Baekhyun is crying. 

He is crying for all the beats missed, all the cracks in his voice, all the disappointment and all the other members who are in worse condition than he is.

His hair is disheveled, sickly pale skin bitten by the cold, his sore from sitting on the uncomfortable wooden park bench and he's covered in sweat after having run out in the middle of dance practice, not to mention the fact that he is receiving strange looks from passersby but screw it all; Byun Baekhyun needs a good cry. 

'I'm not fit for this life', he thinks wearily to himself, 'but it's too late to back out now'. They wouldn't be able to replace him, he'd already gathered a small group of fans thanks to the teasers and the group as a whole is being paid lots of interest from the public. It would be selfish of him to leave. But isn't it more selfish just to sit around and drag the team down? 

He is crumbling under all the pressure and expectations, scolding after scolding just makes his heart sink deeper and deeper. He wishes he could disappear, he wishes he could just die in a hole right now. Maybe that could be his way out?

“It's hard isn't it?” 

His head immediately snaps up to look in the direction of where the voice had come from, that oh so familiar voice and freezes when he is met with an equally as familiar face. He would always be able to recognise her anywhere, even with her bare face and casual clothes, even when what he sees is only what remains of her after all the glitz and glamour is stripped off. But, of course, in his eyes Kim Taeyeon always looks breathtaking. The same could not be said about Baekhyun, however. In a desperate attempt to look presentable, he runs a hand through his hand and wipes away the tears trailing down his face.

A halo of moonlight glows around her petite figure as she takes a seat next to him and offers him a hesitant pat on the back. And of course, the only reasonable thing to do in this sort of situation would be to convince himself he's hallucinating because surely Kim Taeyeon of all people would not be here right now. She could not be here right now. He's sure she would have better things to do than sit on a park bench and try to comfort a pathetic little teenage boy whom she'd only met once before. But the warmth of her hand on his back says otherwise, the burning feeling of what would have been her skin against his had it not been for this thin t-shirt has his stomach doing somersaults and backflips as she softly mutters words of comfort. All these signs prove to him that she is not just a figment of his imagination, but a real person. All skin, flesh and bones. 

He briefly wonders if he really is dead. If he's really gone to heaven, because surely that's the only place he would meet angels? 

--

No, no, no. This can't be happening. Merely a week ago, she'd seen him laughing and cartwheeling. His eyes were fricking shining, but now those beautiful brown orbs are dull and red with tears clinging to his eyelashes. Is it really so easy for a person to break in this world? Is there really no way to stop it? 

Obviously she can't show her inner turmoil on the outside. She can't just run up to him and sweep him into a hug like she so desperately wants to. She doesn't even know this boy so she has to stay professional. She doesn't even know this boy - she tells herself again before her body starts moving against her will - but she wants to protect him all the more for that.

“It was hard for me too when I debuted, but I carried on because I loved singing, you know?” she tells him in a quiet voice, not really sure how else to comfort him. All she knows is that she has to make him smile again. “You must keep your passion pure and alive, it will be the only thing that helps you survive in this industry. You have to be strong to make it.” Then he looks up at her with an emotion so strong in his eyes that her heart leaps up into is throat, he looks so innocent, so young, so hopeful. She doesn't tell him her passion is slowly dying out. 

There is a bit of a pause, as if he's assessing what he should say next, as if he's trying to censor out the things that would not be ok to say to someone you're not that well aquainted to. The flicker of hesitance flashing across his face makes her chest ache. She wants to show him that he can trust her, that he can get close to her, that she's not the world renowned leader of the top girl group in south korea but just normal, ordinary Kim Taeyeon.

“And if I'm not strong enough?” Baekhyun's voice is weak and cracks half way through his sentence, which only sends her spiraling down a pit of despair because this boy can not give up. He can not break so soon.

“You will be, Baekhyun ah.” Her words are filled with conviction and her smile with encouragement. “If people like you don't survive in this world, then who will?” He returns her smile, albeit slowly. For the first time in all her 23 years of living, Taeyeon feels like she's done something right.

-

“People like me?” Baekhyun's eyebrows knot together - only just catching onto what she'd said - as she stands up, flicking invisible dust off her skirt. He looks up at her, moonlight illuminating her soft face and thinks no music video, photo shoot or album cover could ever compare to how beautiful she looks right now. He's not sure if these thoughts are his fanboy feelings or something more but decides not to read too much into it.

“I can sense your passion from a mile away,” laughter is laced in her voice, probably due to his dumbstruck expression. If only she knew he wasn't dumbstruck because of her words, but because of her entire existence. She takes a step forward and Baekhyun's heart sinks because he thinks she's going to leave him alone just like that. But Taeyeon shoots a glance over her shoulder, cocking her head in a fashion that almost makes the poor fanboy hyperventilate. “Aren't you coming?”

His heart flies up from the ground into his throat and he involuntarily lets out a choked sound. Like a soldier obeying to the orders of his higher ups, he jumps off the bench and begins trailing after her every step like a lost puppy. He swears he saw her crack an affectionate smile but that could be the lack of sleep talking.

“Where are we going?” he finally asks after a few minutes of aimlessly following her lead. It seems stupid to only ask now but he thinks someone with the face of angel could never kidnap him and send him to some sort of slaughter house so it's all ok. He does, however, feel slightly hesitant as to whether or not it's a acceptable to make her waste her breath on answering him. 

“Back to the company.” It's like reality had slapped him around the face. He could run as far as he wanted but there's no escaping his situation. 

Maybe next time he should run away to a park further than just a mere 10 minutes walk away from the company building?

She can obviously see his face falling at the sentence and flinches slightly as his eyebrows furrow together into a frown. Balling her hands into fists, she represses the urge to reach out and trail her delicate fingers over his forehead to smooth out the creases of his frown lines. Instead the elder grits her teeth and offers him a small smile of consolation because that's all she can do. Maybe she could have a talk to their boss and ask for him to cut the boy some slack. 

“I know it's hard, Baekhyun ah and sometimes you want to run away, but you have to face it. Besides how are you going to get better without any practice?”

Her words restore a bit of hope in the younger boy, but maybe it's just the happiness her smile gives him.

Something catches her eye, her smile only widening more when they near the thing that had grabbed her attention. Taeyeon turns to the brunette boy and he notices an almost mischievous glint in her oh so beautiful eyes. “But we're just going to make one quick stop, ok?”

They enter a small shop around the corner, dimly lit and filled with cute little things for people to buy. Taeyeon makes a bee line for the section where jewellery is laid out neatly on a transparent surface. Her hands instantly reach for a silver, metal bracelet with a simple silver strip along it. It all looks so planned out and perfect, like she's expertly performing her choreography and he somehow wishes he was capable of enchanting someone with just his movements. He wishes he could make someone breathless just by tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. He wishes he wasn't staring and that the 'someone' he wished he could enchant wasn't so out of his league. Baekhyun clears his throat, a little too loudly, when he realises he was staring and instantly averts his gaze to the floor. He doesn't really know what to do now, his feet are glued to the floor and he awkwardly shifts his weight from one foot to the other, occasionally looking up again and stealing glances at the girl who'd now moved to the till.

Taeyeon pays for the bracelet quickly, running her fingers over the metal and smiles to herself. It's truly a beautiful sight. She doesn't ask for a bag, thanks the cashier and makes her way back over to the waiting boy, smile never leaving her face. Baekhyun had logically assumed that she was going to put it on herself straight away but instead, she gently grabs his wrist and begins to adorn the piece of jewelry on his wrist.

Her touch on the younger's wrist is causing his skin to burn as hot as his face.

“Huh?” he blurts out dumbly, “I mean...why?” Blinking a few times, he watches as the woman of his dreams moves back slightly and admires the way the bracelet dangles on his thin wrist, taking in how beautiful and feminine the boy's fingers are.

“Shouldn't you mean, thank you?” she says with a laugh. Baekhyun forgets how to breathe. He doesn't forget how to ramble and sprout nonsense, much to everyone's dismay. 

“I really can't accept this, sunbaenim-”

“Relax, Baekhyun ah. It's a gift from me to you,” with a shake of her head, she manages to successfully shut him up. And oh my gosh, he really can't contain the feeling bubbling up inside him. “And just call me noona now, or Taeyeon, OK?”

With a face as red as a tomato and his heartbeat thundering in his ears, Baekhyun is lucky he can still manage the nod he gave her, coupled with a strange gurgling sound that makes him want to slap some sense into himself. At least it makes her smile.

“This is to remind you to always stay strong. Be fearless, Baekhyun. That way, nothing can hurt you.

-

Taeyeon thinks it's cute how he smiles instantly, making her heart twinge with warmth. She tries her hardest not to give away the fact that her heart feels like it's full enough to explode. Pretending's what she does the best after all. It's something she does it as naturally as breathing, especially when on camera, yet why does this boy suddenly make her conscious of everything she's feeling and doing as if he can see right through her? 

“Hmph, I was just on my way home when I saw you in the park, so you should be thankful I turned around and walked you back to the company,” she says when they reach the front entrance. They're trying to make their parting quick because if people were to see them, it would be a huge issue. But something inside her doesn't want to leave the boy. They've been lingering around, only a arm's span apart, for a few minutes now. 

“T-thank you,” and there comes that heart stopping smile.

'He'll surely be popular among the ladies with an eye smile like that,' she thinks with a slightly bitter smile.

Baekhyun bows and thanks her over and over for helping him, encouraging him and buying him such a beautiful gift. His pretty, feminine hands touching the said object again, as if to check whether he's dreamt all this up or not.

Taeyeon tells him it's nothing, that she's happy to help a fellow hoobae and that she's always there if he needs her. She doesn't tell him, however, that she saw this bracelet earlier on in the day and that it reminded her of him because it shines brightly. That's just a little cheesy. They barely know each other. She'll probably take that secret to the grave.

“Thanks again, noona.” The word sends her heart drumming and has an affectionate smile playing on her lips. Sure, they don't know each other now, but at least they're going to get to know each other in the future.

The smile is stuck to her face even after she'd bid him goodbye and went on her way home.

-

Later he will tell everyone that the bracelet was given to him by a "noona trainer" via raido broadcast. He will speak while fiddling with the ever present piece of jewellry that has always clung to his wrist since debut. A sweet smile will spread across his lips, reaching all the way to his twinkling eyes, as he speaks about the mystery woman and a sense of pride will be swelling in his heart since only he and one other person know the truth. 

a/n - How long's it been since my last update? omo I'm so sorry guys

Please comment, vote and subscribe <3