Calming Sehun down is not an easy feat, the younger’s panic leaving Baekhyun feeling helpless. Sehun is always the more rational one out of the two, handling situations calmly and efficiently. Whenever Baekhyun freaks out about things, Sehun usually rolls his eyes bops him on the head and tells him to calm down.

Now as Sehun stands rooted to his spot, he is even more pale than before, his lip quivering and his eyebrows framing the worry on his face.

“Take a deep breath,” Baekhyun orders and Sehun intakes a stuttered breath of air before letting it out in a rushed whoosh.

“Sehun you need to calm down. You barely got a look at Jongin’s arm, how can you possibly know that the tattoo is the same as yours?”

Sehun shakes his head and rolls up the sleeve of his hoodie. The jet black tribal print of the feather is stark contrast against his pale skin. “I’m so sure that he has the same tattoo! It looked exactly like a feather, and the bottom of it was identical to mine, I swear.”

Baekhyun leans forward on the counter, studying Sehun’s tattoo carefully. Baekhyun himself only got a glimpse of Jongin’s tattoo as well when he handed over the money for his pencils. He remembers seeing the shape of the bottom of a feather but the design is a blur to him.

“I don’t want you jumping to conclusions yet Sehun. Feathers are a common tattoo and you know that your tattoo doesn’t have to be the same thing for you to be soul mates.” As much as Baekhyun is excited at the possibility that yes, Sehun may have at last found his soul mate, he didn’t want his best friend to get hurt if it turns out that Jongin is not the right one.

Sehun fidgets like he wants to say something, protest even, but instead he sighs in defeat. “ I guess you’re right hyung. I just…I got so excited. There’s…something about Jongin that made me want to think…he could be the one?”

Baekhyun ruffles Sehun’s hair. “Don’t lose hope yet okay? Jongin made it clear that he was going to come back eventually. You still have time.”

Sehun gave him a small smile. “Yeah…time…”

--

Unlike Sehun, Baekhyun never really worried or thought about finding his soul mate. 

He got his very first tattoo in the first grade while he was presenting his book report to his class. Black inking expanding from the back of his shoulder up his neck, tree branches stretching out to form a simple tattoo on the young boy. His classmates had gasped and pointed and his teacher, a lovely woman who only had one visible tattoo on her wrist,  has smiled warmly and started clapping. Without knowing why, the rest of his classmates started clapping as well, even though Baekhyun had yet to finish his presentation.

“Congratulations on getting your first tattoo,” his teacher had set, reaching into her desk to grab a lollipop. She handed it over to a bewildered Baekhyun who accepted it in confusion.

His teacher had then gone on to explain how anyone could get a tattoo at any age.

“To get a tattoo you must truly understand what love is. Baekhyunnie, what do you think love is?” she smiled at him expectantly.

Baekhyun had shuffled backwards on step, his feet turning inward. “My…my dad told me that the reason why I cried when mommy died was because I loved her…”

The classroom had gone silent until Chanyeol Park dropped his pencil, the tips of his ears glowing a bright red.

Baekhyun had gotten an A+ on his presentation.

--

Since that day though, no new tattoos have appeared on Baekhyun’s body. Baekhyun would be lying if his says that the thought has not worried him before but as Baekhyun grows older, he’s let nature take control. He will find true love when it’s the right time.

Baekhyun finds it a downright shame when people pass away without getting a single tattoo. It means throughout their entire life, they have not matured. They reject the idea of true love, not bothering to truly understand what love is. Love, Baekhyun thinks, is a beautiful thing. Love is almost as beautiful as colour. It emits its own colours which makes it captivating and fascinating. It’s pride that Baekhyun feels whenever he looks at his tattoo, running his fingers over the long branches of the onyx tree. It makes him feel closer to his mother.

--

One windy Monday afternoon Baekhyun makes his way into The Rooster House, his hair askew and his expression the personification of death. Sehun had been talking about Jongin and that was when Baekhyun decided it would be a good time to take his afternoon break.

There is no one in the coffee shop as he made his way to the counter. Kyungsoo is there again, this time looking more comfortable and less he want to puke.

“Baekhyun-ssi! Nice to see you again,” Kyungsoo greets with a heart-shaped smile.

“Kyungsoo-ssi, the feelings are mutal,” Baekhyun croaks out before ordering a green tea latte and a blueberry muffin.

Kyungsoo raises an eyebrow. “Rough day?”

Baekhyun groans. “You don’t even know.”

Kyungsoo glances at the clock. “Well, my break starts in about two minutes. If you’re willing to stay for a bit, I’d be glad to have a chat with you!”

At this Baekhyun beams. “Anything to stay out of the shop for another while.”

When Baekhyun pays for his order, he makes his way to the worn out couches that Minseok has artfully placed in one corner of the shop. Magazines and donated books sits on a bookshelf with a sign that says “Please read and return!” hanging on the side of the shelf.

Baekhyun takes a seat, waiting probably less than a minute before Kyungsooo comes out from the back, removing his apron and hanging it on the wall before making his way to Baekhyun.

He takes a seat across from Baekhyun and looks at him expectantly.

“So, what’s bothering you?”

Baekhyun’s mildly surprised at the straightforwardness. People tell Baekhyun that he’s very straightforward all the time but it’s rare to fine someone like himself.

“My co-worker…well he’s really my best friend, worries about find his soul mate a lot. He has a lot of tattoos and they’re growing on his body at a very rapid pace so he has a mindset that he needs to find his soul mate fast before his body gets cover in tattoos. I mean, I understand where he’s coming from but at the same time, I believe that he doesn’t have to worry. We all know that the amount of tattoos we have is not a timeline for us to quickly find our soul mate and the amount of tattoos that we have depends on how much our personality and preferences can take it. Someone came into our store the other day and Sehun swore that his tattoo matched the other man.”

Baekhyun takes a sip of his latte before he continues. Kyungsoo nods encouragingly.

“Now he won’t shut up about it and it’s driving me up the wall,” Baekhyun sighs before taking another sip.

Kyungsoo nods again, absorbing all the information that Baekhyun laid upon him.

Baekhyun found it interesting how easily he opened up to Kyungsoo. It must be the innocent face.

“I can see where your friend, Sehun is it?, is coming from though. My best friend is also going through a similar predicament. He seems to be getting a new tattoo every day and it’s kinda horrifying him.” Kyungsoo pauses for a second before continuing.

“I can never give him the advice that he wants though,” Kyungsoo grins sheepishly. He holds up his arms, his t-shirt showing off bare, smooth skin.

“No tattoos.” He announces before dropping his hands back into his lap.

Baekhyun shrugs. “You’re still young. They’ll come when you’re ready.”

Kyungsoo points at his neck, “What’s the story behind that masterpiece there?”

Baekhyun goes quiet for a moment. “It happened in first grade. I was presenting something and then it just grew. It freaked my classmates out, obviously. It’s rare for a kid to get tattoos. My teacher asked me what I thought love was…I told her that my dad said crying when my mom died meant I loved her. I haven’t gotten a tattoo since then though.”

“I’m sorry,” he murmurs, not specifying what he’s sorry for.

Baekhyun swallows the lump in his throat. He gives Kyungsoo a half-hearted smile. “It’s fine.”

--

On Sunday, Jongdae has a large crowd over at his house. Obviously Sehun is there and Baekhyun as well. Because Jongdae works at Zitao’s pilates studio as his personal business administrator (it basically means he handled everything that is not teaching pliates) they pick Luhan, Zitao’s roommate, up at the subway station before heading back to Jongdae’s place. Today they are inviting their next door neighbours from their apartment, Chanyeol and Yixing, over as well. They get along well and often go over to each other’s places to play board games or drink. Chanyeol and Yixing normally hang out with their landlord and close friend Joonmyun on Sundays so naturally he is invited as well.

It’s a potluck so an assortment of food is laid out on Jongdae’s table, ranging from fruit to Yixing’s famous curry. As people starting digging in, the conversations start.

“Yixing-ssi right? I think I’ve seen you at Phoenix Bakery before,” Baekhyun says around a mouthful of rice.

“You can call me hyung,” Yixing smiles, “I’m only one year older than you. And yeah, I’m work full time at Phoenix. Yifan is actually a close friend and it was perfect timing when he gave me the job. I actually just finished my baking degree and he gave me the opportunity to put it to good use. I’m really grateful.”

“Wow, that’s actually really awesome! I talk to Yifan a lot, Sehun and I actually own the art supply store right beside Phoenix. I grab a snack or lunch in the bakery often.”

“Wow I can’t believe we’ve never seen each other before!...but then again I’m always in the back baking,” Yixing says with a laugh.

The conversations carry out long into the night and Baekhyun learns a lot and makes many new friends. Luhan’s roommate Zitao owns a pilates studio also on Queen street and Jongdae works for him. Baekhyun’s met these two a few times because they go over to Jongdae’s place almost as often as Baekhyun does. Luhan’s a radio DJ at an indie radio station and he’s on from 4 PM to 8 PM. Baekhyun’s heard his shows a few times when the turn the radio on in the store.

Chanyeol is a teacher’s assistant, fresh of university. He teaches English Literature in the University of Toronto. Baekhyun and Chanyeol went to elementary school together up until the sixth grade so they catch up with each other easily. Chanyeol and Yixing’s landlord Joonmyun is a business who works in Toronto’s business district, Yonge and Bloor. He dresses like he’s in his mid thirties so Baekhyun is surprised to find out that he’s only 26, two years older than him.

The 8 of them get along very well and they all go home with promises that they’re going to hang out together soon.

--

The next morning, Baekhyun wakes up to the golden sun rays shining gentle through his window. Yawning, he sits up, half asleep. He rubs his eyes, something his father always told him to stop doing, before getting up and trudging to the bathroom.

He splashes cold water on his face to wake himself and when he can full open his eyes, he looks into the mirror. What he sees startles him so much he almost falls backwards. His tattoo is no longer a jet black, instead it’s a deep violet, like someone mashed blueberries together and dyed his skin with it. Never in his 24 years of life has Baekhyun ever seen a violet tattoo before.

--

Half an hour later, after Baekhyun calls Sehun to tell him that he’s sick, he’s heading to his doctor’s, a scarf wrapped snugly around his neck to cover his tattoo. The whole subway ride there Baekhyun is on edge, his my racing as he thinks of different answers to the colour of his tattoo. He isn’t sick, his tattoo would be gold. His soul mate is not sick either or else his tattoo would be blue.

When Baekhyun finally reaches his doctor’s office, it takes all of his will power to run down the hallway and burst into the office with all his questions. Walking into the office that smells like rubbing alcohol, Baekhyun hands over his health card to the secretary, waiting as she checks it before handing it back. She tells him that he only needs to wait 15 minutes and Baekhyun nods, his body rigid.

As Baekhyun waits, the minutes seem to tick by like hours. He’s restless, moving around uncomfortably in his spot. He crosses his left leg over his right, only to switch it 30 seconds later. FINALLY his doctor comes out his office, smiling and calling out “Baekhyun Byun! You can come in now!”

Baekhyun hurries over to his doctor, Dr. Jinki Lee, as Dr. Lee ushers Baekhyun into the room. When the door is closed and Baekhyun is sitting on the uncomfortable makeshift bed covered in crinkling paper, Doctor Lee pulls out Baekhyun’s file.

“Baekhyun! What brings you in to see me today? You look a little pale, are you sick?”

Baekhyun shakes his head rapidly.

“No..no I’m not sick. I…I have another problem.”

His hands clumsily attempt to remove his scarf. It takes him four tries before he successfully gets it off.

“My tattoo is…purple. I’ve never seen this before,” Baekhyun whispers, fear etched in voice. “What’s wrong with me.”

At the sight of Baekhyun’s tattoo, Dr. Lee’s expression darkens. He puts down his file, standing up to examine Baekhyun’s tattoo more closely.

After careful inspection, Dr. Lee looks Baekyun in the eye with a grim look on his face.

“What’s wrong?” Baekhyun squeaks, panic rising in his chest.

“I’ve only heard of this before but I’ve never actually seen one. I thought it was a myth. Violet tattoos…they’re like a warning. It means…” Dr. Lee trails off. “It means someone wants to kill your soul mate…and it means they want to do it soon.”

a/n hello! I realized that orange was supposed to be a lot longer than I made it last time so this is the continuation of it. all of EXO should have been introduced or mentioned by this point in time YAY! When I get deeper into the story I'll probably release character profiles/relationships so it won't be as confusing :) also, in this world, murder is very rare? like VERY RARE. so that's why no one's actaually seen/really heard of a violet tattoo before. comments, subscriptions and upvotes will make me the happiess person ever!! thanks for reading and seeya later alligator! 

p.s. the alternate name for this chapter is ORANGEUUUU