Romance is Not Dead

 

A lot of people think that if you were fated to be with that person then there’s no right or wrong, no maybes, no what ifs, just what is’ and what mights. That whatever you do, whatever choice you had, if that person is the one for you, then that person is the one for you. But not Byun Baekhyun. Baekhyun does not believe that love depends on fate. Love should not be cliche, it should not have scripts or outlines, it should be spontaneous, catching you off-guard, making you do things that are unthinkable yet reasonable, leave you with nothing to do but take a risk--something dangerous but worth it. And right now, he is feeling the exact same thing. It started too cliche though (for other people), realizing his feelings too late that he had to steal the cab his neighbor called and yell at the driver to drive straight to the airport. What’s cliche for him is giving right up when things doesn’t go the way he planned it to be. This wasn’t.

Finally after almost an hour-long of constant nagging, he finally reached the airport. He ran past the line at the check-in area and jumped over the divisions. He finally got inside. He kept running until he saw the end-line by the entry way of the escalators going to the departure area. And then he spotted him, walking towards the escalator. That was when he started screaming. “Don’t go!” He yelled helplessly. “Don’t go please!” He mostly got the attention of the crowd now. The murmurs will start getting obvious eventually but no, he doesn’t care. That didn’t bother him. The crowd somewhat avoided him and ended up making a pathway for him until the railings. When he finally reached the dead-end, he started yelling again. “DON’T GO, PLEASE!” It was so much louder now, he knew because he finally looked at him. He finally saw him. The people around him started whispering, probably also asking him if he knew Baekhyun, that small guy by the railings looking like a sad little dejected puppy. He looked confused. Of course. Baekhyun knew he would act like that.

“Don’t go...” Baekhyun intended to yell but he was disappearing behind a wall until he couldn’t see him anymore. He was gone. Maybe, it was for the best. Maybe not all love stories are meant to be worth the risk. Maybe he wasn’t just the man for him. Baekhyun looked back at the wall, taking a last look before deciding to turn around and leave. And that was when that familiar hair poked back from behind the wall. It surprised him. He was on the escalator again but this time going downwards. He was looking at Baekhyun, confused and bothered at the same time and that scared Baekhyun. So he did the first thing he thought of out of reflex.

He ran away.

“!” He cursed as he he ran. There’s no going back now. 

“Hey! Stop!” He heard a man yell and he looked back to see that man chasing him.

This was definitely not part of the plan.

He continued running, bumping passengers here and there and knocking out luggages accidentally. Fortunately, he knew his way in the airport. He ran to the most crowded are of the airport in hopes of the man losing sight of him but of course, he had to be stupid enough to not realize earlier that the man is too tall he can spot him anywhere. So he tried to break away from the crowd immediately, only to trip on a wire cord, sending him tumbling down the floor with his bag and everything on it flying out in Satan’s wish. “You have got to be kidding me!” He looked behind him and saw the man getting caught up with some tourists asking him questions. He took this opportunity to collect his things. However, not a second has passed when he looked back again to check and the man was already marching towards him. His eyes widened and immediately, he grabbed his backpack and started running. He crossed his fingers, hoping that he didn’t leave anything behind. The exit is only a few meters away from him now so he ran even faster. 

Luckily for him, a group of friends pushing trolleys for their luggages passed by behind him and forced a gap in between him and the man. The man had to halt but he was able to walk out freely. He doors behind him closed and from his spot, he saw the man staring back at him behind the heads passing by in front of him. He still had that confused and bothered look. It was obvious even through the reflection of the sky against the glass doors. Baekhyun then smiled and turned around, humming as he walked away, leaving the airport with the announcement echoing behind him.

“Flight 0421 has departed. Flight 0421 has departed.”

--

Baekhyun arrived back home sweating. His mother wasn’t around, luckily, since he kind of left the house open when he decided to steal that cab from the woman next door. That woman will never greet him every morning from now on. He grabbed a chocolate drink from the fridge, promising to take a bath after finishing it. At that moment, the doorbell rang. He immediately went to open the door, thinking it was his mother, however he seemed to have opened a door to another dimension when a demon suddenly greeted him. He closed the door in reflex however the man was fast enough to grab the door and forced it back open as Baekhyun forced it to close.

“What the hell are you doing?!”

“I SHOULD BE THE ONE ASKING YOU THAT! GET LOST!”

“ME?!” The man replied in disbelief. “BYUN BAEKHYUN OPEN THIS DOOR RIGHT THIS INSTANT!”

“WHA--” Baekhyun gasped. “HOW DID YOU KNOW MY NAME? AND HOW DID YOU FIND MY HOUSE?!”

“YOU DROPPED YOUR I.D. GENIUS!”

Baekhyun clicked his tongue, cursing himself.

“OPEN THE DOOR RIGHT NOW!”

“NO! I DON’T EVEN KNOW YOU!”

Unfortunately.

“EXCUSE ME?!”

Things are getting really out of hand but Byun Baekhyun does not back down, even when it comes to strength. So he pushed the door with all of his power until he was finally able to make it move and then slammed it close and immediately locked it. He was left breathless after that display of testosterone. The man also wasn’t making a sound. Baekhyun figured he must’ve decided to give up and go home. Well, if it was Baekhyun that’s what he’d do.

The doorbell rang again but this time, he knew better. “W-who is it?”

“Your mother.”

Baekhyun immediately opened the door. “M--” And froze at the sight of the man smiling behind his mother. “MOM!!!”

--

Baekhyun flinched when his mother served tea at the table. He can feel imaginary knives stabbing him repeatedly with how the man was glaring at him, arms crossed, and with Satan probably giving his guardian angel a good beating behind him. His mother served his tea and chuckled.

“So you’re Baekhyun’s latest victim, huh?”

Baekhyun flinched again.

The man,who goes by the name Yifan, sighed. “Victim, yes, but latest?”

Baekhyun’s mother glanced at him from the kitchen. “I’m sorry, my son has some rather unconventional interests that he randomly incorporates into real life. Movies, if I must say...”

Yifan snarled. “Movies?”

“Well, you see--”

“Stop, mom,” Baekhyun says, holding up his palm. “You don’t have to explain it to this man. He’ll leave soon anyway, right?” That snarl definitely drew the line.

His mother slapped him with her slippers at that very moment. “Aw! Hey!”

“How can you be so rude to our guest? You caused him to miss his flight. We’re lucky he’s not asking us to pay back the expense for the ticket. Don’t you feel any remorse? You haven’t even apologized to him yet!”

As much as Baekhyun hated the word sorry to roll out of his tongue, his mother had a point. Well, his mother always had a point because he’s just an 18-year-old lowlife who has too much free time in his hands. He sighed. “Fine. I’m sorry.” He kept pouting afterwards. Especially when his mom refused to put extra cheese on his plate of spaghetti so that he can reflect on his faults. (It’s just cheese!!!) Baekhyun cursed the man in front of him for ruining his spaghetti.

“So, what are you gonna do about your trip? Was it something important?” Baekhyun’s mother asked while wiping some of the used glasses.

Baekhyun gets why his mom would worry over it. Yifan was dressed like a corporate worker or a businessman, he was on a suit and tie (that’s why he was so hellbent on running away because he felt like he was gonna get sued and, well, no one came after him before). Plus he doesn’t look Korean. And his Korean balls.

“No. I was just going home. I just came to visit my girlfriend here.” Yifan answered. “I’m actually from Beijing. So...yeah.”

“Well, will you be able to get a ticket soon?”

“Since it’s vacation season, I think maybe in 3 days.”

“That’s too bad.”

Baekhyun has seemingly lost interest in the subject matter and walked out from the table. It’s not like it’s entirely his fault this man missed his flight. He’s a grown-up anyway so he must be pretty stupid to entertain a kid’s innuendos, especially when he doesn’t know that kid at all.

“Oh by the way, is there a hotel or a guest house nearby I can stay at? I know the hotels are pretty much fully-booked right now because of the tourists but guest houses are fine.”

Baekhyun stopped his tracks. By virtue of being his mom’s son for 18 years (forcefully), that moment of silence only means one thing. 

“Oh, dear! You can stay here for the mean time, no worries!”

I knew it! Baehyun turned around. “Mom!!!”

“Yes, thank you for volunteering Baekhyun, you can share your room with him.”

“I DID NOT--”

His mother went back to washing the dishes. “Well, you seemed very eager about it.”

Baekhyun gasped. “That was an angry yell!”

“Just shut up and take him upstairs, will you?” 

Baekhyun pouted. He glared Yifan before walking away. “Follow me.”

--

He turned around when he realized Yifan stopped by the door. “What, too small for your huge ego?”

“I hope you’re not referring to the other thing.”

Baekhyun settled on ignoring his reply while fixing his bed when the realization finally stormed in and he scoffed back at him. It only took him one smirk from Yifan before he went rushing out of the room, flustered.

“MOM!!!!” Baekhyun yelled like a firetruck as he scurried back to the living room. He found his mom sitting casually on the couch, occupied with a laptop on her lap. “Mom! Are you really gonna let that ert sleep in my room?!”

“What is it now?”

“Did you know that huge ego has a whole other meaning?!”

“Of course I do. Now why would you say that to him?” Baekhyun gasped in response to her mother’s indignant reply. “Oh relax, he’s not a ert.”

“And you’re sure because...?”

“Because I searched him up on Facebook and it turns out that he’s a very successful Realtor.”

“How sure are you that that’s his facebook?”

“Oh come on honey, I’m not stupid. I can see his profile picture.”

Baekhyun leans down to take a closer look. Okay, that’s him alright. He sighed and stomped back to his room in defeat.

--

“Welcome back. I took the liberty of continuing your interrupted work earlier.”

Baekhyun eyes the well-made foam on the floor. “Of course. That’s grown up stuff. Here are some clothes by the way.” He says while placing the set of clothes on the table and then made a bee line towards his bed.

Thanks to Baekhyun’s little scene this morning, Yifan’s luggage is on that plane while the owner is stuck here. He takes a look at the clothes. “Are these your father’s?”

“No. I have no father.” Baekhyun notices Yifan’s distant stare and impeding silence. “Don’t worry, he’s not dead or anything. I just never met him. Mom got knocked up one night, was too nice to get rid of that thing in her belly and so here I am.”

“Oh.”

“You’re quite aloof for a grown man, aren’t you?” Baekhyun snickers. “Like Mr. Darcy.”

“Mr. Who?”

“Never mind.” The rest of the night was him busy with his journal and Yifan reading some book he borrowed from Baekhyun’s mother until one of them dozed off and the other following.

--

The next morning, after breakfast, Baekhyun was forced to go shopping with Yifan by his merciless mother. Okay, Baekhyun likes shopping, but definitely not with a stranger. But his guilt has kept him from acting out so that made him more miserable. Fortunately, shopping for Yifan isn’t that hard and by lunch time they’re walking in the park and eating ice cream.

“I have a question.” Baekhyun starts.

“What is it?”

“Why did you come here?”

“I went to visit my girlfriend.”

Baekhyun snorts at his answer. “Okay, I may be young but I’m not stupid.” 

“Which means...?”

“You didn’t come here to visit your girlfriend.”

“Instead, I did.”

“Okay, maybe you did but you’re not in good terms right now. Or you’ve broken up. Or you just like hiding from your girlfriend. Or you don’t have one.”

“Do you want me to tell you?”

“Are you gonna be honest with me?”

“Maybe. I’ll tell you we’re in good terms though.”

“Liar.” Baekhyun says, walking past him. “Why else would you be sleeping at someone else’ house if your girlfriend didn’t kick you out?” 

Yifan stops his tracks, stunned at the accusation. Baekhyun turns his head back to smirk at him, a little too proudly if Yifan must say. He shakes his head and follows.

Baekhyun’s favorite place turns out to be bar. Well, not those usual bars you see in movies and everywhere in New York--this bar is more toned-down, no alcoholic and non-smoking bar. Straight from Baekhyun’s mouth are the words “It’s still a school zone, so.” Yifan thinks he’s too overdressed.

“So?” Baekhyun says as soon as their drinks were served. “What’d you do that made your girlfriend kick you out?”

Yifan almost coughs it out. “Well, not exactly girlfriend.”

“What, fiance? Wife? Ooh, please don’t say wife because this isn’t the right place for that.”

Yifan shakes his head while chuckling before saying, “Not exactly girlfriend.”

This time, Baekhyun completely coughs it out. “Jesus.” The bartender offers him a tissue. “You’re gay?!”

Yifan subtly tilts in head. “Biual, actually.”

“No, no no no no,” Baekhyun finally puts down his drink. “I’m biual. He’s gay,” He says, pointing to the bartender who in turns winks at Yifan. “You’re straight.”

“No, I’m not.”

“Yes, you are. You’re not biual.”

“Except, I am.”

“No, you can’t be biual!”

“Okay, why are you being heterophobic right now?”

“Heterophob--” Baekhyun shakes his head. “How--how is that even possible?” Yifan shrugs his shoulders in response.“Oh, I feel so sorry for all the girls, for the women, for all the mothers and their daughters.” 

“I’m not.” The bartender says, biting his lip towards Yifan.

“Okay, you need to stop that.” Baekhyun snaps at him and then turned back to Yifan and the problem at hand. “And I let you sleep in my room!”

“Wait, you slept with him?” The bartender asks.

“I did not--”

“Did you tell Chanyeol?”

“Why would I--”

“--tell Chanyeol what?” And of course, in the most cliche way possible, Chanyeol, for some reason, decided to show up at this perfect timing.

“Baekhyun’s sleeping with him.”

“You’re sleeping with him?” Chanyeol says, almost choking at his words. “I feel so betrayed right now.”

“Chany--”

“2 years Baekhyun, two years.”

“And I’m telling you I’m not--”

Chanyeol puts up his palm. “I’m not talking to you.” He turns to Yifan. “Hi, I’m Chanyeol, Park Chanyeol. Baekhyun’s victim. His very first, actually.”

“Oh,” It’s kinda weird that Yifan is familiar with the subtext now. “Nice to meet you. I’m Yifan. His...latest victim.” Chanyeol chuckles.

“I kinda own this place by the way.”

“Oh, impressive. Young and already a businessman.”

“Yeah,” Chanyeol nods. “It was my father’s but then he died so.”

“Oh my god, I’m sorry I didn’t know.” Yifan quickly retracts, almost stuttering in his words. 

“It’s okay. You never met him anyway.” Chanyeol reassures. “I better get back to work.”

“Chanyeol--”

“Still not talking!” Chanyeol says as he disappears behind the door. 

Baekhyun sighs in defeat. “And I’m dramatic.” 

Yifan honestly did not know what to make of it since this was the first time he was surrounded by such people. But he imagines there’s never a boring day. “Come on.” Baekhyun grabbed his hand then and surprise came falling to his face. 

--

“So, where do you wanna go?” Baekhyun asks but Yifan only gave him a look of confusion. “Well my mom said to tour you around the place so I’m stuck with you for the whole day.”

“Hm. You must be having so much fun.”

“Really. I couldn’t control my happiness.” Baekhyun says with a half-hearted smile.

“Well, this isn’t my first time in Seoul so I’ve been to most places tourists go to.”

“Yeah?”

“So surprise me.”

Baekhyun gives him a look of confusion. “You’re really gonna let an 18-year-old brat take you around places?”

“Your words not mine,” Yifan replies. “I don’t think you’re an 18-year-old brat.”

“Alright fine, but only if you tell me honestly what happened.”

Yifan hummed in deep thought before coming up with a solution that could benefit the both of them. “Fine. Let’s make a deal. I’ll tell you anything you want to know about me and you tell me the reason why you took me into that certain place.”

Baekhyun chuckles at his offer, probably relieved knowing that he’s not the only one who’s interested here. “You really know how to talk your way out of something, huh?”

“It’s a win-win situation.”

“Fiiine.” Baekhyun groans.

--

Yifan stops to read the sign as Baekhyun struts towards the entrance. Aunt Laurie’s. A bakery. 

“Come on!” Baekhyun yells and Yifan immediately hurries over. 

The place was swarming with students and professionals alike. Baekhyun was busying himself in the counter while Yifan notices how the place seems to be lively even though it’s almost time when people usually go home. He shifts his attention back to Baekhyun who is still one person far from the counter.

“Let me guess,” He starts. “First dates?”

Baekhyun chuckles just as the person before him leaves and he moves forward to answer the staff about his order before turning to Yifan. “No. I just love their blueberry muffins.” 

“Here you go, sir.”

“Thanks, and oh, he’s gonna pay for it.” Baekhyun points at Yifan before skipping away, leaving Yifan completely dumbfounded in front of the staff.

Baekhyun was unwrapping the fork with a large grin printed on his face when Yifan finally finds him. “I think I just got robbed.” He says while taking a seat. 

“Savor it and tell me it’s not worth getting robbed for.”

Yifan does, taking his time as he chews it bit by bit. “It’s delicious.” Although, it means nothing since he doesn’t have a source of comparison given that he doesn’t really eat sweets. Silence came after that and Yifan distracted himself with watching Baekhyun slowly finish up the blueberry muffins with a clear-cut smug look of satisfaction on his face.  

“Okay,” Baekhyun starts, placing the fork down with manners. “Now for the good bits.”

“Wait, it’s not just because you like their blueberry muffins?”

“Of course not. Do you think I’m boring?” Baekhyun retorts, “I am 18 years old and fatherless, it is unacceptable to the society for someone like me to turn into--”

“Okay, okay, I get it!” says Yifan with his palms held up in front of his face. “You really like arguing don’t you?” 

Baekhyun grins as he says, “My mom said it’s one of my best qualities. And also I’d probably go to jail because of it.”

“Have you?”

“No, never. Almost, always,” he says and then he leans closer towards the middle of the table. “Because I’m not boring.”

“And we’re starting.”

Baekhyun chuckles as he leans back. “My mom and I used to own this place. Well, not own but rent? Loan something?” He takes notice of Yifan’s crooked eyebrows and continues. “Anyway, my mom was running a business of her own and I helped. I was 14 at that time. We had a small convenience store. And then suddenly someone offered a higher pay of the rent so of course, we got chased out and we were forced to close our business. My mom had to find another job and it was awful. She doesn’t really like working for someone else or under someone. So, I went here to recon when it opened. I was 14, honestly I had no idea what I was doing,” Yifan snickers under his breath, picturing what Baekhyun looked like at 14. “They saw me and then gave me a blueberry muffin. They said they give free desserts to new customers. So I sat there, quietly, eating my blueberry muffin and started my recon. In the end, the only thing I gathered as I was walking home is that they make the best blueberry muffin I’ve ever tasted.”

“I imagine it would’ve been different now otherwise.”

Baekhyun nods saying, “They were lucky it was delicious,” Yifan chuckles and Baekhyun continues. “When I got home I told my mom about it. She said she has tried some of their desserts and she really loved it. It turns out every morning before going to work, she buys some pan there for breakfast. I think she knew I was really bothered by it so she didn’t tell me until after I saw for myself.”

“That’s a nice story.”

“The moral of this story is: Never judge someone before knowing them. Never jump into conclusions before getting an explanation.”

“18, fatherless, and learned some morals from a blueberry muffin? Boy, you have it really easy compared to kids in my time.”

“Oh, it’s not my fault you had a ty life.” This kid is just brooding with confidence, Yifan thinks. “So, your turn.”

“What do you want to know?”

Baekhyun took a few seconds to think. Yifan is slightly amused by the interest he displays towards him, a 24-yeard-old stranger. “How about...how did you meet your girlfriend?”

“Boyfriend.”

“Boyfriend.” Baekhyun retracts.

Yifan chuckles before clearing his throat, starting with, “We met at a conference in LA.”

“Ooh, so grown-up.” Yifan gives him a look for interrupting. “Sorry.” Baekhyun says with an apologetic grin.

“He was already successful then. On his way to a promotion, if I remember correctly. He was there to accompany his boss, probably starting to introduce him as preparatory for that promotion. Anyway, I was introduced to him as one of the trainees by our employer. We were both from China so we had a conversation after all the introductions were done. He was younger than me but already on his way to success. That impressed me.”

“It turns out we’re both assigned in Hongkong. Casual conversations turned to intimate ones, one thing led to another and before we knew it, we both fell in love with each other. It’s almost too good to be true. He was the Vice President of his firm and I became a very successful Realtor. It was perfect.”

Baekhyun didn’t want to interrupt him this time but if he had a choice, he definitely would, because he looked so sad. 

--

When they got back home, Baekhyun’s mom has already cooked dinner. Yifan apologized for coming back late with her son but she was so understanding, saying Baekhyun is street smart so she doesn’t worry much. Yifan looks at Baekhyun then and nodded. He definitely gave out that kind of impression. Baekhyun was setting up the table while Yifan stood there awkwardly. His mom scolded him for leaving out Yifan’s plate but Baekhyun argued it was out of habit. From Yifan’s point of view, the two of them looked like they share a special bond, more than mother and son--maybe like best friends. Yifan can only wish to have that kind of bond with his mother.

“Come on, sit down now, Yifan.” Come to think of it, it’s been a long time since he ate a meal with other people. It was always him alone. It made him happy but at the same time sad because when all of this is over, when he finally has to go back home, that only thing that will change is himself.

--

“Rise and shine, big guy.”

Yifan groaned when he felt a slight pain after Baekhyun kicked him. This boy really lacks respect for others. Baekyun the light so he had no choice but to sit up and open his eyes. He immediately checks the time. “It’s 4 AM.”

“Today, we’re gonna watch all of these movies.”

“All of them?” Yifan exclaims.

“Yes. So we need to start early.”

“Seriously?”

“Now, which of these movies have you already watched?”

Yifan shakes his head into focus. “Uh, Friends with Benefits, Love and Other Drugs and...oh, Wanderlust.”

“Interesting.” Baekhyun says with a nod of approval.

“Okay, you’re not in the position to judge me.”

“I’m not judging you.” Baekhyun chuckles. “It’s a shame though.”

The list are: Say Anything, 10 Things I Hate About You, Before Sunrise, Before Sunset, Before Midnight, She’s All That, The Breakfast Club, Clueless, A Walk to Remember, He’s Just Not That into You, Cruel Intentions, and Pride and Prejudice. Twelve hours of nothing but romantic movies and chick flicks. Yifan reminds himself to grab some Y chromosome in the grocery store.

When the credits finally roll in Pride and Prejudice, Yifan felt like his head was squeezed physically and his eyes red like cherry--not from crying but from the over exposition of LED. He tries to remember why he agreed to this in the first place.

“It’s my favorite movie.” Yifan hears Baekhyun say in between his dramatic sniffs. He said the same thing halfway through Clueless. 

Yifan thinks this has been the girliest day of his life--and that’s saying something given he’s babysat his nephews more than he visited his ex-boyfriend of the past year. It’s already past midnight. The room is a mess. They took 15 minutes break in between movies so fortunately they were at least able to take a bath. There were plates all over. Thank god Baekhyun’s mother checks up on then from time to time, bringing up food and snacks, or else Yifan will feel like a total freak with no one to talk to. He and Baekhyun’s mother converse for a little while which Baekhyun doesn’t notice because mentally, he is absent. 

“I need a beer. Do you have beer?”

“Maybe a couple cans in the fridge? My mom stores them for emergencies such as my aunt coming over unannounced because of marriage problems. It happens a lot.”

Yifan did not hear anything after the word fridge. He comes down silently not to wake up Baekhyun’s mom. He only needed one for himself but figured he should stay there for a few minutes before coming back up. Who knows what Baekhyun is up to. So he grabbed two. He leaned against the counter beside the fridge and sighed, savoring the silence after 12 long hours of agony.

However, not a minute has passed and he heard Baekhyun coming down the stairs. “What are you doing? Turn on the lights.” He says, turning on the lights. He was carrying the plates from upstairs.

“You want some?”

“Okay, I may be fun but beer has its schedules,” Baekhyun replies while carefully placing he plates on the sink. Then he opened the fridge. “Plus, my mom will be in pain if she finds out I drank without her.”

“You two are really close.”

“Well, we only have each other.” Baekhyun takes out a few things, like lettuce and chicken and stuff. Yifan watches him until he placed those stuff beside the stove across him.

“Are you...going to cook?”

“Huh? Oh, right. I cook my mom’s lunch everyday. She doesn’t eat at work until someone tells her to. One time, she collapsed at work because she hadn’t eaten all day so since then I make sure to pack her lunch.”

“And you do it everyday?”

“Yeah.”

“I never noticed.”

“Well, you sleep like an old man.” Baekhyun teased. 

The sound of lettuce getting cut distracted Yifan from noticing that remark. There’s something mature about watching Baekhyun cook from behind. “So what are you cooking?”

“Just chicken, fried rice and some vegetables.” 

“Do you need some help?” says Yifan as he makes his way towards him.

“No, I’m good. You just drink your beer.” Yifan makes a detour towards the other side of the counter. He grabs a stool and sits across Baekhyun. “So, your turn.” Baekhyun subtly glances at him, careful not to get distracted from the knife.

“Ah, right.” Yifan says. “So, what do you want to know now?”

Baekhyun pours oil on the pan and then the cut lettuce and tomatoes. “Let’s see,” Afterwards, he put the rice and started mixing them while rocking the pan above the fire. “How about why he kicked you out or something? What did you do?”

Yifan clicked his tongue. “Well, he didn’t really kick me out.” 

“Okay mister, you really gotta stop making up crap.”

Yifan chuckles. “I...broke up with him.”

Baekhyun turns off the stove and stares at him. “You flew all the way here from China to break up with him?”

“Well, I thought doing it on the phone is kind of disrespectful.”

“Okay, you have to understand that no lover would appreciate how respectful you are if you’re going to break up with them anyway,” Baekhyun says, almost enunciating every word and syllable, showing how perturbed he was at Yifan’s revelation. “You can still be sincere on the phone, you know.”

“Really, have you tried it?”

“No. Maybe. But I know how it works.” Baekhyun says while applying the dressing on the chicken.

“Yeah, movies.” Yifan snorts.

“Okay, I’m gonna ignore that disrespectful tone but observing also works excuse me,” Baekhyun argues, sticking a tongue out at him. “So? Why’d you break up with him?”

“Well, you know when everything’s happening so fast, after a while there’s no way out but to end it? Our relationship was too good to be true, in the first place. All words and no substance. The problem with career-driven individuals is that they mistake being impressed by one’s resume with love. When I started worrying about how our relationship is gonna go when something happens to one of us and our career I knew then it was never going to work. You sometimes fall in love with their achievements. It’s just bad luck we met when we were on our way to success. If we hadn’t, if we had met before that, maybe we could’ve shared more moments together.” Yifan clicks his tongue, pitying the potential he lost with that relationship. “So, to avoid more heartbreaks and exchange of profanities, I decided to end it, responsibly.”

The smell of fried chicken was spreading and Yifan couldn’t help but wonder how good of a cook Baekhyun is.

“That is the most boring thing I’ve ever heard.” Baekhyun says, without regards to respect, obviously. “Where’s the cheating? The ‘finding your lover in bed with another man’? The juicy bits?”

Yifan gives him a strange look and laughed. “Sorry, kid.” He ruffled Baekhyun’s hair. “Relationships don’t always end because of cheating or whatever, you know.”

“I’m really starting to feel like I’m getting less than I offered.” Baekhyun finishes up cooking, carefully placing the chicken inside the lunch box and then turning off the stove. 

“Fine. If you really feel robbed, ask me another one.” Baekhyun carried the used plates on utensils on the sink to wash them. His back was facing Yifan now.

“What’s his name?” Baekhyun cursed in his head. Good thing Yifan wasn’t able to see his expression but he didn’t really mean to ask that. He slipped.

“Yixing.” Yifan says with a deep sigh. Silence came after that. Baekhyun can imagine how sad he looks right now. That is why he honestly didn’t want to ask that. He the faucet to let the water repel the silence.

--

Today is not the same as the past days. After eating blueberry muffins at Aunt Laurie’s, Baekhyun suddenly became quiet. He headed straight to the bus station and Yifan only followed, confused as to where they’re headed. 

“Are you okay?” Yifan finally asks but he didn’t get an immediate response. So he tapped his shoulder and Baekhyun almost leaped in surprise.

“Sorry. I was distracted. What is it?”

“I was just wondering if you’re okay. You don’t look too good.”

“No, it’s just, something about the weather maybe.”

True. It was kind of cloudy today. It may rain later but no one can tell when. But Yifan knows it’s something else. He saw it, how Baekhyun’s face changed when they walked out of the store. There was a poster on the wall and Baekhyun immediately stopped when he saw it. He just stared at it. That’s where it started. Yifan couldn’t ask. He’ll just have to wait for Baekhyun to take him to that place but this silence is deafening, especially around Baekhyun.

About half-an-hour later, they finally went off the bus. They seem to be at Myeongdong. 

“You’ve been here?” Baekhyun asks.

“Couple times.”

After grabbing lunch from a fastfood chain, Baekhyun took him to a small concert hall. It was already around two in the afternoon. 

Baekhyun said it was a local band. Yifan takes a quick look around the place. The band seems to be popular to attract this many people. They decided to stay at the back, near the entrance, so they don’t get squeezed between the crowds. The band had just finished one song when they entered and are now preparing for another one. Yifan glances at Baekhyun. He stayed still, staring at the stage. He looks as if he actually loathes being here. If he does, then why are they here in the first place?

Suddenly, Baekhyun’s face turned into shock, as if he saw something weird. “Let’s go.” He says, grabbing Yifan’s hand, and heading towards the entrance. 

“Baekhyun!”

Ah, so that was it. That’s who he saw.

Yifan saw a guy taller than Baekhyun, wearing a leather jacket, and his hair styled up. It was the same guy who was singing at the stage earlier. “Baekhyun!” He calls again. They were almost at the sidewalk when Baekhyun gets pulled back, grabbing Yifan as well. The guy had Baekhyun’s wrist gripped. “Please talk to me.”

“I don’t want to.”

“Then why did you come here?”

“It’s none of your business!”

“You always say it’s none of my business but it is, alright?! Just listen to me!”

“I said I don’t want to!” Baekhyun tells while struggling to pull his arm back.

Yifan notices the crowd around them. Of course, doing this in public, especially with someone so recognizable is crazy. He grabbed the singer’s arm then. “I think we should do this somewhere private.”

The singer gives him a look. “We? Who are you?”

“What do you care who he is? Let me go already!” Baekhyun snaps.

“Is he your new boyfriend, huh?”

Yifan notices the pain on Baekhyun’s face and immediately pushed the singer away. “He said let go!”

“What do you think you’re doing?! This is none of your business!” The singer yells provokingly, pushing Yifan. “Don’t act so mighty just because he’s been blowing your ! You—” The rest of that nonsensical sentence crumbled when Yifan punched him in the face. The crowd gasped and Baekhyun immediately pulled him away, leaving the singer unconscious on the ground with a large bruise coming his way.
--

The ride home was the same. Baekhyun was still quiet. It was only when they arrived home that Baekhyun looked him in the eyes. “Does it hurt?”

“What?”

“Your hand.”

Yifan looked down on his hand and saw it red and bleeding. He didn’t even feel the pain being too distracted with Baekhyun. But when the adrenaline has finally left his system, Yifan couldn’t help but groan in pain. 

“Come on.” Baekhyun says as he walks inside the house with Yifan following behind him. They headed straight to the kitchen and Baekhyun told him to sit on a stool as he looked for the first-aid kit. When he did and started treating Yifan’s wounds, the silence was back between them.

“Are we gonna talk about it?” Yifan starts as Baekhyun finishes up covering his hand with a bandage.

“We don’t have to.”

“Well, I kinda got hurt in that context so I deserve to know.” Yifan says, pulling out the guilt card. “Things only get worse if you don’t talk to someone about it.” he added, trying not to sound like he’s lecturing the younger.

Baekhyun glances at him and smirked. “You’re a grown up, you’re smart, take a guess.”

So he did. “That guy...he’s the reason why you don’t believe in romance anymore?” Anyone could pretty much tell. 

Baekhyun laughs, but it sounded like pity directed to himself. “Cliche right?”

“Well, there aren’t that many cliches in the world anymore.” Yifan watches him tidy up, waiting for a response. It felt like a long hour even though it was only a minute.

“He’s...he’s a singer, in a band, so he writes their songs and lyrics. And you can’t write anything about love if you haven’t experienced it.” Baekhyun was playing with his hands as he continues on. Yifan can tell he’s not used to opening up about this with other people. 

“Do you know what he did? He stood in our porch and held up a speaker with my favorite song playing. He stole a microphone from the AV room and sang to me in the bleachers of our gymnasium while we were playing volleyball. He wrote me a poem and read it in class. Took random videos of me, saying he might need it in the future, so that he could always go back to those times. You know how we met? It was the summer before school and I was going home from Jeju. I was in the bus and he suddenly sat beside me and talked to me and invited me to have a drink with him when we reach the stop and then it just turned into a whole day of talking and walking and going to places in an impulse.”

Yifan’s crooked eyebrows says it all. 

“Sounds familiar right?”

“Those movies.”

Baekhyun snickers. “Yeah. Say Anything, 10 Things I Hate About You, She’s All That, 50 First Dates, Before Sunrise, you name it. Those were the movies he had in his room.”

Yifan snickers, but it sounded a bit different than Baekhyun’s pitiful one. “That bastard.”

“I was never a fan of movies. I mentioned it when we first met so maybe that made me an easy target. I had no idea all those things he did for me came from realistically ignorant writers and money-obsessed directors who showcase make-believe films in cinemas and TVs for teenagers who are dumb enough to make it educational and a product of factual research adding a big increment to the worsening negativity of the role of sentiment in one’s decisions.” Or movies.

“Wow,” Yifan breathes out. He himself held his breath throughout that pain-staking monologue. “You really have a lot bottled up.”

“He was so sweet. I even thought he was the sweetest. I thought, if he’s willing to make this much effort just to write songs and sing them, then he must be one hell of a guy. But then we got into a fight and he just...gave up. I told him out of anger that maybe we should stop seeing each other and he just agreed. It’s like he was waiting for that moment. It’s like he knew he has out all of the romance he can get from me and just threw me away. He never called or even tried to see me the day after that, and the day after the day after that, and then the week after that, until I just gave up too.”

“I’m so sorry.”

“So, obviously, I went through this lump I don’t know how to get out of. I started renting those movies he had in his room and watched them one by one, you know, maybe to find out what went wrong with our story book love story but then I found out something else. The complete lack of originality, for one. I didn’t even cry, I just laughed. I mean, who does that? Incorporating something you’ve only seen in movies into real life?” Yifan had a quick answer to that question but argued it might not be the best time to reveal the obvious. “God, so pathetic, I hate him. I hate him so much.”

“And that’s not even the worst part.” Baekhyun continues before Yifan can even come up with an apt response. “The worst part is that he’s a singer.” Yifan gives him a look, not entirely following. “You can’t write anything about love if you haven’t experienced it.” Baekhyun repeated monotonously while rolling his eyes.

“Those songs...” Yifan started but trailed off when he tried to remember a tune in his head. “They’re all about you?” Baekhyun nodded tediously. “What. How ed up is that?”

“I know,” Baekhyun says, inhaling deeply. “It’s like everyone’s got a motive to do something romantic nowadays. The time when people did it out of pure desire is long gone.” He turned to Yifan with a crooked smile. “Romance is dead.”

Romance is dead. Those words echoed in Yifan’s head. It gave him a lot to think about the whole night. He never thought how important a trivial issue regarding sentiment can be such a big deal to someone until now. He admits he took a lot of love given to him for granted but he never knew love is something that can be scarce. He concluded it’s different for everyone and that made him realize just how ignorant he really is, and not the other way around. 

He takes a glance at Baekhyun’s face. He’s the only one he talks to for the past two days and never did he notice his long eyelashes. He chuckled lightly. Maybe because his smile snatches all the attention. If he didn’t know better, he’d think this sort of attraction is brotherly. But he knew better and honestly wished he didn’t.

--

The day before Yifan’s flight, Baekhyun had somehow managed to set up a small gathering in his house. His mother had a two-day business trip so she won’t be home until tomorrow. Only about five people came and Yifan felt relieved for knowing all of them. There’s Chanyeol, Kibum the bartender, the twins who are waitresses at Aunt Laurie’s, and Minseok, the oldest and Baekhyun’s neighbour, who came to supervise. He used to babysit Baekhyun when he was a kid so he treats Baekhyun like a brother.

“Ugh, Baekyun, no not those chick flicks again.” Chanyeol complained when he saw Baekhyun coming down with CDs that are too familiar. It was followed by similar protests so Baekhyun had to put them back.

“So what are we gonna do then?”

“Here.” Minseok stood up, holding a Supernatural season one CD on one and a Santa hat on the other.

“Why are you holding a Santa hat?”

“I saw this on Youtube. We put this on the corner of the TV and then whenever Sam or Dean ends up wearing them we take a shot.”

“Who’re Sam and Dean?”

“The characters, Baekhyun.” 

“Okay but I don’t know what they look like.” “Hey! You didn’t know what Reese Witherspoon looked like either before I made you watch Legally Blonde.”

“Anyway, now we have to divide into two groups for Sam and Dean.”

“But we’re an odd number.”

“The twins can count as one.”

Baekhyun ended up in team Sam, though after episode one he now dislikes because Dean is totally his type. Yifan, Kibum and Chanyeol ended up in team Dean while the rest in team Sam. Honestly, it was a bad idea, especially coming from the supposedly eldest of them all. But Baekhyun recalls the number of times Minseok almost lost him when he was a kid so now it wasn’t that surprising. They weren’t even done with season one yet and they have already finished two bottles. Baekhyun sighed. The aftermath wasn’t that surprising either. Minseok was starting to lean against him so decided to stand up. Looking around, saying the living room is a mess would be an understatement. He then spotted Yifan, leaning against the foot of the couch, still preoccupied with the show, and decided to 

“Well, you hold your liquor well.”

“I should be saying that to you.”

“Oh, right. It runs in the family.”

Yifan got distracted by the TV while Baekhyun was taking a seat beside him. “Are we still playing?”

“What do you think?” 

Yifan looks around them. The twins are asleep, Minseok is barely alive and Chanyeol was sleeping over his own vomit. He looks away with a disgusted snarl and Baekhyun couldn’t help but laugh. 

“I can’t believe you’re finally going home tomorrow.”

“I could stay if you want.”

“Yeah. Like that’s gonna happen.” Baekhyun says with a snort. “I’ll miss you though.”

“You should. You made me miss my flight.”

Baekhyun laughs. “Seriously, it’s not my fault. You didn’t even know me.”

“Well, I thought maybe you knew me. You wouldn’t stop yelling. And I wasn’t gonna get on that plane still wondering what the pretty guy wanted from me.”

Baekhyun grins at him. “You think I’m pretty?”

“You know you are.”

“No. I know I’m cute.”

Yifan groans softly. “Yes, okay, I genuinely think you’re pretty. For such a troublemaker.”

“Some people are just lucky.” Baekhyun says boastfully.

“I’m really gonna miss you, Baekhyun. I gotta say, I didn’t have this on my bucket list but I’m checking it off anyway.”

“Aren’t you glad you ran down that escalator?” Baekhyun says in a mischievous way. He’s always been so animated, Yifan’s definitely going to miss that the most. It was only then that he realized how he actually lacks the motivation or energy to have fun once in a while.

“Go off to an unplanned vacation with a pretty stranger: check.”

Baekhyun’s laugh disappeared when he noticed his glass was empty. “I’ll get some more.” Unfortunately, the rest of the alcohol inside of his system picked the perfect time to act up when he stood up so he ended up crashing down, immediately alarming Yifan who was about to receive him but the alcohol did him no good either. They both ended up in a tangled mess, with Yifan on top of Baekhyun. 

“Sorry. Are you okay?” Yifan asks, struggling to balance his weight with his already weal arms so he doesn’t crush Baekhyun under him. He was alarmed when Baekhyun didn’t seem conscious. “Baekhyun? Hey!” He calls while slapping his cheeks gently, trying to wake him up. If he obtained a concussion from that fall then falling asleep is not a good idea. “Baekhyun! Wake up! Baek—“ He stopped when Baekhyun suddenly slapped his hand away.

“Aw, what?” Baekhyun complains. “Stop yelling.”

“Sorry. I thought you fell asleep.”

Baekhyun laughed. In his mind, it was all too cliché. He didn’t think this thing actually happens in real life. It was only when he heard Yifan’s painful groan that he was reminded he had hit his head on the floor as well. “Aw, . My head hurts.” 

Yifan couldn’t help chuckle loudly at Baekhyun’s sudden change in expression. His arms gave up then and he ended up leaning his head against Baekhyun’s neck. 

“Hey, you’re heavy.”

“Can you push me off? I don’t think I have enough strength left.”

“And you think I do?” Baekhyun replies sharply with a sigh.

Baekhyun smelled like a mix of baby powder and strawberry. Yifan wondered if it was his sweat because what 18-year-old boy smells like baby powder and strawberry. So unconsciously, in a state of wonder, he ended up Baekhyun’s neck.

Baekhyun felt a tickle. “What are you doing?” Maybe it’s the alcohol. Yifan couldn’t seem to stop until he reached Baekhyun’s jaw. Baekhyun bit his lip then, afraid of the sounds he might make, but ended up cutting the skin. Blood dripped from his lips, distracting Yifan with the smell. He the blood from his jaw and then into his lips. And in a spur of the moment, ended up kissing the younger. Baekhyun gasped in surprise, and that little mistake gave Yifan a chance to force his tongue inside. It wasn’t accidental. Baekhyun moaned under him, feeling rather weird with both their tongues entangled together.

And then suddenly everything didn’t make sense at the same time it did. It was only a matter of time before one of them finally snaps out of it and pushes the other—unfortunately, they both did at the same time. “Sorry.” They utter. A sudden loud crashing sound breaks off the impeding silence between them and they turn towards the kitchen where Chanyeol was struggling to get on the table. Baekhyun groans at his ungodly sight and scurries towards him while yelling, “Every time!”

Yifan was left with his judgment, albeit still distracted by Chanyeol’s display of embarrassment.

--

Baekhyun woke up at the sound of the frying pan. His head didn’t hurt as much but he still felt like the wold was revolving. 

“Here.” Minseok offers him a glass of water which he gladly accepts. After taking a drink, he looked around the place to see the mess all cleaned up. It must have been Minseok. He’s always been clean. It also seemed like Chanyeol woke up fine seeing how he’s cooking so passionately. Minseok also informed him that the others have gone home at dawn. 

Baekyun stood up then, stretching his arms. “I’m gonna go take a bath.”

He slowly made his way to his room and almost jumped in surprise when he saw Yifan inside. Oh, that’s right, he thought, he’s going home today.

“Good morning.”

“Mornin’.” He says lazily as he heads straight to his dresser. 

“Is your head okay?”

The memory hit him like bullet in the head. They kissed. Last night. And it wasn’t just a simple kiss. Maybe he could just pretend it didn’t happen. After grabbing his things, he left the room without uttering another word.

When he came back, refreshed and all, Yifan was already done packing. 

“You’re done.”

“Yeah, I didn’t buy that much clothes anyway.”

“What time’s your flight?”

“1 pm.”

Baekhyun checked the time. 9 AM. “So, only four hours huh.”

“Yeah. But Minseok told me to get their at least two hours early.”

“Oh right, there might be a lot of people at this time.”

Pretending doesn’t really help. Not at all.

Baekhyun clears his throat. “Um, listen, Yifan, I know this may sound weird coming from me but I’m glad you took it easy with me, you know, since I’m the reason you missed your flight in the first place.”

“Is that all?”

Baekhyun bit his lip and felt a pang of pain because of the cracked skin. Yifan has that look. Of course he remembers what happened. Baekhyun sighs then. “Also, I know you’re worried about what happened last night so I just want to assure you, it’s okay. You don’t have to feel guilty or whatever for kissing an 18-year-old guy or something. We can just forget about it. I don’t want you worrying about something so trivial when I’ve caused you enough trouble already.”

“What if I don’t want to?”

“What?” Baekhyun asks, slightly taken aback.

“What if I don’t want to forget about it?”

“Why? It’s stupid.”

“I don’t think it’s stupid.”

“Yifan, I don’t understand what you’re trying to say.” 

“I’m saying I like you, okay? Not in a platonic way, in a romantic way, Baekhyun. I like you.” 
Baekhyun stares at him with confusion. “Are you joking?” Why is Yifan saying those things?

“I’m not, okay, and I know you felt something too, last night.”

“I didn’t, okay? I don’t feel that way!” But the truth is, he does. Because Baekhyun doesn’t want to forget about it either. He doesn’t want this to be just some summer story. Ever since he laid his eyes on Yifan, he’s been feeling all sorts of emotions, and spending a week with him doesn’t help either. But he was prepared to let it all go once Yifan leaves. 

“Baekhyun—“

“Why are you doing this? You really think someone like me can possibly feel something like that? I loathe those kind of things, you know that!”

“You wanna know what I think? I think that the reason why you’re so obsessed with those movies is not because you wanna prove how inaccurate they are but because you want to find that feeling again, you want to feel what romance is again!”

“That’s bull!”

“I’m different, Baekhyun. I’m not one of those people who are dumb enough to treat romantic movies as educational because I myself have experienced them. I’ve experienced more things than you know so don’t you dare tell me that what I feel about you is not real because I know how much this is real!”

“You’re not supposed to like me--”

“Well sorry you don’t call the shots, Baekhyun!” Yifan retorts. “And neither do I.”

“And then what? You tell you like me and then you get on that plane, and then what? What am I supposed to do with that? You shouldn’t have told me! You should’ve gotten into that plane without saying anything! Why--why would you mess it all up?”

“Because you deserve it. You deserve to know.”

“I don’t!”

“Baekhyun, you’ve only had one person show you one type of love there is. I’m not that person.”

“Tell me to stay. Ask me. I’ll stay.”

“For someone like me? I’m not gonna do that!”

“Stop being so afraid!”

“I’m not! I’m being realistic!” 

“This is reality!” Yifan yells in exasperation. “Love...isn’t supposed to be cliché, right?” Baekhyun raises his head at him. “It shouldn’t have scripts or outlines.” Baekhyun slowly shows him his confusion. “It should be spontaneous, catching you off-guard—”

“You read my journal?”

“—making you do things that are unthinkable yet reasonable,”

“Stop it.”

“—leave you with nothing to do but take a risk--something dangerous but worth it.”

“Shut up!’

“Tell me this isn’t worth it.” Maybe it is. But he was in no position to make a decision like that.

“No, Yifan. It’s not. You’re 24 years old and a successful Realtor. You have your whole career ahead of you. You don’t need me to hold you back.”

“Is that a rejection?”

“Your flight’s in four hours. You should go.”

“Is that...is that your final answer?”

“Goodbye, Yifan.”

This is the part of their story that is too cliche. There are other ways he could’ve handled the situation but in the end, it all comes down to the only way he was shown. Elizabeth and her pride, Mr. Darcy and his prejudice--it all ends in rejection and heart break. Baekhyun feels like Elizabeth, slowly regretting his decision but too prideful to admit. This should be right call.

Yet, as Yifan disappears behind that door, he didn’t feel any sense of righteousness. Only any bit of conviction he had, vanquished, as the doorknob clicks shut.

Goodbye, my Mr. Darcy.

--

Baekhyun hadn’t noticed the time--actually, anything at all--it was only when he heard the door in the living room slam shut that he managed to snap back into reality.

“Baekhyun?” His mom calls from downstairs. He’s really not in the mood to talk, or anything at all, but he couldn’t bear to lie in front of his mother. So, like a boy who had just climbed out of his crib, he walked down the stairs sluggishly, showing a frown that was hard to ignore. “Oh, honey what’s wrong?”

“Everything?” Baekhyun says, pouting.

“Is it because he likes you?”

Baekhyun gives her a look. “Wha--how did you know?”

“I saw it, how he looks at you.” His mother says with a smile. “How you never noticed with the amount of chick flicks you watch, I don’t know.”

“So, why are you upset?”

“Because he’s not supposed to like me. It’s like...a sin for the social norm. I’m already a defiant for being biual, now I’m a biual in a relationship with an older man?”

“Since when did you care about the social norms?”

“That’s not the point. The point is, it’s not...normal.”

“You know, one thing I’ve learned from getting knocked up the first time I decided to get drunk is that...you don’t always get what you want. You could try to be righteous but life’s always gonna do something to shake your conviction. I might not have the storybook love story and the perfect husband I wanted, but I got you. All because I decided to let it go and take a risk. People told me I was stupid, keeping a baby I don’t even know whose. My mom almost chased me out of the house for ruining my future. But nine months later, when you finally came out, she cried more than I did. Honest. Now I have a troublemaker of a son, my own house and I get to go on dates whenever I want to. It worked out fine.”

“You got lucky, mom.”

“Oh, honey. It’s not all about the luck. I’m sorry that your first love story didn’t go well but it’s all part of the experience and I want you to have as much experience as you can. I didn’t. So I don’t want to deprive you of it. Okay, it might not be the ideal parenting method but what the hell do we know?” Baekhyun gives him a look and she merely laughed it off. “Now, you can choose to stay here, let him go and regret it afterwards, or run to the airport, take a risk, and then regret it afterwards or maybe even not. Which one do you think is easier?”

“Mom, you do realize that you’re letting your 18-yeard-old son chase after a 24-year-old successful man.”

“Oh, six years is hardly a gap. All I want is for you to be happy and to stop watching those movies and calling out random people on the streets.”

“You said it was okay!”

“Honey, those phone calls gave me so much headache.”

“Thanks, mom.”

She hugged him, ruffling his hair. “Oh crap,” She curses. “There’s only 30 minutes left before his plane takes off.”

“What?!”

“Go, go!” She yells while pushing Baekhyun to the door.

 Seriously? Isn’t this too cliche? “I won’t make it!”

“Honey, nothing is impossible for us Byuns!”

“Okay, mom, you’re freaking me out.”

“Do you wanna miss him or what?”

A lot of people think that if you were fated to be with that person then there’s no right or wrong, no maybes, no what ifs, just what is’ and what mights. That whatever you do, whatever choice you had, if that person is the one for you, then that person is the one for you. But not Byun Baekhyun. Baekhyun does not believe that love depends on fate. 

Love should not be cliche, it should not have scripts or outlines, it should be spontaneous, catching you off-guard, making you do things that are unthinkable yet reasonable, leave you with nothing to do but take a risk--something dangerous but worth it. 

And right now, he is feeling the exact same thing. It started too cliche though (for other people), realizing his feelings too late that he had to steal the cab his neighbor called and yell at the driver to drive straight to the airport. What’s cliche for him is giving right up when things doesn’t go the way he planned it to be. This wasn’t.

When he finally reached the airport, he ran straight to the check-in area, gently pushing away the people on the way and jumped over the divisions. As he sets food inside, he couldn’t shake the familiar feeling inside. The place is the same but the feeling is definitely different this time. He kept running until he saw the end-line by the entry way of the escalators going to the departure area. And then...he didn’t see him. He wasn’t on the escalator. “No.” He says under his breath. Yifan was already at the departure area. 

It seemed like it was hopeless up to this point but he tries to remind himself of that feeling, that one particular feeling. He clenched his fists. Time was running. It may be hopeless but there is always an option to jump, to take a risk. And he did. Like a maniac, like a freak, he grabbed onto the railings, pushed his weight up with his feet and jumped over. As soon as he heard the guards whistle, he braced himself and ran as fast as he can to the escalator. He’s really going to jail this time. But it didn’t matter. What mattered was the end line. He ran past the people on the escalator and finally reached the top. He looked around, searching for the departure area. As soon as he did, the whistles blow again and he immediately made a run for it. He glances behind him. The guards are too far he could take his time. 

When he reached the departure area, people were standing and forming a line. From his peripheral vision, he sees the staff with a megaphone announcing the seats currently going in from the line. There was no way he can find Yifan in this crowd, even with that big head of his. He can feel the guards getting closer as time runs when he spotted Yifan standing three people behind the flight attendant. He was only inches away from the tube. There was nothing but desperation from her on out.

He jumped on the seats, careful so not to break airport property and then as he lands, he swiftly snatched the megaphone from the staff and yelled, clear and with desperation, the words, “WU YIFAN DON’T YOU DARE TAKE A STEP INSIDE THAT PLANE!”

The noise and the murmurs slowly diminish. “WU YIFAN I SWEAR TO G---” He didn’t finish when the guards grabbed his arms and the megaphone away. “What the f--let me go!” He screams as he struggles to break away only to be pushed down to the floor. 

“Baekhyun?!”

Baekhyun finally stops struggling and the guards loosen their grip. He slowly looked up at Yifan who’s staring in disbelief at his sorry state. “Hi.”

“You idiot, what are you doing?” Yifan says in distress.

“Taking a risk?”

“Unbelievable,” Yifan says with a loud sigh. Then he turns to the guards. “It’s okay he’s with me. He’s not gonna run away this time so if you could just...”

The guards nod and eventually let go of Baekhyun. Baekhyun immediately stood, brushing off the dirt on his shirt in the process, and cleared his throat. “Yifan,” He starts, looking straight into Yifan’s eyes. “Don’t go.” He finally says, with all of his conviction and courage, two things he found in the last five minutes. “Please.”

“Why?”

“Because I’m in love with you.” Yifan was right. It was his coping mechanism--weighing the bad out of everything. It makes him feel better about himself amid his indifferences.

Everyone’s staring at them now, anticipating. Well, it was understandable. A young guy confessing his love to another guy? Korea’s not that open-minded about these things--yet--but this is definitely tabloid material. The longer they stand there, the more Baekhyun notices the crowd’s noises, their eyes, their actions--people were murmuring, taking pictures and videos of them, laughing and judging. But it didn’t matter. Baekhyun can only imagine the consequences, how Chanyeol will react when he logs on to the social media to find a recorded version of this, how his mom will leap in joy when she finds out he made it to the airport and how he will react when he finds him making a scene like this, taking risks and in love.

Somehow, in his own simple mind palace, the pros outweighed the cons and Baekhyun felt empowered even in doubt. “You know you can stare at me like that whenever you want if you actually accept my apology slash confession?”

“Impatient as ever.”

“I’m just saying...these people don’t have all day. Why rob them of the pleasure of giving the social media another reason why it is a necessity nowadays?”

“Are you trying to argue your way into making me answer for your own comfort?”

“By all means, I think I’ve made enough scene today. I wouldn’t be that demanding.”

“You’re really an idiot.” Yifan says, and yet he pulls him closer for a kiss. The crowd started applauding, which surprised him, but this moment was too good for him to even care. 

Yifan still ended up getting in the plane by the way. He said he already paid so much to move his flight. But he came back a month after, with three luggages, announcing that he’s gonna live with them from now on. Imagine Baekhyun’s mom’s delight and Chanyeol’s cries of agony. It turns out that his company had an opening in their branch in Seoul so he took it, without second-guessing, even if it meant he had to start over. It was worth taking the risk, definitely.

Baekhyun also burned all of the movies he had in his room. He didn’t need them anymore, because mmore than anything, he knows now that romance is definitely not dead. He’s just getting started. Chanyeol said he could just throw them out or give them to someone but Baekhyun retorted that something so simple and mundane is not something he would do. With that said, he also interrupted **** performance by throwing eggs at him on the stage and then giving him the finger as he runs out to the door, all of which were caught on tape by the way. So, as society dictated, he had somehow become an internet sensation.

All because he took a risk--something dangerous but worth it. You’ll be surprised of what you’ll get for taking such a dangerous risk. For Baekyun, he feels that he got more than he bargained for. Definitely.

Fin.