green - main characters
faded green - already set couples
blue - friendship
dotted blue - aqcuaintance
* Please note: This chart describes the situation at the end of their story.
 

When Chanyeol finally managed to reach his best friend, he had been almost to the point of declare him missing. Even though he was loud and annoying, Xiumin found it kinda endearing how genuinely worried he was.
He couldn't help but wondering whether anyone would miss him that fast if he just disappeared on the spot. And, if that 'anyone' would be Chanyeol.
As it turned out, Baekhyun really had been kinda sick. Even though Chanyeol didn't mention anything and Xiumin wouldn't want to bother him about another person's business, he could tell. From there on, Chanyeol didn't come to bother him at school as often anymore. The reason simply being, that he was practically glued to Baekhyun 24/7. Like, literally glued. Baekhyun was pretty much hanging from his arm wherever he went. Once in a while Chanyeol still came over, but it got rather rare. Whether he didn't want Baekhyun to see their weird relationship or whether he was sort of ashamed for one of them, he didn't know.
All he did know was that he grew weirdly irritated. Even though Baekhyun had never done a thing to him and was a rather pleasant person to be around... Xiumin couldn't help but ask himself: Why are you so close? Is that really neccessary? How old are you?
But even in his denial-over-everything-state he could tell he was just sort of jealous not to be at the receiving end of Chanyeol's puppy-love. Besides that he was mature enough not to show anything.
Strangely enough, while Chanyeol kinda pulled away slightly(due to Baekhyun), Xiumin leaned towards him a little more. He would answer his texts more frequently and even caught himself waiting for him once after school. At some point, the walk had become far too short, though, and one day they instead ended up in a coffee shop.
"You know what I think?", Chanyeol began in between mouthfuls of cake, eating as if he ad been starving all day - which, due to his forgetful nature, might just as well had been the case.
"I think Baekhyun is aaa~bsolutely into our healing tutor!"
At this, Xiumin almost choked on his cheesecake. "L-Lay?!"
Chanyeol looked at him strangely. "Is there anything wrong with Lay?", he asked imploringly. "No, no. Not at all. It's just... I didn't know they were close?", Xiumin began slowly, not knowing how to react to this new-found information.
Even though the lanky guy kept talking, his gaze still remained a little suspicious.
"Yeah, right... Anyways, I just know there's more between them. At the moment they're living together-"
"-...they are what."
"Living together, is everything alright, Hyu-...Xiumin?"
"Y...Yeah." Lost in thoughts Xiumin completely zoned out.
"Well, there wouldn't be a problem, since Lay's kinda awesome and such, but I'm a little worried. Maybe he'll somewhat scare him off. I mean, you know how Baekhyun is. Or maybe you don't. But he's like, reaaaally... Straight-forward. In every area. And Lay's so quiet and soft, I'm really wondering if he could handle Baekhyun; he's quite a hand-full, and that's coming from me-"
Suddenly Xiumin seemed to remember he had been in a conversation, lifting his hand to get a word in. "Wait, what did you just say?"
"Uhm, that I was wondering if Lay could handle Baek?"
Now Xiumin almost snorted into his precious coffee. Chanyeol just looked confused.
The elder one held up a hand to slightly mask his silent laughter.
"You know... I don't think you should worry about that. You should rather worry for
your friend instead."
"Huh, how do you mean that?"
"Tell me then, what do you know about Lay?"
"Hum, he's a healer who works at the hospital and tutors us...", Chanyeol began, counting on his fingers, "He's friends with Suho. And he's really friendly and patient... And very soft-spoken...-"
"That's it, right?"
"Well, yes, but-"
Xiumin had an amused glint in his eyes as he ruined Chanyeol's perfect imagination.
"So what if I told you he's the type to go to clubs at least once a week, dancing for hours and hours?"
"Eeeeh... You're kidding right? How would you know anyway?"
Having a good day and feeling like a tease, Xiumin added with a sassy grin:
"Well, because we go together, duh. You should hear him whining whenever I try to ditch him - 'Xiu-Minniiie~ Come on, just once, it'll be fun! I need to dance!'; it's so difficult to decline him, though his pleading eyes of course won't work on me... Anymore. But I'm telling you, he does know how to move. If you ever heard the term to dance like ' on legs'... That would be referring to Lay."
Chanyeol gawked at him with widened eyes, his cake miraculously forgotten.
"You... You dance?"
Now Xiumin made an attempt to methaphorically draw back a little again; weren't they talking about Lay just now? Why talk about him?
"Uh... Well... Sometimes I only wait at the bar, enjoying the music and stuff...?"
"And at other times you dance?", Chanyeol asked persistently, his eyes shining unsettlingly.
"Goddamn, yes, so what?"
"I wanna tag along next time."
"What - no?", Xiumin stammered, obviously flustered by the idea, but due to his surprise the reply lacked the usual finality.
"Aww, come on!"

From: Yeol
So you said you go once a week? I need a time and a place!
I can hear you sighing, Hyung. ๑•́ㅿ•̀๑)
But now Baekhyun wants to see Lay Hyung dance so badly - He keeps pestering me and there's nothing I can dooo...~
...So give him the judging stare as well, okay? *kkkk*

...Pretty pretty pleeease~! =^∇^*=

In the end he did give away the address and time of their regular friday-evening place, even though he wasn't sure why. Maybe he didn't want to stand in the way of the possible romance of his only true friend.

To: Yeol
Fine. Lay's at the 'World's End', every friday at 10/11 P.M

From: Yeol
And u will be there too? (・◡・)

To: Yeol
Who knows.

From: Yeol
Oh, but I have a gig at 10 (꒪⌓꒪)
I think we'll be there at around 12 - Still ok?

To: Yeol
Sure. He'll be so into it by then, you'll hardly get his attention

Xiumin put his phone on the nightstand and went to brush his teeth.
Gig? What sort of gig? Was he playing in a band? He did see drumsticks. But also a guitar-bag.
When he had changed into his sleeping attire and flopped onto his bed, he finally couldn't hold back anymore and reached for the phone again.

To: Zhang Yixing
Hey Lay.
Mind doing me a favor?
(And don't you dare ask questions)
I want to know the place where Park Chanyeol has his gig on friday.
You're close to Baekhyun, after all?

From: Yixing
Ah, you heard?
Well then, I guess I owe you this, don't I?

To: Yixing
Not only for that.
But be smart about it, if I wanted him to know I would've asked him directly myself.

From: Yixing
I'll be stealthy as a unicorn.

To: Yixing
You and your weird Korean expressions...
How the hell do you think a unicorn would be stealthy?!

From: Yixing
Well, have you ever seen one, then? :)

To: Yixing
...

To: Unicorn-Lay
Now I've renamed you.
And I kept the 'Lay', so everyone will know it's you.

By now you surely wondered if Xiumin had any friends at all. While he did have some friends on the web, persons that were actually there to hang out were pretty much reduced to one person: their occasional healing tutor Lay.
They didn't actually meet at school, though. Surprisingly they met at a dancing academy, where both of them were taking eveningclasses.
Alas, the academy was closed and Lay got too busy to continue taking courses. Instead they made it their tradition to go out at least every friday to dance freely.
Xiumin really enjoyed Lay's company. He culd be playful and childish, but mature when he needed to be, smart, patient and had an even better eye for people than Kai. And besides that, he was gifted with healing powers - There was no way Xiumin could accidently hurt him.
In any way, Lay hadn't ever mentioned anything about Baekhyun before, so he would make sure to ask him later at the club.
It somehow began to annoy him that he didn't know essential things about the people close to him. Maybe Chanyeol really had infected his brain.

Usually they picked each other up, but Xiumin obviously had somewhere to be first.
When he stood before the entrance of a small and ragged looking club he hesitated.
Still, the letters above spelled 'Crazy Dog', so this had to be the right place. And the sign that was written messily with white chalk announced that day's lineup, where - in between various crossed out names - it indeed read: 'Park Chanyeol'.
He felt the guy at the entrance giving him a weird look, even though Xiumin had done his best to adapt to the environment; after all, he didn't want to get caught by Chanyeol.
He had quite dressed himself up for the club, but wore a huge Parka above his outfit as well as a Beanie to conceal his hair. Still, he wore quite the heavy make-up and didn't actually blend into the rather rugged and hip-hop-ish audience he saw outside.
Now that he was inside the club it didn't look all that bad. Sure, it was downstairs and had therefore no windows, but held a number of small tables and chairs spread across the area, leaving room in front of a medium-sized stage. Overall the ambiente wasn't as shabby as he had expected.
He got himself a beer instead of a coke(even if only in protest to the stares the bartender gave him for looking so styled), and made his way to a table he seemed perfectly fit.
And as the time went by and the club filled with streams of people, it turned out to be a good choice - even though very close to the side of the stage, he was pretty much hidden behind the standing audience.
Actually he was kinda suprised this club was that popular - He had never heard of it, and couldn't see any instruments either. It took the highly anticipated arrival of the first performer, that made Xiumin finally understand where he was: This was a club for underground rap!
He couldn't quite believe the overall setting - maybe his stereotypes had been kind of wrong. But what he could believe even less was that Chanyeol was supposed to be a rapper. Harmless, puppy-like Park Chanyeol, a badass rapper? No way. Nooo, no. Xiumin shook his head.
Maybe he was the guy with the guitar solo in between. Or something like that.
The first performer politely bowed and introduced himself as Zelo. He looked awefully young and kinda cute. At that point Xiumin thought he maybe should go home. But when he started rapping, it was just plain amazing. Even though he was no expert he couldn't help but admire the speed and flow of that kid, who had the audience wrapped around his finger in the blink of an eye.
Following was a guy named Zico who was everything Xiumin had pictured thinking about underground hip-hop.
After that, a quiet and extremely husky performance by a so-called Yongguk send the audience into deep and melancholy thoughts.
Then a fierce guy called J-Hope riled the audience up again.
And after him, it was supposed to be Chanyeol's stage.
Xiumin had by then come to realize, that most performers weren't actually newcomers(besides that Zelo kid and the J-Hope guy). Still, the amount of cheering Chanyeol got before he even stepped on stage, was astounding.
When he finally stood in the center of the stage Xiumin couldn't help himself but to stare.
He had only ever seen Chanyeol in his school uniform or in overly leger(not to say sloppy) clothing. Now he wore attention-seeking wide baggy pants with a complete black and gold print on them. Together with the equally wide black tank top it made for an outfit that would make a short person like Xiumin look like a dwarf, but complimented Chanyeol's tall figure well. In addition to that he wore some rather discreet accessories and had obviously had his hair done; in place of his old perm that had almost grown out and left his hair in a constant curly mess, his hair was now freshly crimped, making it even more voluminous, yet in an organized manner. Xiumin had to admit, the organized mess suited him quite well.
And then he began with his first song.
It was a song about the usual boasting rappers did. Xiumin was a little surprised at this. He wouldn't have pictured Chanyeol as the type for all those attempted-boasting? His flow was skillful, but the content... Some people in the audience seemed to giggle as well. And when his ryhmes got a little off and his flow seemed to trip over the words, Xiumin felt a pang of second-hand embarrassment. Especially when he said stuff like: And yeah, I'm hard, hard like your grandma's cookies-
The comparisons got more and more random, and just as Xiumin wanted to bury his head in his arms, Chanyeol reached a peak in his clumsy flow with the line: And for your information, I so ed all of your moms... Which is actually not all that cool now I think about it? But you all know-
And then the audience joined him in his chorus that claimed he was just kidding.
Just kidding, rappers are just kidding. Or at least I hope they are - They can't be serious! 2 pound of gold chains? How can you even walk?
Now that he had overcome his worry of Chanyeol making an idiot out of himself, he began to enjoy the performance. As he heard his rap, he felt stupid for not realizing that Chanyeol's deep voice was made for rapping. The song was a fun one, making the audience sing and shout along. But it wasn't only thanks to the amusing lyrics; his stage presence was just amazing.
It was hardly believable that the guy up there was the same messy and ditzy Park Chanyeol he saw every day. Or maybe he really wasn't all that different and this was just what happened when you let him go all out. When the song ended, he announced a new one, called 'I'm sorry, but...' - Just when Xiumin thought some kind of sad song was about to come, Chanyeol began to tell the story of how he was in a fresh relationship with a girl, but kept making mistakes due to his gift. Sorry Babe, I kinda burnt that cake, I didn't mean to-
And then he kept on rambling about how his relationship was always faced with slight... Difficulties. My heart just burns for you - Not unlike that tablecloth right now- He kept making some flailing gestures and his voice was kind of acting out the scenes as he went on about how their candlelight dinner was so grand, the firefighters were invited.
Xiumin couldn't help but smile. That was Park Chanyeol. Equipped with the right appearance, flow and way of words... Instead of boasting and competing, he used it to make people laugh. With a tad of healthy irony towards himself he made the audience partake and enjoy their evening. He was kinda proud of him.
After that song it  was announced that the crew he was a part of would perform a song together, and so Chanyeol was joined by three other rappers Xiumin hadn't seen that evening. While everyone got his own part Xiumin only had eyes for Chanyeol, who had sat down at the edge of the stage, leaving his long limbs to dangle as he moved his upper body to the rhythm, communicating with the audience occasionally to spur them on a little.
When he jumped in again to do his part, it was the most serious he had performed yet. While he thanked his crewmates Kyung, Yano and Jenissi first, he then properly introduced himself. He still lacked the pretentious boasting of stereotype rappers, but instead went on about how he was just your next-door guy, but next-door guys should not be underestimated. Overall it was a presentation of his rapping abilities, and Xiumin liked his witty way of using the language. When he mentioned he wasn't 'only gifted in one way' with a cheeky wink, though, he swore his ears had gone red under his beanie.
When he made his exit shortly later, Xiumin was clapping along loudly, far too immersed to even think about getting caught anymore.

When Chanyeol and Baekhyun entered the club shortly after Xiumin himself, he had already downed his first two shots. He had been talking to Lay until said one became impatient and jumped onto the dance floor. So Lay and Baekhyun... Now that he thought about it, they had quite some things in common. Surely they'd work out just fine. Then his gaze fell upon the two guys that sat at the second bar, across from him. He couldn't keep in his smile as their jaw literally hit the floor upon seeing Lay dance(who was by then totally lost in his own world). When Rainism followed up, he almost shook his head - how very clisheé. He pondered whether he should go to dance as well. Actually he was nowhere near a bad dancer, but next to Lay he did feel kind of self-counscious. So he instead ordered another drink. By then Chanyeol had began scanning the room for him. Hah, there was no way he would recognize him that easily, since the shorter one had dressed himself up to his best ability. He went for a tight, black pair of pants, combined with a loose top made of a shimmering and structured artificial fabric, accompanied by a simple silver earring. Besides that he had died his hair from brown to a light and soft bubblegum pink, styled in a slightly disheveled way. As the finishing touch he had his eyes rimmed thickly with black kohl to create an alluring and dramatic effect. What had seemed like a great idea before, now made Xiumin hesitant; maybe he had overdone it.
He could as well just wait here... And drink another shot. Then again, it wasn't quite right that Chanyeol stared at Lay like that. Xiumin didn't like it.
Suddenly the familar beat of a Chinese song named "Fantasy" was played, and Lay kept jumping around giddily, wildly gesturing for Xiumin to join him. With a smile Xiumin hopped from the bar stool and strode over to him; he couldn't deny Lay a song from Show Luo. For now he tried not to think about Chanyeol and Baekhyun watching him and instead focused on the mix of elation and relaxation on Lay's face, as he moved to a song in his mother language. He really must miss his home country from time to time. The song was had a pretty neat up-beat vibe and was perfect for Xiumin to loosen up a bit. He had just begun to lose himself in the music, when his eyes saw over Lay's shoulder and directly into Chanyeol's eyes. He almost froze in mid-movement, but that would've been way too obvious. Still, the tall guy made him damn nervous, as he just kept staring. Usually Chanyeols mimique was like an open book to him(and probably everyone else around), but at that moment he had no idea what went through his head. He was... Attentive, following his every moment. He didn't smile, but didn't seem displeased either.
Still, something about his gaze was so intense that Xiumin felt weirldy exposed.
The alcohol slowly began to sink in and he worried it might make his movements sloppy. And when with "S.N.S" a y song introduced itself, Xiumin felt his stubborn nature get to him - there was no way he would lose to Lay! He might not have his technique, but he had the look and the opportunity (and a tidbit of alcohol). With those three magical ingredients to spur his bravery on, he began to dance more purposefully, his movements going from sharp and controlled to (hopefully) and flowing movements. Once in a while he playfully danced with Lay, just to look over to Chanyeol the next second, tilting his head and smiling lightly mouthing along the lyrics, as if urging him to join him. And if he interpreted correctly, Chanyeol was more than enticed to do so. Yet, he was trapped there with Baekhyun which only served as a wonderful opportunity to some more from afar.
Boy, this was fun. When he left after the next song to sit down at the bar again, he could feel his eyes still glued to him. Then he reached for his phone and Xiumin automatically got his out as well. The message arrived mere seconds later.

From: Yeol
Daaaaamn Hyung
Stop teasing meee... ヽ(￣д￣;)ノ
I can't even join you

To: Yeol
Why is that? Baekhyun?

From: Yeol
Yes.

Then the said one pulled at his sleeves, yelling something into his ear and they left the club. Somehow, he was slightly annoyed. He didn't even say goodbye.
Hm. Now that the evening was kinda over and he was a little frustrated, he might as well get wasted and dance a little more, right?
But after another 2 minutes his phone vibrated again.

From: Yeol
I sent Baekhyun home with a taxi~

To: Yeol
Why don't you come back in, then?

From: Yeol
Nah, I don't wanna be the third wheel
Since you two seemed to enjoy yourself

There was a certain lack of emoticons, which made Xiumin suspicious. Before he could answer, however, another message came in.

From: Yeol
So... I guess it's goodbye for today?

Xiumin fidgeted. There was a question mark. Was this some kind of indication?

From: Yeol
See you tomorrow then~ (・◡・)

Then he finally snapped, typing back hastily.

To: Yeol
I'm tired of texting
You're in front of the club?

From: Yeol
Huh? Yes?

To: Yeol
Stop right there.

Xiumin grabbed his things and simply went out of the club, curtly saying goodbye to Lay. The latter was already immersed into the music to a point where he had no qualms in leaving him; he was an adult, for god's sake.
Even though the cool air hit his face, he could swear his cheeks were glowing at the sight of Chanyeol waiting outside. He looked even more handsome close up. They both looked at each other for a second, before Chanyeol spoke first.
"Hi there."
"Hey."
"Uhm, so... Nice outfit."
"You too."
Chanyeol looked around casually, upholding the conversation.
"You don't wanna go back in?"
"Ah. No, not really."
"What about Lay?"
"He'll survive on his own."
"Oh. Okay. So then..."
It seemed that even Chanyeol once in a while ran out of things to say.
Not too surprising, considering the fact how much of a conversation killer Xiumin was.
"Should I walk you home? There are no more trains coming, but it isn't too far, right?"
"About half an hour? Maybe a little more?"
"Well, how about it? It'll be like a good walk after school~"
Xiumin nodded and they began walking in a slightly uncomfortable silence. Actually, Xiumin had no idea what he even wanted from Chanyeol. And he was still thinking about why it even came to all of this in the first place.
Suddenly he felt Chanyeol reaching for his hand. Out of instinct he harshly pulled it away, looking at him with wide eyes.
Chanyeol answered with a pout on his face.
"Aww, come on, Hyung!"
Xiumin felt conflicted. He was somewhat disappointed in himself as well as sorry for having to reject the friendly boy over and over again.
When he didn't even receive a harsh answer, Chanyeol looked a little thoughtful. A few steps later, he spoke up again.
"Say, do you dislike touches so much?"
"Uhm... Yes. Yes, actually I do."
"Haaah, you were hesitating just now. So what about Lay, then? You didn't seem to have a problem touching him."
Xiumin threw him a side glance. Was he assuming something? But... No, he got it all wrong, he internally screamed. Still, he somehow didn't open his mouth.
"...Or maybe it's just me that's appalling you?", he asked quietly, with a tinge of bitterness.
"-No! I mean... No. It's just because of his gift!", he finally broke out.
"Huh? What about his gift?"
"Well, it's healing."
"Well, and?"
"And... And there's no way I would hurt him, okay?!", Xiumin answered unintentionally snappy.
 Now Chanyeol stopped to look at him with wide eyes. Then, after a moment that seemed agonizingly long, he began to laugh.
"W-What is your problem?!", he angrily barked at the laughing boy.
Said one bit his lip to stiffle his laugh a little.
Flustered, Xiumin stalked past him, when Chanyeol reached for his hand again.
"Why - Don't-", he began, but Chanyeol cut him off, now with a sincere smile.
"But Hyung, I'm a gifted one, too! There's no way you would hurt me!"
Xiumin still half-heartedly tried to free his hand as he argued.
"So you think that's a good idea? Fire and ice? Let's see whether I'll get burnt to a crisp instead?"
"What makes you think my gift is fire?"
"Seriously now?"
"Don't be silly Hyung, I never ever hurt a friend~ Besides that I'm not even affected by your cold. So you don't need to hold back on me~ ...but my, your fingers really are cold-", he rambled as they now walked hand in hand, "Is heat or warmth in general uncomfortable for you?"
"No it's not."
Yes it was. Xiumin deeply loathed the soaring summer sun. But since this kind of warmth was somehow different and quite pleasant, he wouldn't tell Chanyeol. For now.

"Sooo...", Chanyeol began after a rather long moment of silence.
Xiumin signalised his listening by throwing him a side-way glance.
"...About Baek and Lay. Are you... Okay with them?", he cautiously asked.
Xiumin didn't even bat an eyelash, having the answer ready.
"Of course. I think they'll compliment each other well, as much as I know of Baekhyun, at least."
A deep hum followed in response. And as he further thought about how touchy and close Baekhyun and Chanyeol had seemed - especially recently -, he couldn't help but wonder.
"...And you? Are you okay with them?"
"Me?", he echoed surprised, before a sincere smile spread across his face.
"Sure thing. I think of Lay as a good person; he even partied in a civilised manner just now. I'll entrust my best friend to him. I'm a little sad I can't help him the way Lay does, but I guess that's how it's supposed to be. In the end, no matter how similar, love has a different flavour than friendship after all.
Uh, I don't wanna sound too depressed about it, though - Baek needed a little looove in his life and I'm glad he found it~!", he ended happily, swinging their intertwined fingers back and forth, lightly squeezing them. And Xiumin, thoughtful from receiving the heartfelt answer, squeezed back.
This kind of skin contact was kind of new but nice, considering he didn't walk around holding hands with Lay. So when they reached his doorstep, he was more than reluctant to let go.
When Chanyeol opened his mouth, Xiumin fell in without thinking.
"You can stay over."
A surprised look from the big and curious eyes.
"Uhm. You've never seen my apartment, right? A-and it's late. If you have to go home alone - I don't wanna owe you anything, and-"
"Okay, I'll take your offer, then~", he cheerfully replied. A second of Xiumin looking dumbfounded followed. Then Chanyeol swung their still interlocked hands.
"Sooo...?", he began, snapping Xiumin back to reality.
"Yeah, right. Come on."

"Waaah! It's so clean! Like, squeaky, sparkly, sparkly clean! And so bright and stylish - Like in a commercial!", Chanyeol cheerily admired as he entered the living room.
"Well, we can't all live in a complete mess."
"Ahaha, you're right~"
It was weird how he wasn't even slightly offended, Xiumin thought as he watched Chanyeol stroll around, scanning the titles of his books neatly ordered into his shelves as he hummed happily.
Okay, so now he had Chanyeol in his house, which didn't feel as weird as he had pictured it to be. He cleared his throat lightly to get his attention.
"So, since it's kinda late, I'll show you where to sleep."
Ten minutes later, Chanyeol looked at the pajamas in his hand with a conflicted face. Xiumin had gone to the bathroom and had already told him goodbye for the night, announcing he'd sleep on the couch. A look to the bathroom door confirmed this; Xiumin was nowhere in sight.
Since Chanyeol's body temperature was pretty high at all times, no matter the surroundings, he had a certain dislike to sleeping in long pajamas. It was just uncomfortable. So after a last stealthy look around, he decided to slip under the blankets in his boxers, placing the sleeping attire as neatly as possible next to the bed. He switched off the night lamp and snuggled into the still pleasantly cooling bed sheets. A few minutes later -he had already been half asleep-, the matress behind him dipped with additional weight. First, his brain barely registered it. But then he felt a very cool finger touching his neck and slowly running down his spine, sending a shiver rippling through him.
Then it slowly dawned on him.
"Huh... Wait, Xiu-", he began, turning around - only to be stopped by a surprisingly strong but equally cold hand on his shoulder.
"What is it, Chanyeol?", he heard the voice behind him ask rather softly. He was confused, to say the least.
"Uh, what are you doing?", he cautiously asked, keeping still for the moment.
"Isn't this what you wanted all along?", he went on and a slightly cool pair of soft lips began to kiss his neck, first pecking it lightly, lingering a little longer everytime, before moving along his back; from his shoulder blades to the side of his neck and to his hairline. The feeling sent another shiver through him and he left out a sigh, overwhelmed with the sudden need fluttering inside of him. Still... just because it felt good, it didn't mean it was right.
"Xiumin. You should stop that.", he tried to say as casual as possible.
"Why? You don't like it?"
Fingers were dancing along his bare arms, leaving a shudder in their trail.
"I'd be lying to say so. Still, you shouldn't."
"Why?"
"You're drunk."
"I'm not drunk."
Wonderfully cool hands encircled his waist to dance along the flat stomach as the kisses got just a tad closer to the side of his face.
"Yes you are. I saw you taking at least five shots with my very own eyes."
"So what? I can assure you I'm still crystal-clear."
Chanyeol couldn't keep in a low moan as Xiumin boldly kissed up his neck while his hands continued to roam along his body. The small but all the stronger hands pulled him closer towards his cool body.
The feeling of colder skin against his own, naturally warm one began to cloud his mind. It felt so, so good. Actually Chanyeol wouldn't have pictured his Hyung to be this bold. A finger began to encircle his , while his lips obiviously a lovebite, just to across it once, tentativly.
"I thought I shouldn't hold back, Chanyeol?", he heard the voice from behind him croon, lower than usual.
Xiumin's half-lidded eyes widened when Chanyeol suddenly whirled around to press his back into the soft matress. Now he was hovering over him, his wildly crimped hair slightly damp from sweat. His eyes had that look again, that intense one. Xiumin almost smirked to himself at the revelation. So it had been a look of lust, after all.
"So I don't have to hold back either, huh?"
His voice was calm and serious. For some reason, a serious Chanyeol made Xiumin feel weird things. Still he held the gaze as he got aware of the close proximity, how tiny he felt under him. Chanyeol inched closer, until his upper body lay flush on Xiumin's equally bare one, as he leaned in close to Xiumins ear, whispering huskily into it.
"Don't worry, I'll make your body hot.."
He then slowly his ear and god, didn't Xiumin feel hot already. As if all ability to breathe had left him; The warm hands gliding down his sides, the hot body on top of his, the burning tongue on his ear. Right now, every single thought of him screamed: Don't stop it. Chanyeol's sudden dominant streak made him even hotter. And when he began to bury his head in his neck, pressing hard kisses to his slowly warming skin as his hands kept him in place, Xiumin squirmed and softly moaned.
The pleasure was thrilling and addictive and made him lean into the touches, slightly arching his body closer to the source of heat. The kisses turned more passionate as Xiumin lightly gripped the messy hair.
"So good... It's so good...", he sighed as he received more kisses along his shoulder, trailing down his body.
A surprised mewl escaped him as a wet kiss was placed onto his sensitive .
And the kisses went lower... Down his sides, over his stomach and navel, teasing his hipbones with hot and kisses. Xiumin felt wrecked. It was soft but hard. Passionate but tender. But above all that...
"...It's so hot.", he whined, barely above a whisper.
Chanyeol went back to slightly hovering over him, looking into his bright, pleading eyes with that warm brown orbs of his. Xiumin was thoroughly flushed by then and subcounsciously his lips as they stared at each other. Not averting his lust-blown eyes Chanyeol cheekily slid a finger under the waistband of his shorts. Instinctively, the shorter one flinched, and the finger was gone in an instant. The eyes, that hadn't left his, were shining with a hint of mirth as Chanyeol rolled to the side of his body, pulling him into an embrace. All the tension seemed to have disappeared in the blink of an eye, as he placed a soft kiss onto his hair.
For a few seconds, nothing but uneven breathing was heard.
When Xiumin deemed his breathing calm enough, he raised his raspy voice.
"...You never intended to do anything, did you?"
He could basically feel Chanyeol smile his goofy smile.
"Nope. You're drunk."
Xiumin groaned frustratedly.
"Jerk."
"That's not a nice thing to say. I merely returned the favour.", he said as he softly petted his hair.
"I can literally feel you're as well."
"No joke. Clearly your fault."
Xiumin merely huffed, letting Chanyeols big, warm hands softly massage his back.
After a few minutes of silence, Xiumin spoke up again, relaxed by the careful but certain caresses.
"You know... I'm sorry."
"Mh?", he got the tired response.
"I underestimated you. And I am really sorry for that."
"Why? Cause I didn't take advantage of you?"
"No you idiot. It's not that."
"Then what is it?", he asked in a sleepy mumble.
"Since you won't take me seriously now, I'll tell you tomorrow."
"Fine by me."
He moved to place a soft kiss to his cheek before continuing to hold the shorter one against his chest.
"You're forgiven."
"You didn't even hear it yet."
"Let's sleep now."

When Xiumin woke up he could tell that he had been sleeping longer than usual. Still, the way the sun shone through his windows and onto the bed told him it wasn't too late.
Somewhere along the night Chanyeol had tangled their legs together, one arm still thrown around his waist.
The feeling of waking up in the arms of someone was so foreign. The whole concept of skinship was still foreign, but overall the heated skin against his felt amazing.
He cautiously lifted his head as not to wake him and studied Chanyeol. Now he thought about it he had never looked at him this close and for so long. His light brown strands of crimped hair were silently bouncing along his every movement, glowing from the sunlight. In between his right ear peaked out. While Chanyeol felt self-conscious about them, Xiumin didn't see anything wrong with his ears; they actually suited him perfectly. Then his eyes wandered over his face. His skin wasn't as pale as Xiumin's own, harbouring a slight natural tan from being outside a lot. He had those soft but manly features with lips slightly parted-
Then he began to stir, as if awoken by the inspection. Xiumin's eyes flitted down in an instant. Sensing this, Chanyeol's slightly rough hands drew him closer as he inhaled the scent of his hair.
"...'morning, Xiu...", he mumbled, his voice even deeper from sleep. Then, after a few seconds, maybe even a minute, his body suddenly stiffened and he drew away slightly, with big eyes throwing his elder friend a slightly panicked look.
"Y-You're not gonna kill me, right?"
Xiumin chuckled.
"Tss, I told you I wasn't drunk. Of course I won't."
Chanyeol nodded thoughtfully to himself as if weighing his options. Then he drew him back into the warm embrace.
"If that's so... Let's sleep a little more."
"Yah, Chanyeol, it's pretty late already."
"Mh. How d'ya know?"
"The clock on the wall. Today's saturday, which means afterclasses."
He got a soft groan in response.
"Come on, I thought I was the one supposed to have a hangover."
"So you admit you drank a lot."
"You frustrate me. Drinking and being drunk are two different things. As I told you, I remember clearly."
Silence followed. As an afterthought, he added:
"...And I'm neither dieing of remorse nor regret right now, just to let you know."
"Mhmmm...", a deep and thoughtful mumble was heard. Even though he couldn't see his face, he felt that Chanyeol was very much awake by then.
"So what were you going to tell me yesterday?"
"Uh..."
"You do remember, don't you?"
"Of course I do! I..."
Without the magical courage called alcohol, Xiumin felt flustered to talk about this. Still, he tried to voice out his thoughts as collected as possible.
"I want to apologize to you. I have been underestimating you."
For once in his life, Chanyeol just kept quiet and Xiumin went on slowly.
"Because you were always popular, I thought you had to be shallow in any way.
Because you always had time for everyone, I took it you had no diligence.
And because you cared... I thought you had to be a hypocrite."
The embrace slightly tightened. Xiumin knew he should look him in the eye, but he couldn't and buried his face a little further into his lean chest.
"But you're actually genuine about everything. You're exceptionally smart and even though you're an active member of the Science Club you find the time to be part of a rap crew, of the voluntary fire brigade, to learn new things and keep the old ones fresh in your mind. And besides all of that you manage to care for your friendsfor those who need you... And for me, even."
He forced himself a little away to look into those chocolate brown eyes that had never lost their patience with him.
"I always accused you of not taking me seriously, when in reality it was the other way around. I didn't take you seriously. That's what I'm sorry for.", he ended, genuinely looking at him with eyes, shining in deep regret.
At this, Chanyeol smiled the brightest he had seen yet and even a light blush dusted his cheeks.
"That's... Thank you. Honestly, that must be the nicest thing anyone has ever told me. I'll treasure your words for sure."
Still, Xiumin's smile remained a little mellow and withdrew himself completely from the taller ones touch.
"Besides my words there's not much I could give you, though. Let me be completely honest with you. I... I have come to to like you. I didn't mean to, actually. But it happened."
Chanyeol eyed him warily, unsure of what to make of his tone.
"But look... I don't think we would work out. The two of us, I mean."
A flash of hurt went over his face, as he tried not to sound too desperate.
"W-why would you think that, Hyung?"
"Because of what we are. Chanyeol. We are not meant to be. We are too different-"
"Are you on to that again? How does it even matter?"
"Because we don't fit into each others' lifes, simple as that. Your life is so eventful, so busy, while I'm content with leading my days in a quiet and simple matter. One day, you'll yearn for more than what I could offer you. And soon enough, we'd be fighting over trivial things, since the only thing we have in common is our stubbornness. I'm... Scared. I don't want to see things end like this."
"So then prove it."
"Huh?"
Chanyeol looked at him, undeterred.
"Let's try it. Being together... Let's try it for a month."
"What... Are you talking about, no."
He'd fall even more, and then it would hurt all the more as well.
"A week, then."
Xiumin narrowed his eyes. Of course Chanyeol wouldn't give up like that.
"One day."
"Naw, gimme me at least three.", he pouted.
"Fine. No more than that, though."
"Starting Monday?"
"Tss, starting right now."
"What?! No fair, I didn't prepare anything!"
"You want to know what I'd do to a person not associated with me, that I woke up next to in nothing but shorts?"
"Uh... Ok, Fair enough.", Chanyeol groaned, ruffling his hair before swinging his legs out of bed.
"What are you up to now?"
"Making breakfast of course - You can just sleep a little longer or shower~!", Chanyeol called back from his way to the kitchen.
Xiumin stared into the nothing, processing his words.
Chanyeol. Messy, clumsy Chanyeol in his clean kitchen. Xiumin's eyes widened, as he hastily threw over a pullover to pad after him, mumbling: "Oh no, you don't..."

 

Uhm, yeah...

What to say. I decided to turn this into a three-shot after all. The reason simply being, that this story turned out looonger and longer! And I didn't want to overdo it like it happened with the 11.something k chapter with LayBaek. I hope that's not too annoying :<

So yeah, regarding the chapter:
I don't know about you, but the music market of my home country is huge and has plenty of rappers that take on fun topics rather than the sterotype one - I enjoy those a lot :)
In the Korean pop segment there aren't many rappers like that yet, besides Park Kyung. But I'm keeping my hopes up!
Hehe, I mentioned some of my favourite rappers here, a cookie for those that recognize them all :)
Oh, and the 'bed scene'-thingy was a first for me, too. Sure, it's still PG-12, but it was a new experience for me~

As always, every form of feedback makes me genuinely happy ♥
You keep motivating me~ Thank you~!

Love,
Sugar-and-Salt