pairing: BaekChen
length: 1339 words

With his right arm in a sling after a nasty fall onto some concrete, Jongdae struggled to open the mailbox to drop off his bills for the month. The prior week, he had been biking home from work and some idiot had suddenly rounded the corner, forcing him to swerve out of the way which had caused his front tire to collide into the curb and had caused him to launch into the air like a rag doll.

Since his dominant hand was now effectively useless for two months, the smallest tasks like dressing himself and brushing his teeth were almost impossible to complete. Cooking and cleaning were definitely out of the question, and the only reason Jongdae hadn’t starved to death yet was because his mother had stocked his refrigerator chock full of dishes after he had been discharged from the hospital.

And now, even this dumb mailbox was proving to be a more difficult opponent than he had initially anticipated. Jongdae had half a mind to just give up and slink back to his house, too exhausted to bother battling with the mailbox any longer, but the thought of having to pay extra late fees on his bills kept him pawing at the stuck mailbox lid. It jiggled mockingly, refusing to fall forward, and Jongdae had no way to hold it in place so that he could wrench it open with brute force like he usually would.

“I really should get a new mailbox,” he muttered under his breath as he briefly stepped away, glaring at the stupid contraption. “Dumb piece of junk,” he scornfully added as he kicked the pole, instantly regretting it as he howled from the sharp pain that spread around his foot.

“Um, are you okay?” an unfamiliar voice shyly piped up as a man dressed in a blue uniform appeared next to Jongdae.

He instantly jumped back, cradling his broken arm to his chest while eyeing the newcomer warily. “Oh god, you almost gave me a heart attack!” Jongdae loudly yelped. “Please don’t sneak up on me like that!”

“Sorry!” the other male squeaked out, hastily bowing in apology. “I just saw you struggling so much with your mailbox and I was going to offer some help when you kicked it all of a sudden.” He then extended a hand and smiled brightly. “Anyway, I can take your letters for you. We might as well bypass an extra step since I’m here already.”

“Uh, sure, thanks.” Jongdae handed off his stack of envelopes to the stranger, who he assumed was the mailman, and nodded in appreciation. “So you’re the mailman around here, uh…”

“Byun Baekhyun,” the other male helpfully supplied as he carefully placed the letters into his bag.

“Baekhyun,” Jongdae slowly repeated. “Nice name.”

“Thanks!” Baekhyun beamed. “What’s yours?”

“I’m Kim Jongdae.”

“Nice to meet you, Jongdae!”

“Anyway, I’ve never seen you around here before,” Jongdae commented, steering the conversation back to its original trajectory.

“I started my route just a month ago!” Baekhyun proudly stated. “I’m really glad I got placed here, since this is such a nice neighborhood. Very peaceful and scenic with all the fruits trees and well-kept gardens.”

Jongdae slightly grimaced when he surreptitiously glanced around his own front yard and noticed how the flowers were starting to wilt, since he hadn’t been able to water them since his hospitalization.

“By the way, if you don’t mind me asking, what happened to your arm?” Baekhyun inquired, pointing to the hefty white cast.

“Freak accident,” Jongdae answered, his grimace deepening even more. He quickly recounted the harrowing events of the previous week, enough to satisfy the mailman’s overt curiosity without overwhelming his own psyche with the memory of the traumatizing event.

“Oh no, I’m so sorry that happened to you,” Baekhyun murmured sympathetically. “How long will you have the cast on for?”

“Doctor said two months total, which is going to , considering how much I’ve been struggling this past week,” Jongdae said, pointedly glaring at his mailbox again.

“Do you not have anyone to help you out?” Baekhyun asked while curiously peering at Jongdae’s house.

“Nope,” Jongdae answered, loudly popping the end of the word. “I live alone. Been living alone for the past five years. My mom visits every once in a while, but she and my dad have my kid brother to take care of and it’s too far for them to drive over all the time to see me.”

“I think this would count as a worthy exception to that though,” the mailman pointed out.

Jongdae shrugged in response. “It’s fine. I’m used to being on my own. I’ll deal with this too. Not like I can do anything else about the situation right now.”

“Do you have any friends who could stay with you temporarily? Or at least come over and help you out with household chores so that you’re not straining yourself?” Baekhyun asked, his youthful features painted with worry.

“All of my close friends are back in my hometown,” Jongdae explained with another shrug. “I moved out here for work and it’s too far for any of them to come over and take care of me for two months. And I wouldn’t feel comfortable asking for a huge favor like that from any of them anyway. They all have their own lives and problems to deal with. I shouldn’t pile anything unnecessary on their plates, especially when my injury has nothing to do with them.”

“What about a coworker? Or any neighbors?”

“I’m not super close to any of them,” Jongdae sheepishly admitted. “At least not close enough to intrude on them like that.” He let out a low chuckle before commenting, “I’ve really screwed myself over, huh. Oh well, it’s fine. Not like it’s the end of the world. I can deal with any minor inconveniences for two months.” Jongdae then narrowed his eyes at his mailbox again before continuing under his breath, “I’ll have to get this stupid thing fixed first though.”

“Um, if you really don’t have anyone to help you, I can lend a hand,” Baekhyun enthusiastically offered. When Jongdae raised an eyebrow, the mailman quickly added, “I won’t impose on you or anything like that! But I can be an errand boy for you if you need one! Like I can go on grocery runs, be your chauffeur, take care of your garden, stuff like that! And of course, I can help you mail anything and everything as your new trusty mailman!”

Jongdae’s eyebrows stayed raised. “You’d really do all that for a stranger you just met today?”

Baekhyun vigorously nodded. “Of course! I always try to help out anyone in need and you clearly need some help since your arm is in a cast right now. I’d feel terribly if I didn’t at least offer you any help. You don’t have to accept it, but I’m here to help you out like a good neighbor should.”

Jongdae send him a lopsided smile as he wryly pointed out, “But you’re not even my neighbor.”

“The mailman is everyone’s neighbor!” Baekhyun proudly proclaimed with his hands on his hips and his chest puffed forward. “We’re the most dependable people around. No matter if it’s rain or shine, we get the mail to where it needs to be and I can definitely get you anything you might need while you’re still healing from your injury.”

“Are you sure about this? You can’t take it back once you’ve started and I can be very picky,” Jongdae warned with a teasing grin. “You might regret offering your help after the first day.”

“I’m nothing if not resilient,” Baekhyun cheerfully replied. “Throw it all at me, neighbor!”

“Alright, then it’s a done deal,” Jongdae declared as he held out his uninjured left hand for the mailman to shake. “See you bright and early tomorrow morning, neighbor! I’ve got a whole laundry list of things for you to help me catch up on.”

Baekhyun grinned widely. “No sweat! I was born ready!”

♈♈♈