When Baekhyun had asked him out, Sehun had felt elated, euphoric even. He thought that nothing could bring him down from his lovesick high.

Unfortunately for him, he was wrong.

At exactly 4:23am, a time when Sehun would be in deep sleep, an alarm went off in his room.

Of course, he fell out of his bed in shock and scrambled up to glare, dazed at the source of the noise.

The shrill screaming of the alarm made his ears ring and he couldn't rush over to it to turn it off fast enough.

"What the", Sehun began, one hand rubbing at his eye, the other holding the offending item, "This isn't mine".

Blue, compact and surprisingly loud, the alarm clock was not Sehun's and he was certain that he had never seen it before.

Baekhyun, Sehun realised. He is such a-

The clock struck 4:24 and another alarm, this time in the opposite corner of the room, blared out. Sehun had to dig through a box of things that he was too lazy to put away properly in order to find the second alarm.

"I actually think I hate him", Sehun dropped the silenced alarm to the floor and stared at the blank wall, "What did I ever do to deserve this".

When the third alarm went off, Sehun was only partially surprised. The fact that he was expecting it didn't make it any easier to find and shut up though.

With three alarms in his arms, Sehun's weary eyes darted around the room apprehensively, waiting for another to strike. Minutes passed, long enough for Sehun to think maybe that's all of them. Maybe I'm out of the woods. But as soon as the thought crossed his mind, the cycle repeated.

Four more alarms later, Sehun had given up anticipating the next attack and instead ransacked his room searching for others. He managed to find one inside his curtain, and another under his bed. They were disarmed before they could pose a threat.

With a messy room once more, hair wild and dark circles under his eyes, Sehun looked at the pile of alarm clocks with their batteries removed and heaved out an uneven sigh.

"You are paying for this, Baekhyun", he looked wild, as though he had been deprived of sleep for several days rather than several hours. But he couldn't get back in bed, not yet.

He gave the room another once-over and waited another ten minutes before the silence and lack of alarm made him relax. Trudging over his belongings that now resided on the floor, Sehun slipped back into bed and within moments his eyes were shut, cursing Byun Baekhyun all the way into dreamland.

He didn't get to lie down for long before another alarm shrieked and his pitiful wail of despair joined the sound.

* * *

S: i actually think i hate you

S: like seriously

S: i don't think anybody has ever annoyed me so much in all my life

S: 1 alarm i can take, maybe even laugh at

S: 3 is pushing it a little but is still remotely acceptable

S: but 17??????

S: 17?!?!?

S: that's pushing it

S: i can't trust my room any more

S: it was a sacred space of undisturbed sleep

S: i could relax

S: i could dream

S: i haven't slept, byun baekhyun

S: i think...

S: i think i can hear colours now

S: i can see through the fabric of the universe

B: Oh!

B: Hey Sehun! You're up early :)

S: ..................

B: :)

B: Hehe

B: [cutecartoonlaughing.gif]

B: I had to do something eggstra special, obviously. Do you really think I'd pass up a golden opportunity like that?

S: nice pun.............

B: Thanks! :)

B: [cutecartoonsmiling.png]

S: again, i think i hate you

B: So... date cancelled?

S: .........

S: you're an idiot and i hate you

B: So that's a yes?

S: i'll pick you up at 1.

* * *

The nerves came in waves, some trickling into Sehun's bloodstream, others hitting him like a brick wall. His car had a new air freshener, a subtle vanilla that infused the car with its gentle scent; it was pleasant at first but now to Sehun it was suffocating. He lowered his window and welcomed the burst of fresh air that rushed in. It washed over him, soothing him. He wasn't sure why this time felt so different than the other times they had seen each other. Of course, those other times hadn't been a date, and their enjoyment of those times hadn't relied on Sehun's poor planning skills.

Every now and then, Sehun glanced up the driveway to see if Baekhyun was approaching. He was early, but that didn't stop him from anticipating Baekhyun stepping out the front door and heading to his fragranced car every minute. Deciding to keep his eyes on his phone, Sehun scrolled down his social network feeds. It didn't work as a distraction and no matter how hard he tried, he wasn't taking in any of the words. But it did pass time, and the minutes passed until finally Baekhyun's clammy hand reached for the door handle.

"Are we going back to yours?", Baekhyun greeted him as he slid into the leather seat beside Sehun. As soon as he said it, Baekhyun inwardly cursed himself for being awkward. No hello or any kind of greeting. His nerves had kicked in last night and he hadn't gotten much sleep, that combined with the nerves he felt now meant that he had forgotten basic human greeting.

Sehun raised an eyebrow and watched him, wordlessly. Baekhyun glanced over at him and looked wide-eyed around the car, pretending to think. Why didn't I say hello? Is it too late to say it now?

"I didn't mean anything by that", he said instead, referring to his comment.

The silence continued, the eyebrow remained raised.

"I just- I didn't- I didn't know if you had anything planned or-".

"Baekhyun", Sehun sighed.

"Yes?", the butterflies in Baekhyun's stomach woke up at the sound of Sehun's voice.

"Do you really think I'll invite you to my room again any time soon?".

A spark of realisation flashed in Baekhyun's eyes and he turned away to put on his seatbelt, thankful at the chance to hide his face that he thought for sure was blushing.

"Oh".

Sehun hummed.

"I suppose we'll have to use my room then", Baekhyun said offhandedly, his eyes still on his seatbelt. When in doubt, fluster Sehun. At least then he wouldn't be the only one feeling so flummoxed. Sehun usually looked so composed.

Sehun's renowned composure slipped and he eyed Baekhyun apprehensively.

The loud 'click' of the belt being secured was all Baekhyun needed to look back up at Sehun.

"Hm?", he reacted as though were surprised by Sehun's expression, but didn't address his own comment, "So, what's the plan for today? Kayaking? Ice skating? A romantic dinner?".

Sehun blinked several times before turning and facing forwards, trying to slip back into composure, "An assortment of things".

"An assortment of things?".

"Yes, three times the amount of things, three times the fun".

"Did you get that off a 'how-to-plan-dates' website?"

"No", Sehun replied quickly, but the tips of his ears reddened. Baekhyun couldn't withhold a smile at the sight. Perhaps Sehun wasn't as un-flummoxed as he thought.

"Anyway", he continued before Baekhyun could question him more, "You look nice".

And he did. In truth, Baekhyun could wear a potato sack and Sehun would still find him attractive, but today Sehun found his heart racing even more. A casual outfit, black jeans and a crisp grey shirt. It looked nice on him, and Sehun would have appreciated it more if he wasn't so distracted by Baekhyun himself. The problem was Baekhyun's hair looked the tiniest bit fluffy, like it would be soft to the touch and it was just waiting for Sehun's hands to run through it. His skin looked smooth and soft and yet again Sehun found himself wanting to brush his fingers against it. To make sure that he was real. That he was really there. To be close to him and embrace him and to show him the extent of the affection he felt for him. Sehun's entire being just radiated with warmth when he saw him. The slightly present shadows that were under Baekhyun's eyes made him smile in amusement; his eyes were a mirror image.

To Sehun's sheer surprise, Baekhyun's cheeks reddened, "I didn't have time to fix my hair", he murmured defensively, looking away from the analytical gaze of the man next to him.

"It looks cute", Sehun eyed the blush with a smile, "I like it".

Baekhyun looked back over at him for a second before focusing his attention on his hands, "Thanks. You look nice too".

"Thanks", Sehun teased, earning a small smile from Baekhyun.

Silence filled the car and Baekhyun remained fidgeting with his hands. It was during this silence that he noticed the scent of vanilla, it was pleasant. And it was new. Last time he had been in this car, there were no air-fresheners to be found. Did he get that especially for today? Baekhyun wondered.

Meanwhile Sehun was trying to compose himself, again, after witnessing Baekhyun's overload of cuteness.

"Uh", Sehun broke the silence, "So, are you ready to go?".

Baekhyun looked up from his hands and clamped them tightly in his lap, "Yep! Ready to go!".

Sehun grinned uncontrollably in response, "Wow that was nice and enthusiastic. Let's go then".

His grin was infectious and as Sehun started the car and they pulled away, Baekhyun couldn't repress the huge smile that took up his face.

"Oh, and Sehun?", he said, his voice awash with nonchalance.

"Yes?", Sehun replied.

"Hello".

Sehun's gentle laugh filled the car, "Hello".