters. Despite being so bright and modern, it wasn’t very homely. There wasn’t any personality to the space. He wondered what Kris’s room was like if the downstairs was like this. Sat on the soft sofa that looked too new and too clean, Chanyeol felt out of place. He’d feel more at home at the Exo Pit. Kris sat next to him, his leg tucked up onto the sofa and a mountain of toast stacked in front of him on the coffee table.

“How’s uni or whatever then?” Chanyeol asked if only to fill the deafening silence. He didn’t even know what the brunette’s major was. Long ago, he remembered Kris once talking about teaching language or something. He wondered if that’s what he was pursuing.

Kris nodded, “it’s going good. It’s a lot of work though.”

Chanyeol nodded in agreement. Half of the other’s toast was already gone in minutes and he only just noticed that Kris had topped it with some weird chunky jam. He always did have weird eating habits.

He reached out, fingers dancing along the hood of Kris’s hoodie in familiarity. It was black save for the brand name splashed across the front in bold white letters. His face scrunched up.

“I got you this... Didn’t I?” Kris smirked and nodded.

“Yup.”

If his fingers inched a little closer, they’d brush against the skin of Kris’s neck, and for some reason, Chanyeol really wanted that.

“Why do you still have it?”

“Why should I throw it out? I like it. And you got me it. Presents shouldn’t be thrown away.” He brushed the crumbs off his fingers and lap and turned to Chanyeol.

The redhead almost gasped. As the other turned to him, his fingers did graze against his neck. Chanyeol’s throat started to feel tight and small. Kris’s dark eyes met his with challenge, daring him to remove his fingers. It was as if he had no control over them anymore, and they started to draw patterns of nothing along the length of his neck.

“We should hang out more,” Kris mumbled, his eyes still holding Chanyeol’s intently.

Chanyeol nodded and hummed in agreement “We should, hyung.”

Kris smiled then. It was warm and sweet and Chanyeol had to let out the breathe he didn’t even know he was holding. The brunette shifted in his position, knocking his knee against Chanyeol’s. He barely noticed it though.

He regretted wearing his bomber jacket; it was far too hot for it. It was far too hot for Kris’s black hoodie. Chanyeol used to say he was cold blooded because he always acts cold. He knew that wasn't the case. Kris acts cold at first, a defensive shield keeping him safe and aloof but chip away at it and a silly kid is revealed. A kid who acts like a teddy bear more than unapproachable model who doesn’t give anyone a second glance.

Chanyeol noticed his fingers had travelled up to Kris’s hairline and Kris still didn’t seem to mind. His hair was longer than Chanyeol’s and hadn’t really been styled; it fell about in a fuzzy mess. Chanyeol really wanted to just run his hand through it and mess it up more. He wanted to tug at it just to see Kris wince. He was so caught up in thinking about Kris’s stupid hair that he didn’t notice the way Kris’s hands found a place on his knees. And when he did, he realised he didn’t mind — it was as if they belonged there really.

They spent several minutes like that, simply dragging fingers over the spaces they found, safe within boundaries, silently getting acquainted with each other’s presence again. Kris normally didn’t say much where Chanyeol usually said anything and everything that came to mind. With Kris though, he didn’t need to. It felt like this was enough. His fingers said ‘don’t forget me, your best friend’ for him. And if either were going to say anything, they couldn’t because a very loud voice crashed through the door.

“Ah Kyungsoo, you’re so stingy! Lighten up!” There was no reply from ‘Kyungsoo’.

As soon as a body burst into the room, Chanyeol’s hand flew back to his side faster than lightning. Kris however was slower to react, his hands lingering as he looked over his shoulder.

“Hey Kris!” Said the guy with chocolate hair and catlike figures.

“Jongdae, you’re back.” Kris smiled. After catlike guy, came a shorter, more mousey guy with large eyes. His dark, inky hair was smoothed to the side whilst the other’s was more untamed but pulled back. Chanyeol had never seen such opposites before. “Welcome back, Kyungsoo-yah.” And then the most blinding smile Chanyeol had the pleasure of viewing, spread across Kris’s face.

‘Kyungsoo’ smiled back briefly, wary of Chanyeol; the stranger in their home. Jongdae didn’t seem to even notice Chanyeol sat awkwardly on the sofa and walked further on into the kitchen to unpack the bag he had been carrying.

“Kyungsoo’s being stingy Kris! He says I’m too old for comics.” Kris chuckled at the whiny tone and what had been said.

“You can never be too old for comics,” He said to Kyungsoo before rising to his feet. “Guys, this is Chanyeol, an old friend of mine. Chanyeol, this is Kyungsoo and Jongdae, my horrible housemates.”

Jongdae turned to them with a look of feigned hurt. “Why do you always bully us?” But then he focused on Chanyeol and grinned with a short bob of the head. Kyungsoo sort of nodded at him before taking Kris’s used plate from the table and bringing it to the kitchen. If Chanyeol felt out of place before, he felt even more out of place now. The three moved into a kitchen where they had a debate about the appropriate age for comic reading whilst Chanyeol sat on the sofa like an awkward lemon. He watched them silently. He watched how Jongdae’s laugh was loud enough for the three of them and how Kris was more animated between them. He particularly noticed how Kyungsoo was stuck to Kris’s side like those fishes that stick to sharks. Chanyeol felt suffocated. They all looked so happy. Kris looked so happy. There was no room for him here.

He stood up from the sofa and began to make his way to the door. “Hey, uh, Kris… I’m… gonna go…” The brunette looked surprised for a moment before quickly following him.

“Okay.”

“It was… good seeing you,” Slipping on his shoes and opening the door, Chanyeol felt himself lingering. He looked back to find Kris smiling warmly at him.

“I’ll see you soon, yeah?” Kris wanted to see him again. He wanted to see Kris again.

“Yeah,” he grinned, finally stepping out of the door. With one last smile over his shoulder, he walked away and the door clicked shut behind him.

As he walked home, his head was filled with images of Kris with his new friends. Laughing and having a great time without him. Kris didn’t really need him anymore. Chanyeol was just an odd piece of the jigsaw that didn’t fit in his life. But Chanyeol still wanted to be a part of it somehow. He didn’t want to be away from Kris anymore. Suddenly, he stopped in his tracks.

If he took a left here he would go home and wallow in front of the TV. If he went right, it would take him to the Exo Pit where he might be in with the chance to win another $200.

It didn’t take much thought, Chanyeol knew exactly what he wanted to do. He went right.

☄

The poor guy didn’t stand a chance against Chanyeol. He threw everything he had at him. Fair play to his opponent, he gave as good as he got but tonight, Chanyeol was frustrated and angry and nothing was going to stop him. Chanyeol fought like he was going to die if he wasn’t going to win. He punched his opponent unconscious onto the floor and breathed out heavily when the crowd roared in approval at his win.

“The Virus has done it again!” The announcer bellowed, holding Chanyeol’s hand high above him. He was grinning stupidly under copious amounts of sweat and blood. The cheer thrummed deep within his skin, in his blood. He felt better now. He wasn’t suffocated or stifled. He felt right.

He laid back on one of the benches in the locker room, simply breathing and feeling the steady beat of his heart.

“You’re getting quite popular, Virus,” He cracked an eye open to find Baekhyun, a brown envelope in hand. He handed it him and Chanyeol grinned as he took it. His winnings. “You know, the boss is talking about making you a fixture here.”

That made him sit up, confusion and surprise painting his features. “What?”

“Yeah. He’s thinking about making you a house wrestler. It’d mean you’d get a raise.”

The thought of more money in his pocket lit a fire inside of him. He’d belong to the Exo Pit and become the Virus for real. He’d have to fight more often though but even that thought excited him.

“Hey, don’t think too hard. The boss isn’t sure about it yet.” Chanyeol’s smirk was skeptic. If the boss was thinking about making him a house wrestler, then he would be a house wrestler. Chanyeol had yet to meet the boss however. He hadn’t even caught a glimpse of the mysterious man. All he had to go on was Baekhyun, and Baekhyun was very colourful when he spoke.

“Thanks man,” despite the familiar ache of a good fight in his knuckles, they bumped fists.