#2:   Initiating the Procedure 

(or)

Libraries Make Very Bad Meeting Places.

Kyungsoo's incessant brooding was disturbing Yixing's sleep and considering it was five in the morning and the fact that a whole day of strenuous dance practice lay ahead of her, she was not pleased.

Blurry-eyed, she tried to focus her gaze on the petite girl seated on the bed with yesterday's crossword on her lap. Yixing chuckled inwardly as she knew very well that Kyungsoo had erased the answers and was redoing it for what might be the twelfth time yet.

'Go to sleep, Do Kyungsoo. Your thoughts are ruining my sleep...'

'Ah, you're finally awake,' greeted Kyungsoo, looking eagerly at her room-mate, 'I was waiting for you to get up.'

'When exactly did you wake up?' asked Yixing incredulously.

'Probably two a.m. My brain wouldn't stop nagging me so I came up with some ideas to get me through this ordeal as smoothly as possible.'

'And you need me because?'

'To help me choose a plan with which I can approach You-Know-Who.'

'God Almighty!' exclaimed Yixing in a begrudging manner but nevertheless swung her legs off the mattress, 'Soo, why do you need a plan to go talk to someone?! Just walk up to Chanyeol and say "hi"! It's not that difficult.'

'Say hi?! I can barely hold a conversation without throwing ten insults at Baekhyun, who has the courtesy of being my prime male acquaintance, and you ask me to simply saunter in and introduce myself to a guy whose existence I was aware of only yesterday?'

'You're right about that...' hummed Yixing before enthusiastically adding, 'Say! Why not go under the pretext of confronting him over the incident at the library?'

Kyungsoo grimaced at that. 'I'm trying to delete that memory... I'd rather not bring it up. Aren't there any other mundane things you people usually talk about, you know, to break the ice?'

'Okay, what kind of stuff gets you to open up?'

'Well, for starters, I once spoke civilly to Baekhyun for an hour or so over which element from the Periodic Table I hated the most— it's Calcium, by the way— and I also concluded my argument with a genuine reason.'

'I truly pity his poor soul.'

'He deserved it for making my ears bleed with a lecture on why he thinks Kim Taeyeon is an angel in disguise. It's a purely mutualistic arrangement.'

Fighting off the urge to laugh at how immature that sounded, Yixing said, 'I'm telling you, Soo, the skirt incident is the best way to initiate whatever grotesque experiment you've worked out in your mind.'

'Hmmm... From the looks of it, I guess you're right,' mumbled Kyungsoo as she got up from her perch, 'Alright then. A good walk will give me a clear perspective over the details of my plan and I'll let you catch up on your sleep. Thank you once again, Yixing, and I apologise for being a nuisance.'

In a daze, Yixing nodded her head in amusement at the eccentric genius and long after Kyungsoo had left, she laid back on her bed with a playful grin on her face.

Maybe Baekhyun isn't as stupid as Kyungsoo makes him out to be. 

Normally, the task of finding someone amidst a hoarde of people from an expanded list of places to choose from would be Herculean to say the least. Thankfully, Kyungsoo wasn't normal. Knowing very well that eavesdropping would do her some good, she lingered around in the ladies room for far more time than what was necessary and sure enough, a group of unsuspecting females giggling over senseless things provided her with exactly what she needed. Straining her ears while pretending to apply eyeliner—The things I do for my case, she mused— the detective extraordinaire quickly grasped the words "Park Chanyeol" and "library" from above all that maddening, ludicrous chitchat. By the way the conversation seemed to be heading, she also inferred that Chanyeol was pretty popular and his pleasant features (Kyungsoo wouldn't debase herself by using the words "hot" and "y" like that vacant-minded gaggle of rabid banshees) garnered him a lot of attention from both genders. The topic soon shifted to other male students but Kyungsoo wasted no time in pursuing her new trail.

Currently standing in front of the entrance to the library, she religiously went through her action plan once again.

1) Confront.

2) Interrogate. 

3) Analyse data.

4) Infer with as many outcomes as possible.

5) Eliminate the impossible. Whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.

Feeling quite content with herself, she stepped in with a throng of other students. Turning around a book shelf hosting several Astronomy books, she found her person of interest at the same table he'd occupied the day before, this time with his back turned to her. She mentally noted that perhaps it was his favourite spot, and maybe that information could be of use in the future. Silently, she creeped up on him from behind and peeked over his shoulder.

He was working out that day's crossword and judging from all the scrawling and scratching on the sheet, it was obvious that he was stuck on one particular clue while the rest of the puzzle seemed more or less finished. Kyungsoo was in a strange way pleased that he was at least bothered about something intellectual, not that she was ever the type to fuss over another person's vocabulary and she personally didn't give two hoots whether he did crosswords or not but her mental monologue was interrupted by a frustrated cry from Chanyeol.

'What even is the traditional name for a fox?! How come foxes have traditional names but I don't? Ugh, this is stupid...'

Kyungsoo rejoiced. Being the omniscient know-it-all that she was, she readily pounced on the opportunity.

'It's Reynard. Spelt R-E-Y-N-A-R-D.'

Chanyeol literally propelled out of his seat to stare at the unforeseen source of sound with a hand placed over his chest. But the moment he saw Kyungsoo, realisation seeped in and he froze. To clear the awkwardness and also to get things over with as soon as possible, Kyungsoo cleared for an introduction.

'I apologise for startling you...' she began but Chanyeol quickly cut in.

'I'm sorry... about yesterday. I should've maintained my decency. I don't normally do that, just so you know.'

Kyungsoo internally gloated over how easy this was turning out to be. Maybe she should gain more friends through intimidation.

'Well, yes. I came here to confront you about that and I speak to you as a victim of eve-teasing, so let's not take this lightly, shall we?'

'Err... sure, I guess. I'm Park Chanyeol, by the way,' he stated as he raised his right hand in greeting, 'Psychology.'

'And you take a part-time course in Western Music. I suppose playing the guitar has been your lifelong passion...?' came the question which sounded more like an assertion.

Kyungsoo relished in his shocked expression. 

'How in the world did you— Have we met before in person?!'

'No. I read it from your fingertips. They were previously callused but the tough skin has softened after all these years of playing, erasing the ridges of your fingertips.'

Self-conscious about his own fingers, Chanyeol drew back his extended hand but nevertheless resumed the interesting conversation.

'Okay, but how did you guess which instrument I play? There are numerous string instruments out there,' and Kyungsoo noted the slight scepticism in his tone, which only drove her further to prove herself.

'Quite simple, really. You sit straight but your shoulders slouch slightly because the strap that goes around weighs you down. And though you seem skinny from afar, the muscles in your arms, shoulders and upper back are well-developed.'

With a grin so bright that it dulled the Sun in comparison, Chanyeol beamed, 'Brilliant! I'm impressed, Miss Holmes,' and Kyungsoo tried to suppress the slight flutter of her heart at his flattering remark, 'Do tell me more.'

'I'd love to but that's not why I'm here—' but before she could get her topic started, her eyes caught sight of the last thing she wanted to see.

Wonder of wonders, there stood Byun Baekhyun, a few feet behind Chanyeol, lazily browsing through the Advanced Science section. For goodness' sake, she never expected him of all people to swagger into the library! If he happened to see her standing with the subject of her experiment, it would be pure sabotage; she could already feel her plan crumbling and slipping through her fingers like sand. Realising that she had absolutely no time to lose, she grabbed Chanyeol by his sleeve and dragged him blindly through a maze of shelves. Once she was sure that she was as far from the pest as she could possibly be, Kyungsoo spun around to resume her lecture but her feet tripped backwards on the carpet, her back falling sharply against a dusty shelf, and unwittingly brought Chanyeol up against her. 

The tangy smell of mandarins filled her senses. Maintaining eye contact has always been a cumbersome task for her but she somehow found it extra difficult to look up at Chanyeol looming over her in close proximity, his hands placed protectively by her sides. She was suddenly aware of how bad this situation would look from another person's perspective and, finally bringing herself to face him once again, she became certain that Chanyeol took notice of the awkwardness too from the way his smirk widened.

He was the first one to speak up, thereby breaking the embarrassing silence.

'Is this how you usually lure potential lovers into your clutches?'

'You mistake my intentions—' defended Kyungsoo hotly.

'Showing off your legs first—'

'—can we please not—'

'—followed by some seduction with deduction—'

'—don't you dare put it that way, mister—'

'—ending it with a passionate session of kissing—'

'—I would never—'

'—would you care to feel my well-developed muscles now?'

Kyungsoo momentarily forgot to protest as she lost herself in his intense gaze.  She could feel the blood rushing to her face and the fact that he had caged her within his arms left her no room for escape. The net embarrassment caused her mind to slow down dangerously and she vaguely wondered if she'd ever be able to speak again.

Do Kyungsoo was never speechless. Nor was she known to show much emotion other than irritation, if you could even count that as an emotion. Then how was it that this stranger could leave her at a loss for words while making her blush like some preteen schoolgirl? The absurdity of the situation combined with her helplessness brought hot tears to her eyes which surprised herself, because Do Kyungsoo sure as hell did not cry. 

She tried to blink them away but Chanyeol was quick to notice.

'Oh, crap. Are you crying?' he questioned, his eyes now lacking that previous playfulness as he gently pushed Kyungsoo's hair out of her face for a closer look, 'God, I was only kidding. I didn't mean it and I definitely didn't want to make you cry. I can be such an idiot at times. Please tell me you forgive me. Pretty please?'

Staring at him with both vexation and annoyance, she tried to wrap her head around this odd individual. One moment he's acting all cocky and the next second, he's begging for her mercy with those puppy dog eyes, which seemed to lift her mood. Her brain kept sending scrambled messages that went a little like, "Sentiment... chemical defect... losing side..." but the warning fell upon deaf ears. Gaining back her thought coherency, she began her explanation.

'I was only trying to save us in a way. I couldn't risk being seen with you lest it gives a bad impression,' she mumbled hurriedly.

'And this happens to be your solution?'

Ignoring his sarcasm, she huffed, 'No! I mean, it's better off than being spotted by Baekhyun.'

'Oh, a jealous boyfriend?' he inquired.

'No, a meddling flea of a friend.'

Kyungsoo noted that Chanyeol's face brightened up a bit at that but she brushed it off as a silly notion.

'Well that's just sad. He clearly doesn't know what he's missing out on.'

Okay, maybe it wasn't silly.

'I suggest you refrain from making such distasteful comments.'

'I assume you took it kindly since it's making you blush.'

'I don't blush. Well, I need to leave now seeing how bad this idea turned out to be.'

'What about that thing you wanted to talk to me about?'

'Some other time, then,' she lied.

'Alright. You're free to go,' announced Chanyeol, as he dropped his hands from the shelf and moved back to let her pass, 'I'm sorry once again for putting you through all that, Kyungsoo.'

Before she had even taken two steps away from him, Kyungsoo whirled around so fast that it gave her neck a whiplash. 'Wait! How did you know my name? I never introduced myself, did I?'

'No need for introductions, Do Kyungsoo of the Forensic Department. I'm very much aware of you,' he remarked with an unreadable look in his eyes, 'And if it's alright, I'd love to meet up with you again and continue our little chat, preferably in the same scenario.'

And with a wink in her direction, he casually grabbed a random book from off the shelf behind her, leaning close enough to let that familiar mandarin scent envelop her again, only to move away just as swiftly. He then proceeded to scribble something on the last page with his pen and tore it off like it was his own property, but it wasn't like anyone would miss the final page of "The Rise and Fall of Francesco Balbiani", whoever that was. Quietly, he slipped it to her. As she stood there watching his form disappear behind a shelf, her heart swelled with panic and an unmistakable twinge of some unfamiliar feeling bit into her. Fiddling hesitantly with the sheet, she finally decided to read his message:

Think you're smart?

Then riddle me this:

Catch me once

But don't you miss!

When the moon is up

Let's wait for dawn 

See me stand

On the Great Big Lawn

Don't be scared 

Hark, 'tis the Ides of March!

Not the date, silly!

Why, it's on your watch...

—Just in case you want to meet up. I'll be there as promised. PCY.

'I think he's off his rocker!' exclaimed Yixing, trying to make sense of the riddle by observing it at various angles in a futile attempt of gaining a different perspective, 'Ides of March, it seems... Shakespearean much?'

But Kyungsoo didn't respond, presumably mulling over Chanyeol's personal knowledge of her. Yixing gave another try.

'Great Big Lawn must be the name of one of those fancy vegan hotels, right?'

This time, Kyungsoo finally spoke up, her voice giving away her emotions: part exasperation and part amusement.

'No. He's talking about the football ground.'

'Did you figure it out already?!'

'The moment I laid my eyes on it.'

'Okay... so what is it about?'

'He's asking me to meet up at the ground around night time. Ides of March in the Roman calendar symbolises March the fifteenth.  Write down the month and date you get three-fifteen, which is the scheduled time. And I have to meet him by then lest I want to end up looking like a fool for not having cracked his puzzle,' she explained coolly.

But Yixing stared open-mouthed at how simple Kyungsoo made solving a riddle seem. 'Oh wow. That was pretty simple. Why didn't he just say so in the first place?'

'There's a reason why it's called a riddle.'

'Anyway, I think it's pretty romantic.'

'You're making me gag.'

'So are you going? Please tell me you are.'

'Ugh. Sadly, I am left with no other option. I do have a reputation to live up to and I'll show him. What's the point of being smart if you can't show it?'

Yixing squealed with delight and Kyungsoo resumed her silence once again. Should she be careful with him? What if he does something to her? There'll be no one around in the wee hours of the morning and though Chanyeol might not seem like the type to assault a female, she still shouldn't let her guard down. Okay, that settles it then, thought Kyungsoo, I'm taking the pepper spray.

Making sure not to wake her room-mate up, Kyungsoo snuck out of the dorm at three in the morning like a ghost. She glided around in the shadows under the light of the half moon. The cold breeze blew across Kyungsoo's face but thankfully her scarf kept her warm, as she silently stole away into the night. This certainly wasn't the first time she's gone out for a twilight walk. She'd previously done it so many times and at such ungodly hours that Yixing nearly called the cops in alarm. But she strangely felt queasy for this one particular tête-à-tête. Lurking behind a pillar, she peeped out at the green ground and sure enough, there he stood. His tall silhouette, highlighted by his gravity-defying hair, was unmistakable. Clutching the can of pepper spray, she made her way to him, calling out,

'I was partly expecting the field to be empty.'

His tone was light when he replied. 'I would never have stood anybody up! Especially not when I have such an attractive date to spend my time with.'

'This isn't a date!'

'A guy and a girl meeting up to talk in the dead of the night with nobody else in near sight... Sounds pretty much like a date to me.'

'It's merely an official pre-arranged event between two individuals from opposite es. That's all.'

'You do realise that you just defined what a date is in a politically correct usage of words, right?' he teased.

'Yes, but it's any day better than agreeing with you. '

At her comment, Chanyeol swept his eyes over her, in a totally appreciative manner sans any kind of vulgarity, and the slight chuckle that erupted from his throat was enough to melt her heart into a puddle of an emotion she'd never experienced before. 'You're quite fascinating, you know that?'

'You're only saying that to irk me.'

'My compliments are truly genuine, my lady. Now if you would be kind enough to give me your hand, I'd like to lead you to— dear Lord, is that pepper spray in your hand?!'

'Yes, and I insist that I keep it.'

'Jeez, don't you ever chill?'

'Not with a stranger.'

'I won't take advantage of you.'

'That's what they all say...'

'Yet somehow you had the authority to force yourself on to me...'

'Excuse me?! I was saving us... okay, maybe just myself, but that's not the point!'

'It's okay, Kyungsoo. I prefer girls with a bit of kink in them,' stated Chanyeol.

'Are you even listening to me?'

'Your fierceness is a definite turn-on.'

'For God's sake, shut up.'

'But I can't, not when you look so damn cute with that blush on your face.'

Deciding enough was enough, she firmly stated, 'I'm leaving if you don't stop fooling around.'

'Alright, I'll behave but could you atleast walk by my side? I don't want you to ditch me once I've turned my back on you.'

Kyungsoo stepped to his side, wordless, as she casually noticed how the top of her head barely reached his shoulders.

'Is there a point to this entire event?'

Spotting a cool patch of grass at the centre of the field, Chanyeol sat down and, gesturing to her to follow suit, he said, 'I thought you were the one who needed to tell me something.'

'So you write me a shoddy riddle asking me to hang out at night with you like a pair of demented ghouls when we could've just spoken again like normal people?'

'Do you always speak like that?'

Confused by the frequent unexpected detours the conversation seemed to be taking, Kyungsoo doubted if she'd heard him right. 'I beg your pardon?'

'Like everyone else is an inferior little plebeian in comparison to your own erudite self! Not that I'm complaining. I actually enjoy your mannerisms and the stubbornness only adds to your complex layers,' observed Chanyeol, failing to suppress his mirth.

'Hey! Stop this psychoanalysis at once!'

'Awww and I was just getting to know you!'

'Do you happen to know Byun Baekhyun by any chance whatsoever? To be clear, this was what I wanted to ask you in the first place.'

'Correct me if I'm wrong, which I'm sure you'll love to do, but isn't he the guy you were trying to avoid at the library?'

'Yes, and the guy I punched in the jaw the day before.'

'Ouch! How is he even your friend?'

'He gets what he deserves. It's a mutualistic relationship. And you didn't answer me.'

'Umm, no, not really. Apart from the fact that you mentioned him as your buddy, I don't quite know him,' he replied in a beat but almost instantly, his eyes turned dark and the low growl he emitted made her shiver: 'But, seriously, what do you mean by "mutualistic relationship"? Is he harming you in a way as well?'

Kyungsoo would've barked out a laugh at that notion but the dangerous dip in his voice scared her, mostly for the sake of poor Baekhyun's well being. 

'He acts stupid so I knock some sense into him. Bloody hell—' she cried in frustration as she saw the unconvinced look on his face, 'He's scared of butterflies, okay? The day he hurts me will be the day Satan starts handing out cotton candy to little children!'

'Hmmm... that sounds an awful lot like me and Yifan,' he commented and Kyungsoo partly rejoiced that he wasn't hounding her anymore so she gladly decided to shift the conversation into its new course.

'Is he that stern-looking guy who sat beside you at the library yesterday?'

'The very one. He's a teddy bear under that stoic demeanour but more level-headed than the rest of the crowd that surrounds me. He never fails to whack me in the head when I do something downright moronic.'

'So you're the type to hang out with a sensible person.'

'Just as I'm doing now, though I'd most certainly say that Yifan doesn't make as gorgeous a company as you do,' and the lilt in his voice was back to being playful again.

Kyungsoo clenched a tuft of grass so firmly that she uprooted it with a clump of soil. She fervently hoped her blush wouldn't be noticeable under the nightsky. After what seemed like a long drawn battle of who could gaze into the other's eyes without blinking, Kyungsoo distracted herself with a stray little ladybug tickling the back of her hand. Concentrating on its beautiful pattern, she tried to ignore Chanyeol's gaze burning a hole in the side of her face. But her hands were trembling and she wasn't taking much liking to all the foreign emotions bombarding her at that moment.

Still afraid of looking into Chanyeol's eyes and subsequently getting lost in them again, she diverted her attention to her watch.

'It's four-thirty already. If you don't mind, I need to go back to my room or else my room-mate might call the cops again,' and, from the kind of reaction that statement elicited out of him, she quickly attempted to comfort him by adding, 'No, it's not what you think it is and no, you don't have to bother walking me back to my dorm, but thank you for being so thoughtful.'

Though reluctant at first, Chanyeol gave into her wishes. 'How time flies when you do the things you enjoy. I appreciate you taking your time to spend some time with me. I hope we get to meet again like this.'

She caught herself absent-mindedly hoping with him like a fool. However, after a brief mental reprimand, she chose to reply with a curt, 'Good-bye.'

But before she could walk away, Chanyeol caught her forearm.

'Hey, don't say good-bye! It makes me feel as though we'll never see each other again,' he whined.

'Uh... see you later, then?' 

'Much better.'

The patch of skin Chanyeol had touched felt as though someone had burnt her with a red hot wire maintained at a thousand volts, but not once during her journey back to the dorm did Kyungsoo rub that spot. Not even when her scarf did little to ward off the chilly wind.

Kyungsoo was surprised to see Yixing wide awake after she'd returned. 

'Didn't you sleep?'

Looking up at her with bright eyes, Yixing said, 'How could I, after all that riddle-solving and whatnot? So how did it go?'

'I asked him if he knew Baek. He said no. We parted ways. Nothing special.'

'Yeah, right. You left at three, came back almost two hours later and you still expect me to believe that there was "nothing special"? Out with it, Soo!'

'I... we only talked. Random stuff. Made some observations. I'll write them down now.'

Yixing felt like her heart would float out of her chest and into the air like a helium balloon because a tell-tale sign of Kyungsoo's nervousness was her "broken-phrases talk". Obviously something happened, more than what Kyungsoo was letting on.

'One final question: Do you still think he isn't an appealing person?'

Kyungsoo made no effort to answer that as she ignored Yixing while removing her scarf, but the shade of red colouring her face overthrew her indifferent attitude and that was all the Chinese girl needed.

Byun Baekhyun, you're a first-class, underrated genius.

Blissfully unaware of Yixing's silent enlightenment, Kyungsoo brought out her handy notebook once again.

Observations:

♦ He knows my name without any prior introduction on my behalf (strange but not singular).

♦ He openly flirted with me in the library without a hint of hesitation (or shame, for that matter).

♦ He was genuinely concerned for me when I nearly cried (which will never happen again) and when he mistook Baekhyun for an abusive thug.

♦ He spoke to me quite amicably but I guess that's just in his nature.

♦ He indirectly pointed out that he finds me physically pleasing (or just in general) but that does not mean he fancies me! He could've been teasing me.

♦ He made it quite plain that he wishes to chance upon me another time though I'm sure it was just him being polite (but I still hope we do not meet ever again— I need to put this incident behind me or else I'll never get on with the experiment).

Looking down at it, Kyungsoo noticed that none of the observations aided her in disproving her hypothesis. All things come in good time, she thought with a sigh. Placing her book back into her shelf, she tried to catch up on some much needed sleep but the memories from her eventful adventure kept replaying themselves behind her closed eyelids. Chanyeol's blatant flirting, the moments she caught him snatching looks at her from the corner of his eyes, his playfulness but most importantly, his honest openness. Yixing was right— he easily expressed his emotions and reading him should've been as easy as flipping through a magazine. But that's just it. She failed to understand where his true emotions lay. He wasn't fidgety like how people normally behave when around their crushes. Either he was excessively confident or just plain good at hiding his nervousness. But whatever it was, she had to admit he was charming and, much to the relief of her straining facial muscles and her over excited heart, she allowed herself a rare smile, before she lulled herself to sleep by reciting the modi operandi of ten infamous serial killers.

Author's note: Chanyeol is everything he seems to be... or is he? Stay tuned. Next chapter will be up soon (I hope! I'll have to manage both this and Of Sugar Quills and Cauldron Cakes).

As you may all have noticed, this fic just got a new poster, all thanks to the very kind BR_exo!