pairing: BaekLay
length: 2757 words

Baekhyun took a deep breath as he tried to steady his right hand, which was tightly clutching his unlocked phone. The screen was showing a QR scanner and half of a QR code could be seen within the scanning boundaries; his hand was shaking too much to properly scan the full square of pixelated dots. It took a few more seconds before he was finally able to keep his hand still long enough for his phone to register the entire QR code. And that meant his payment had been successfully wired.

He now had a boyfriend for the entire day. Well, at least until half an hour before the mall closed.

“Hello, how are you?” a smooth, light voice kindly greeted.

Baekhyun fumbled slightly as he tucked his phone in his pants pocket before he nervously looked up to see the handsome, suited up man sending him an adorable dimpled smile. He could hear his heart thumping against his chest, loud like the sound of crashing waves. His knees were beginning to feel like jelly and his stomach was now filled with dozens of restless butterflies.

Because, wow, this man was perfect.

His rental boyfriend was impeccably dressed to the tens. He was wearing a crisp black suit with a maroon necktie contrasting greatly against his white dress shirt. His hair was parted three to one at the right side with the edges artfully combed down to softly frame the tops of his defined cheekbones. His skin was pale and smooth, like a doll’s, and his full lips were a delightful shade of pink.

Baekhyun very much wished he could kiss those lips to see how plump they actually were.

When he caught himself thinking this, the Korean male immediately kicked himself for being so weird and creepy. The date hadn’t even started yet and he was already fantasizing things that were never going to happen. God, he was lame.

Luckily, the rental boyfriend didn’t seem to notice Baekhyun’s strange actions and he grinned widely while introducing himself. “As you can see, my name is Lay.” He pointed to the white sign that was posted on his display platform. “What’s your name?”

“B-baekhyun,” the shorter male answered, stuttering a bit since he was still struck by Lay’s presence. While Baekhyun had already known that the Chinese male was good-looking, since he had chosen to rent him out of all of the available boyfriends, it was still surreal that such a godly man was this close to him and that the two of them would be this close for the rest of the day. It was too good to be true.

“Oh? You must be a foreigner.”

“I’m from Korea,” Baekhyun meekly answered. “I’m on holiday in China for two weeks.”

“Well then, I’ll have to make sure I do extra well so that you feel welcome here!” And, as if to send Baekhyun another step closer to experiencing cardiac arrest today, Lay flashed him a blinding million-dollar smile that made the Korean male see stars. “It’s a pleasure to meet you, Baekhyun! I’m very excited to spend time with you today!”

“M-me too,” the smaller male murmured, feeling his heartbeat accelerate exponentially.

“Shall we get started on our date, Baekhyun?”

A bright red blush spread over Baekhyun’s cheeks as he nodded shyly, unable to make direct eye contact with his new…boyfriend. His name on Lay’s tongue sounded like music; the Korean male couldn’t wait to hear Lay say his name again and again and again. As much as possible, if he were being perfectly honest.

Oh god, he honestly had no idea how he was going to survive for the rest of the day.

--

“So what’s an attractive young man like you doing with a rental boyfriend like me?” Lay curiously asked as they leisurely strolled through the mall. However, there was a considerable distance between the two, since Lay had established early on that he was strictly prohibited from engaging in any physical contact with a client; in this case, with Baekhyun.

The Korean male had been disappointed at first, but he understood why the regulation was in place. Allowing physical contact would make these excursions much more intimate, but also allow for a higher likelihood of something unsavory happening between a rental boyfriend and his client, so this rule prevented any major lawsuits from being filed.

However, it did make it more difficult for him to think of Lay as his boyfriend for the day, since they weren’t holding hands or engaging in anything similar whatsoever. It felt very platonic at the moment, which was fine in the grand scheme of things, but not what the Korean male had been expecting when he had decided to rent a boyfriend at the mall.

“I—I’m not attractive…”

“What? Of course you are! You’re stunning,” Lay said, his eyes crinkling up as he beamed brightly.

A pink flush began creeping up Baekhyun’s neck as he murmured, “Thank you.” He took a moment to remind himself to stay calm, cool, and collected. There was no need to freak out and embarrass himself in front of his rental boyfriend. “A few weeks ago, I read an article about rental boyfriend services being offered in Chinese malls, so I decided to experience it for myself when I came to visit China,” Baekhyun continued, keeping his arms stiffly at his side to prevent himself from accidentally brushing Lay’s hand, which he really wanted to hold. “It looked fun.”

The Chinese male beamed even more. “Are you having fun right now?”

Baekhyun nodded. Just being near Lay was enough to send his heart rate into overdrive and the Korean male had to consciously make sure he was walking steadily in order to avoid accidentally tripping over himself. He didn’t think he could live with the unforgettable shame of embarrassing himself like that in front of this perfect man.

“Great! If there’s anything in particular that you’d like to do, let me know! As long as it’s nothing physical, your wish is my command.” Lay bowed dramatically, his arms sweeping in front of him to enhance the theatrics.

The Korean male couldn’t help but giggle a bit—he also hated himself for acting like an immature school girl—which greatly pleased Lay, based off of the satisfied smile he wore. “So, um, what do people usually ask rental boyfriends to do then? Since there’s no physical contact allowed.” And that’s the best part of having a boyfriend, Baekhyun silently added.

“Well, a lot of my clients ask me to help them hold their purses and shopping bags. Most are girls, so they love to buy clothes, makeup, and skincare products.” Lay’s gaze then alighted on the large gray backpack that Baekhyun was wearing. “By the way, I can carry that for you,” he offered, pointing to the backpack. “It looks heavy.”

“Oh, no, it’s fine,” the smaller male politely declined, although his heart was doing somersaults in his chest. Could this guy get any more perfect? “I wear it everywhere I go, so I’m used to it.”

“Alright, but the offer still stands whenever you need a break. I’m your boyfriend right now, so you don’t have to feel shy about asking for anything. Whatever you need today, I will deliver. I can be the perfect Instagram boyfriend, so you’ll have amazing photos to upload on your social media accounts. If you need help deciding what to buy, I will give you my well-informed opinion on what is worth spending your money on. Gifts, fashion, stationery, furniture, anything and everything, really, I can help with,” Lay listed in quick succession.

“Thank you.” Although he was doing a good job of keeping his emotions in check, Baekhyun felt like screaming and crying simultaneously because it was so unfair that Lay was only his rental boyfriend. But he also would have never met this perfect Chinese man if it weren’t for the rental boyfriend service. A normal guy like Baekhyun would never be able to catch the attention of someone like Lay unless forced into the situation like their current one and that was an incredibly saddening thought.

Seeing the shorter male’s expression suddenly fall, Lay was quick to say, “Or we can find somewhere to sit and talk for a bit. If you have any problems or if you need any advice, I’m here to listen and help you process your thoughts. Or we can just chit-chat about anything. We don’t necessarily need to have deep conversations to have a meaningful time.”

That did sound nice. He would have Lay’s undivided attention and Lay would have his—not that the rental boyfriend hadn’t already completely captivated Baekhyun. The Korean male smiled and nodded, to Lay’s delight. They were able to walk towards the food court where most of the vacant tables were when Baekhyun suddenly stopped in his tracks and said, “I just remembered that I need to buy a couple of gifts for my friends and family back home. Could we do that first, please? I don’t want to forget and end up going back empty-handed.”

“Of course we can!” Lay exclaimed. “We can shop and talk at the same time, and if we get tired of walking around, we can take a break somewhere and chat even more. Remember, today is all about you, so feel free to let me know what you want and we’ll do it!”

Truthfully, what Baekhyun really wanted was against the rules, but since it wasn’t allowed, he was content with spending quality time with Lay. He was going to make the most of this once-in-a-lifetime date with the best rental boyfriend in all of China.

--

Baekhyun was having so much fun shopping and talking as he walked around the mall with Lay that he didn’t look at his phone at all. Not even once.

But that also meant he wasn’t keeping track of time and the hours flew by in the blink of an eye. He didn’t realize it was nearing eight-thirty in the evening until his rental boyfriend gently said, “Unfortunately, we’re going to have to wrap up our date very soon. I need to be back at the scanning station soon to help take down the platforms.”

“Oh.” Baekhyun couldn’t help but deflate at the Chinese male’s words, even though he knew this dream couldn’t last forever. This quasi-date was only meant to bring him temporary happiness. He knew Lay wasn’t actually his boyfriend, no matter how much the Korean male wished for the alternative. Their time together was bound to come to an end and now the conclusion was becoming a reality.

The walk back to the display platforms was silent and, the entire time, Baekhyun wished he weren’t so sensitive about never seeing Lay ever again. Even though their time together was criminally short, the Korean male was already attached. Too attached for his own good, honestly, but Baekhyun had never claimed to be the most logical guy around. After all, what kind of rational person rented a temporary fake boyfriend from a mall in a foreign country in the first place?

Once they arrived, Lay held out the shopping bags to Baekhyun, much to the shorter male’s dismay. “I’m sorry I can’t help you carry these any longer. We’re required to return everything to the client before we officially end the date,” the rental boyfriend explained with a rueful expression on his handsome face.

“It’s fine. I understand,” Baekhyun quietly replied while taking the bags, a slight quiver in his voice that he mentally berated himself for as he listened to himself talk. It wasn’t Lay’s fault that these were the policies he was mandated to follow. “You don’t need to apologize.”

The Chinese male still looked apologetic and his movements toward the display platforms were tinged with hesitance. He kept switching his sorrowful gaze between Baekhyun and one of his co-workers, another rental boyfriend named Han who was standing behind the display platforms while motioning for Lay to come over.

“Yixing, hurry up and get over here!” Han called, his hand movements becoming increasingly more insistent. “We still have to disassemble everything before we can clock out! Yifan and Zitao will kill us if we make them do it by themselves again!”

“Okay, Lu Han, I’m coming!” Lay called back. “Just give me a few seconds!” he added before turning back to the Korean male.

“You probably should go,” Baekhyun said quietly while gesturing to the display platforms. “I’ll be on my way now, so thank you—”

“Wait, please don’t leave yet!” the Chinese male hastily exclaimed, panic painting his features. “Kris, Tao, and Han are big boys. They can handle things by themselves for a moment.”

“Um—”

A high-pitched shriek of “Yixing!” interrupted the two, causing them both to look at Han who was now flanked by two extremely tall guys. All three were glaring daggers at Lay and he grimaced under the force of their combined glowers.

Knowing that he only had seconds left before his co-workers decided to come over and drag him to the display platforms, Lay quickly said, “Please wait for me here, Baekhyun! I promise I’ll be back when I’m done working!”

Although he was slightly taken aback by the situation, the Korean male still answered Lay’s plea with, “Oh, okay.” It wasn’t like he had anything else planned for the evening. He could spare a few extra minutes, even though he really didn’t know why Lay so desperately wanted him to stay.

Lay’s eyes instantly lit up. “Great! I’ll be back before you know it!”

And just like that, he quickly ran to his disgruntled co-workers and the four rental boyfriends got to work, dismantling the display platforms with practiced ease. Once they were all taken down and mounted like logs atop a metal cart that Tao had wheeled over earlier, the off-duty rental boyfriends went to a nearby bathroom to change clothes. Lay signaled for Baekhyun to continue waiting, his palms tightly pressed together in contrition.

So he idled on his phone, trying not to wonder what the taller male could possibly want from him that required Baekhyun to stay for so long. Dozens of possibilities ran through his mind, although none of them were actually plausible. Thankfully, the Korean male didn’t have time to obsessively ruminate for too long, since Lay finally emerged from the bathroom in casual clothing.

Although he was no longer dressed up in his suit, Lay still looked every bit as model-like as he had during their date. He wore a navy blue pea coat over a gray turtleneck and black slim-fit trousers that accentuated the toned shape of his strong legs. The Chinese male looked simultaneously sharp and cozy in his new outfit, and Baekhyun resisted to the urge to throw his arms around the rental boyfriend and hug him like a teddy bear. Lay looked so comfy and it was killing the Korean male inside to keep his arms firmly at his side.

“You waited for me,” the taller male gleefully said.

“You—you asked me to,” Baekhyun answered as he awkwardly scratched the back of his neck.

Lay laughed loudly, the bright sound echoing against the walls of the now relatively empty mall. “You’re so adorable,” he commented before suddenly offering his hand.

The Korean male looked at him questioningly, his head slightly tilted to the left while his eyebrows furrowed.

“I’m off the clock. Physical contact is allowed now,” Lay explained with a cheeky grin, “unless you don’t want to?”

Baekhyun could feel his ears instantly heat up. “No, no, I—I want to,” he mumbled as he awkwardly walked over to lace his fingers with the taller male’s waiting hand. Lay also took back some of the shopping bags to lighten Baekhyun’s load.

The two males began walking out of the mall, Lay humming a little ditty while Baekhyun focused on the comforting sensation of holding hands with the attractive Chinese male. He couldn’t believe Lay was actually willing to spend time with him after work. Baekhyun didn’t know what he had done to capture the rental boyfriend’s attention, but he also wasn’t going to complain about this golden opportunity.

As for him returning home to Korea soon… Well, Baekhyun would worry about that later. He still had another week left in China. And there was no telling how much would happen in a week if he and Lay were able to progress this much in a day.

♈♈♈