A/N: okay, i'm going to start with how sorry i am for not updating on time. even though i've said in the foreword that i'm going to update on friday OR saturday, i had been always updating on friday up until now and you must be really confused/angry that i'm posting today, so i apologize for that. I had some serious personal problems and i couldn't get it done on time. Besides that, i had to rewrite the first half of the fic because it accidentally got deleted. (thank u Hasti for being there during my breakdown lol). here, have a slightly longer chapter for having to wait longer. 

when that is out of the way, i want to thank you for all your positive comments and view and bookmarks and upvots, everything. mostly for the comments though because i always feel really touched that you took your time and wrote a comment. thank you everyone :) i love you.

i hope you like the chapter even tho nothing big really happens, but i can promise u some drama in the next chapter! i hope i can get it done til friday, but you know, the end of school year is coming and my grades aren't all that great so i have to study quite a bit and i also have to work during the week, so dont panic when the chapter isn't out on friday. i'm definitely not going to stop writing the fic, and i'll update till the end of the next week for sure :) thank u for all your suppport.

!!!ALSO I HAVE A NEW FIC IN MIND THAT I'M GOING TO WRITE AFTER THIS ONE, SO FOLLOW ME ON TUMBLR IF YOU WANT TO KNOW SOME INFO ABOUT THAT FIC!!!

--

The next morning, Baekhyun wakes up from his peaceful sleep as the annoying melody of his alarm hits his ears, and Baekhyun groans quietly before he reaches under his pillow to search for the device to turn the alarm off. He usually doesn't have his mobile under the pillow during the night, being there a high possibility he will just go back to sleep after turning off his alarm in the morning, the warmness of the blankets welcoming him and calling him back to sleep, but since yesterday he was googling - very small - spoilers for the drama he was watching with Chanyeol, Baekhyun decided that keeping his mobile close was for the best.

Finally finding his phone, Baekhyun doesn't even have to open his eyes to turn the alarm off, a content smile plastered on his face as he swipes to the side, the horrible noise gone. He puts the mobile beside his body, sighing as he closes his eyes again, promising himself that he'll get up in five minutes tops. As Baekhyun lets himself rest for a little longer, he unconsciously snuggles closer to the warmness in a form of larger body, burying his head in Chanyeol's firm chest. It takes him a while to realize that it's actually Chanyeol but when the realization comes, Baekhyun doesn't move away like he knows he should. He continues to lie there motionless while his head is resting on Chanyeol, along with one half of his body. 

Baekhyun doesn't even remember the last time he had as peaceful sleep as yesterday - or today, practically - and even now, he is too comfortable to move. Of course, he knows it's selfish to cling to Chanyeol like that when he's been pushing the CEO away the whole time, but he decides to be selfish just this one time. On the top of that, Chanyeol's scent is somewhat so comforting that he feels even more sleepy as he breathes in and out. 

Waking up next to his friends feels different than waking up next to Chanyeol. Most probably because none of his friends hold him close to their body in the morning, a strong arm loosely thrown over his waist, giving him a feeling of security and protection from the world that Baekhyun deep down desperately needs. 

However, it isn't longer than thirty seconds when the guilt finds its way to Baekhyun and with a heavy heart, the brunet pries his arm away from where it was lying on Chanyeol's abdomen, his fingertips slightly brushing against the smooth, unclothed piece of Chanyeol's skin in the process. It's strange how hard it is for Baekhyun to get out of Chanyeol's hold when the CEO isn't even holding on to him that tight, the arm thrown over Baekhyun's waist could be swat away with ease, and yet Baekhyun can't bring himself to do it so soon. 

By the time Baekhyun is finally able to shake Chanyeol's arm off, the guilt is eating him inside out. He's been turning Chanyeol's advances down for some time now, practically putting Chanyeol in the friendzone while the two of them weren't even friends at that time, and now Baekhyun is taking advantage of Chanyeol while the other one is still sleeping soundly, not being woken up by Baekhyun's terrible alarm. Chanyeol must be a pretty heavy sleeper, if you ask Baekhyun. Nobody can simply sleep through his alarm, that's how bad it is.

Sitting up and losing the warmth that Chanyeol's large body provides, Baekhyun's eyes are met with the sun and he groans quietly. Rubbing his still half-closed eyes, he curses in his mind. One of the many things he hates about mornings is that every time he wakes up, he has to suffer through the agonizingly long three seconds of his eyes hurting at the first contact with the sun rays when he opens them. Many would say that he should just use the blindfolds if he doesn't want the sun terrorizing him in the morning, but the things is, Baekhyun is sure that if the annoying sun didn't wash away the sleepiness from his eyes by burning them out every single day, he would not wake up at all. If the room was dark, the bed would seem even more welcoming and Baekhyun can't have that.

When his eyes are back to normal and he can actually see, his gaze falls on Chanyeol's sleeping form on his bed, the giant's long legs longer than Baekhyun's bed. Baekhyun's bed isn't small by any means, though it's also not the biggest bed on the planet, but it's still queen sized. That's why Baekhyun is surprised when the bed is still too small for Chanyeol. Just how tall the guy is?

Baekhyun looks back up at Chanyeol's face and chuckles when he hears the CEO mumbling a string of incoherent words before the guy turns his head to the side and continues sleeping, his mouth hanging slightly opened. This time, his eyes are fully closed and he doesn't look as creepy as before, which Baekhyun doesn't know if is good or bad, since now Chanyeol doesn't look weird at all but simply... really good. His hair is ruffled and it's nowhere near the styled hairstyle Baekhyun sees during the day on Chanyeol, but that doesn't mean it's not adding to Chanyeol's good looks. When he was watching a movie in the television and a person that just woke up was looking too good to be true, Baekhyun said that it's all bull because nobody can look like that after waking up. But looking at Chanyeol who is still sleeping without knowing that Baekhyun is creepily staring at him for some time now, the brunet can only think of one word to describe Chanyeol and the word is flawless.

Of course, Baekhyun means it in a completely friendly way. Is there something wrong about observing someone and admitting how handsome they are? Thinking that Chanyeol is good-looking doesn't mean that Baekhyun wants something more of him, it's simply an observation, stating the obvious. The fact that Chanyeol is exactly Baekhyun's type aside.

Averting his eyes from the sleeping giant on his bed, Baekhyun gets up. However, the moment his feet touch the ground he lets out a quiet yelp, the coldness of the floor biting Baekhyun's feet. He frantically looks around the room to find his slippers that he kicked off yesterday without caring where they end up - how much he regrets it now. After a few seconds his eyes fall on one of the grey slippers, and Baekhyun quickly walks over to the door where the it lies, managing to save at least one of his feet before it freezes. A second later, he finds the other one too, though it's on the other side of the room, hiding in the corner. How they ended up in completely different parts of the room, that Baekhyun can't explain because he doesn't remember. 

When his feet are saved from the cold, Baekhyun looks over at Chanyeol one more time before leaving the room, seeing the covers kicked off. Baekhyun doesn't know if Chanyeol is cold or not, but in this weather, he probably is. And so, Baekhyun walks over to Chanyeol and throws the blankets at him, careful not to wake him up. 

When he is sure that Chanyeol isn't as cold as before, he walks out of the bedroom, craving some coffee in hope that it'll warm him up, and hopefully wake him up as well. Filling the kettle with water and leaving it to boil, Baekhyun opens the cupboard above the sink and pulls out a cup for himself, placing it on the kitchen pult. He is ready to close the cupboard again, but before he does, he pulls out another cup for Chanyeol as well. He doesn't know how Chanyeol likes his coffee, so instead of making it sweet and risking that Chanyeol won't like it, he just puts two tea spoons of his favorite powdered coffee in both of the cups, deciding to just make black coffee for the CEO. If Chanyeol wants to add sugar or milk, he can do it then. 

You act like this husband, a small voice in his head says, it's all too domestic. 

Baekhyun shushes the voices, arguing with his thoughts that he's going it purely because he is grateful to Chanyeol for being there and making coffee for the CEO is just a friendly gesture. He makes coffee in the morning for Jongin too.

When the water is boiled, Baekhyun pours it into the cups carefully and places the kettle back in its place, and it's then when the kettle is out of his hands that Baekhyun startles as he hears the sound of a voice from behind his back. "Good morning," Chanyeol greets him with deep, deep voice as he steps out of the bedroom and appears in the kitchen slash dining room. 

"Can you stop doing that?" Baekhyun turns to the CEO with a hand clasped to his chest, trying to calm down his beating heart. Not only Jongin likes to make fun of him for being scared easily, now Chanyeol is doing it too, though the giant is doing it unconsciously. 

"My bad," Chanyeol lets out a quiet laugh, sitting down on one of the chairs beside the dining table. Baekhyun looks him over, the disheveled hair and strong arms with muscles that flex every single time Chanyeol moves, and he remembers how those arms hold him yesterday, a tight embrance that made him feel so protected.

Now when Baekhyun thinks about it, Chanyeol must really think that the brunet is pathetic after everything that happened yesterday. Baekhyun still feels extremely embarrassed about his sudden outburst and also for holding on to Chanyeol so desperately in the middle of the night just because Chanyeol told him that Baekhyun can trust him. A normal person would most likely just say thank you or something, but no, Baekhyun had to jump Chanyeol and literally force the man to hold him. 

To his defense though, Chanyeol didn't look like he hated it all that much. When he held Baekhyun the other night and rubbed his back gently, Baekhyun would swear that Chanyeol actually enjoyed the hug, but he can't be sure, since he doesn't see what's inside of Chanyeol's head. Especially after Baekhyun told him about his family problems. 

What if Chanyeol thinks badly of him now? Not like he gave Chanyeol many reasons to like him until now, but still, Chanyeol's opinion on Baekhyun can always get even worse. The brunet isn't ready to lose Chanyeol so quickly after he decided to open up to the other male. Chanyeol is now one of the four people that know about his past, and Baekhyun doesn't know how would he deal with Chanyeol ditching him after Baekhyun talked to him about his family. 

"Did you actually make me coffee?" Chanyeol asks with a chuckle, pulling Baekhyun out of his thoughts. This seems to be happening a lot, getting lost in his thoughts when he's around Chanyeol, over-thinking everything into the tiniest detail until Chanyeol speaks up.

"Y-Yeah... uh, here," Baekhyun grabs Chanyeol's cup and places it in front of the other male, scratching his head nervously. Chanyeol is looking at him without blinking and it's making him feel kind of nervous. "Do you want some sugar or milk?"

"No, I drink black coffee," Chanyeol says with a smile, bringing the cup to his lips and blowing some cold air to cool the coffee down quicker before he takes a sip. While Chanyeol lets out a content exhale, Baekhyun grimaces in disgust.

"How can you like it so bitter?" Baekhyun questions, his tone accusing like Chanyeol is doing something so incredibly wrong. It's the same tone he uses when he asks Chanyeol how is it possible for someone to like pineapple pizza.

"How can you like it sweet?" Chanyeol shoots back, shaking his head when he sees the cup in Baekhyun's hand as the man sits next to him, placing the cup on the table as the sweet smell hits the CEO's nose. "Disgusting."

"Oh, really," Baekhyun rolls his eyes. 

And just like that, their childish bickering begins. For a moment, Baekhyun forget all about his worries about Chanyeol thinking badly of him, he forgets about how much he's afraid of Chanyeol leaving even though the guy isn't part of his life for more than a few weeks. It's funny how quickly things change. Baekhyun couldn't stand being near Chanyeol just days ago, and now he can't imagine never talking to the CEO again. 

Talking with Chanyeol about the most stupid things takes more time than Baekhyun would have expected, and when he looks at the clock to check the time, his eyes widen in shock when he sees that he has only ten minutes to get ready for work. Ten minutes isn't enough for Baekhyun to do his morning routine, even if he decided not to take a shower in the end.

", I'm gonna be late," Baekhyun stands up from his seat quickly, putting his cup in the sink as he storms out of the kitchen and rushes to put some clothes on. It's late November and the weather is usually cold, but it's not so horrible today, lucky for Baekhyun who hates cold from the bottom of his heart.

"You haven't even had breakfast yet," Chanyeol calls from the kitchen, leaving Baekhyun privacy so the brunet can change his clothes, thinking that Baekhyun wouldn't feel all that comfortable with Chanyeol watching him through the process of undressing. And it's better like that for Chanyeol as well because watching Baekhyun's flawless body without being able to touch it is frustrating. 

"I never eat breakfast," Baekhyun says loud enough for Chanyeol to hear, fumbling with putting on his tight back jeans. Although he's been awake for some time now, his body still feels like it's sleeping and doesn't cooperate at all. 

"But it's the-"

"-most important meal of the day, yeah.. I've heard that already," Baekhyun finishes his sentence, rolling his eyes. He's heard it countless time before, and he still doesn't care. "I'm just not hungry in the mornings."

"So you wouldn't eat anything for breakfast even though it would be your favorite food?" Chanyeol asks, drinking the last bits of his coffee. He supposes that if he doesn't want to make Baekhyun late for work, he should get ready as well. 

"That's a different situation," Baekhyun laughs a little, putting on a random sweater. He doesn't care what's on it and how old it is, since he's going to have jacket on it either way during the walk to work, and then he will change it for his uniform when he's at the restaurant. The sweater might be really worn-out after the years, but Baekhyun likes it because it's really warm, and that's all he needs right now.

The moment he's done dressing himself, he runs to the bathroom to brush his teeth and wash his face, hopefully style his hair a little so it won't look as bad as now, standing to every direction and making him look ridiculous. He's glad that he doesn't have much of a morning breath, otherwise he would be red from embarrassment of talking to Chanyeol without washing his teeth first. Somehow, he forgot about it, priority of making coffee for him and Chanyeol coming first. 

When he's done with his face and hair, he steps out of the bathroom and his eyes widen in surprise when they fall on Chanyeol whose upper body is undressed, the man facing the wall and so his back is displayed to Baekhyun. Baekhyun's mouth dries as he stares at the muscles on Chanyeol's back that flex with the man's every movement, the broad shoulders inviting Baekhyun to wrap his arms around them. Baekhyun knows that Chanyeol is well-built and probably works out often, but he still can't help feeling violated by the CEO's fit body every time he looks at him. 

Baekhyun won't lie. The physical attraction and a strong pull he feels toward Chanyeol is there from the very beginning, and nobody can blame Baekhyun for staring when a body of Adonis is put on display for him like that. After all, staring is all he can do. All that he allows himself to do. 

Chanyeol must have sensed a pair of eyes staring at him because he turns his head and looks at Baekhyun just a few moments later, putting his button-up on quickly when he sees Baekhyun on the doorstep. As if the man's back wasn't enough, Baekhyun's legs feel weak and his heart starts beating a little faster when he catches a glance of Chanyeol's abs and strong chest before the male covers it with his black button-up. The brunet feels a little hot and has to avert his gaze, feeling somewhat embarrassed. 

Why is this still happening to them, these awkward situations? Even yesterday, when Baekhyun was practically begging Chanyeol to stay here in only a short towel covering the most intimate parts. He feel blood rushing to  his face even more when he remembers that. 

"Uhm, I have a spare toothbrush so you can use it... I put it on the sink," Baekhyun says, looking anywhere but at Chanyeol, motioning with his hand to the bathroom. 

"Yeah, okay... thanks," from the way Chanyeol says it, his voice tense, Baekhyun knows he isn't the only one who is flustered and nervous all of sudden. Baekhyun just steps away from the door to the bathroom with no other words, letting Chanyeol in, looking at the ground as Chanyeol walks past him, their shoulders brushing slightly for a second. 

"I'll wait by the door," is all Baekhyun get tells Chanyeol before fulfilling his words and leaving his bedroom, heading to the main door. He puts on his jacket and grabs his wallet along with his keys, putting them into the pockets of his jacket. While waiting for Chanyeol, Baekhyun busies himself with his mobile, just now noticing the two unopened messages notifications. He unlocks his phone and opens his inbox, finding out that one message is from Jongdae and the second is from Jongin.

He opens Jongdae's first because it was sent earlier - yesterday at 10pm - and reads through it. 

<< From: Jongdae>
22.13
make sure that yoda is here before 10.. kick his lazy of the bed if needed >

Baekhyun chuckles after reading the message, replying with simple ok before he opens the one from Jongin.

<< From: Jongin>

06.11
wish me and sehun luck today. we're gonna meet up with the important guys... they told me that we might even meet luhan but i haven't told sehun about it. he's gonna freak out so bad if he actually gets to meet him today (●＾曲＾●) i'll send u a pic of him being shook lol >

Baekhyun lets out a laugh and brings a head up to cover his mouth, imagining Sehun being completely out of it if he really meets Luhan today. He's been obsessed with the singer for so long now, talking about him non-stop and playing his songs whenever he could, setting the guy as his lockscreen even. Baekhyun has never had a celebrity crush that big, but Sehun is crushing on Luhan for both of them enough.

He sends Jongin a text in which he says that he is looking forward for the photo and wishing both of his friends good luck, hoping that they will truly be hired as the backup dancers for Luhan's new mv. They both worked really hard and Baekhyun is sure they deserve it for all the hours spent in the dancing studio, dancing their souls out.

"What's so funny?" Chanyeol asks as he walks into the living room, seeing Baekhyun smiling at his phone stupidly while typing.

"Jongin and Sehun have the official audition for the positions of backup dancers today, and Jongin told me that Luhan might show up too. Sehun's gonna die when he sees him," Baekhyun explains, pocketing his phone when he sends the message to Jongin, focusing his eyes on Chanyeol who is all dressed up now, his hair brushed and now standing to all the directions. It isn't styled perfectly in the comma style as usual, instead just brushed simply and falling to Chanyeol's eyes a bit because of its length. He still looks extremely handsome, Baekhyun thinks shamelessly. "And do you have a meeting today? Jongdae messaged me to make sure you're at work til ten."

"I'm meeting a new client," Chanyeol answers as he bends down to put on his shoes, fancy and expensive-looking while Baekhyun stands beside him with his worn out ones, suddenly feeling embarrassed about it and moving a bit further. 

"Are you going like this?" Baekhyun asks, and just when Chanyeol looks at him with a raised brow, Baekhyun realizes how bad it must have sounded. He quickly adds before a misunderstanding is created, "I mean, you look good, b-but.. like... you're clothes are kinda wrinkled."

"I have almost two and a half hours, so I'll go home to get ready before meeting him," is what Chanyeol says, straightening back up and grabbing his coat. 

"Oh, okay... Let's go then," Baekhyun opens the front door and walks out of the apartment, Chanyeol following his suit and standing a few steps away from him as Baekhyun locks the door, trying to open them when he's done to make sure it's really locked. 

On the way to the restaurant, Chanyeol talks to Baekhyun about his duties as the CEO at the brunet's request to know more about how it works in a big advertising company like Park's. Chanyeol doesn't have any problem with talking about it with Baekhyun, telling him only the basics, not wanting to go all professional on him. He doesn't doubt Baekhyun's inteligence or anything like that, but he doesn't want the shorter to get bored so soon. 

Baekhyun listens to everything Chanyeol says, occasionally asking questions when he's curious about something in particular. He feels a pang of guilt when Chanyeol mentions how he often used to sleep over in his office because he had too much work and when he realized how late it was, he just decided to fall asleep his couch, too tired to drive home. Yesterday he practically accused Chanyeol of not doing much at work, but now he's finding out that Chanyeol's field of work is really stressful and that being the CEO isn't easy at all, the work piling on Chanyeol's table every day. The shorter male has an urge to apologize to Chanyeol once more, but the man stops him, saying it's already forgotten and that Baekhyun shouldn't worry about it anymore.

When they part ways, Baekhyun finally gives Chanyeol his number, adding himself into Chanyeol's contacts while the CEO watches him intensely, making Baekhyun's fingers slightly shake as he types in his number before returning Chanyeol's mobile back. Chanyeol then calls him so Baekhyun has his number too, and when they bid their goodbyes, Baekhyun saves the new number, smiling dumbly without realizing it as he clicks on the add new contact, the number connected to Chanyeol's name making his heart flutter. 

--

"So now he walks you to work too?" Kyungsoo asks as soon as Baekhyun walks into the kitchen, now having his uniform in a form of button-up with the logo of the restaurant on. Baekhyun blinks at him, surprised that the cook saw them in front of the restaurant a few minutes ago. 

"It's just today," Baekhyun says and walks over to Kyungsoo, leaning against the pult. If Kyungsoo sees the slight blush on Baekhyun cheeks, he doesn't mention it. "He slept over, that's why."

It's Kyungsoo's turn to be surprised as he hears Baekhyun's answer, his eyes going so wide that the brunet thinks they will fall out of his skull. "He slept over?"

"Yeah.." Baekhyun's voice trails off as he avoids Kyungsoo's big eyes that are looking at him with so much shock. However, Baekhyun doesn't blame him for looking at him like Baekhyun's grown a second head, since the brunet himself still can't believe how quickly the friendship with Chanyeol developed. They've known each other for less than a month, and Chanyeol has already been in his apartment, and he also slept over. Even some of his boyfriends didn't get to see his apartment, nor sleep in the same bed as Baekhyun. 

"Aren't you going to tell me more?" Kyungsoo questions, curious. 

"We were watching a drama until it was too late, nothing interesting to talk about," is Baekhyun's answer. While drumming with his fingers on the surface of the kitchen pult, Baekhyun purses his lips in thought. Should he tell Kyungsoo the rest? It's not like they aren't close or anything, but Baekhyun doesn't know doesn't feel like talking about it. After telling Chanyeol about his family problems the other night, he hasn't stopped thinking if it was the right decision or not. He would much rather battle his thoughts just in his head... but on the other side, Baekhyun has always given him a good advice, so Baekkhyun supposes he should tell him about the rest too. "And I... I told him about my family."

"You what?" No kidding there, Kyungsoo's eyes are really not going to stay in his skull for long if Baekhyun keeps surprising him like that. The cook just blinks at him a few times, not knowing if he heard right. He knows very well that Baekhyun doesn't talk about his family, and on the top of that, Baekhyun didn't even tell his previous boyfriends about the family problems even though it would maybe save the relationship if all of them knew the reason why Baekhyun worked so much. What has Chanyeol done that Baekhyun opened up?

"Can you please stop looking at me like that?" Baekhyun huffs in annoyence. Although he understands why Kyungsoo is so shocked, seeing his friend looking at him like that just reminds Baekhyun of how big of a step in Chanyeol's and Baekhyun's friendship it was, to tell the CEO something only a handful of people know about. 

"I'm sorry but I'm just-.. I just didn't expect it," Kyungsoo apologizes, putting a gentle hand on Baekhyun's arm. Because of the friendly gesture, Baekhyun starts feeling guilty for being like this to Kyungsoo. After all, he would be shocked if he were in Kyungsoo's place too. 

"No, I'm sorry," Baekhyun runs a hand through his hair in frustration. Just because he has so many thoughts in his head, it doesn't mean he can snap at Kyungsoo who is always so nice to him. "Do you think telling him was a mistake?"

Kyungsoo is silent for a while, thinking his answer through. Baekhyun waits patiently, knowing that Kyungsoo would never give him a half-assed answer. After just a few seconds, Kyungsoo clears his throat and says, "Not necessarily. You probably had your own reasons to tell him. You're not a foolish person, so if he gained your trust, I don't see why it would be a mistake."

"But I don't even know him," it's true. They might have spent some time together, but Baekhyun knows very little about Chanyeol besides his horrible taste in pizza toppings. They always bicker about the most stupid things, but Baekhyun doesn't know anything about Chanyeol's friends, family or school times. It's not that Chanyeol must tell him about his past in exchange... it's just that Baekhyun would like to know more about Chanyeol as well.

"Yet somehow you know you can trust him," the corners of Kyungsoo's lips turn up just the slightest bit. "Why are you overthinking it so much?"

"You don't even like Chanyeol," Baekhyun says, avoiding Kyungsoo's question. "You were killing him with your eyes a few days ago, and now you're okay with me and him being friends?"

"I can't tell you to stop being friends with him. And besides, he seems that he truly cares about you," Kyungsoo wonders out loud, remembering the way Chanyeol took care of Baekhyun when he was sick, and when he was drunk too. When Kyungsoo let Chanyeol take Baekhyun home, he was really doubting that Chanyeol will keep his hands to himself, but to his surprise, Chanyeol kept his promise about not touching Baekhyun. It made Kyungsoo really trust the CEO.

"I hope he does," Baekhyun mumbles, looking down at his shoes. After he put his trust in Chanyeol, Baekhyun would be heartbroken to find out that Chanyeol doesn't care as much as he seems. Baekhyun still has doubts about Chanyeol, but remembering how sincere he looked yesterday when he told Baekhyun it's okay to trust him and that the CEO won't hurt him, the brunet feels the doubts getting smaller and smaller every second.

"You also seem to care about him," Kyungsoo says. "But how much?" 

"What is that supposed to mean?" Baekhyun answers with a question on his own, looking over at Kyungsoo, confused. How much he cares about Chanyeol? Given that he told him about his past after just a few days of awkward friendship, Baekhyun probably cares about Chanyeol a little bit more than he should when he knows him for such a small amount of time.

The cook just shrugs nonchalantly before telling Baekhyun, "I'm just saying that... Chanyeol isn't such a bad guy after all, and he gained your trust pretty fast, if you ask me. Don't take it as a bad thing, but you really don't know him for such a long time to spill your life story, just like that because he asks about it. There must be something... more."

"Are you asking what I think you're asking?" Baekhyun questions, his mouth hanging open in disbelief. Did Kyungsoo just really imply that Baekhyun have some feelings for the overly tall man? Or that he's in the stage of developing these special feelings for Chanyeol? Because if yes, Kyungsoo is truly implying that, then he's deadly wrong. Just because Chanyeol gained his trust - let's say - pretty easily, it doesn't mean that he's that special. Baekhyun has never been in love, but from hearing about it from everyone, he should feel something more if he's truly.. falling for Chanyeol. 

Even the thought of it is ridiculous for Baekhyun. First of all, Chanyeol and Baekhyun wouldn't work as a couple, not only because of their constant bickering. There are other reasons why the two of them would never end up being a couple, for example how little time they both have. All of his relationships crashed because he was so busy with work, but if both of them have jobs that take a lot of their time, they soon would get tired of seeing the other just once a week. 

Secondly, Baekhyun doesn't want to date anyone. Yes, he promised to find himself a real boyfriend whom he would love and stop sleeping around, but his plans changed. Now, Baekhyun told himself that he's gonna completely forget about relationships and stops searching for his potential love, focusing more on work than on useless things like getting a boyfriend. He doesn't need one. Not now, not in the near future. 

Baekhyun needs time to get ready, if his future boyfriend or love interest decides to leave him with cruel words, Baekhyun wants to be prepared for it this time. And until his heart heals and is ready to be break again, Baekhyun doesn't want anyone.

But how long does his heart have to heal, anyway? It's been quite a time from when Siwoon broke up with him, shattering his heart to million pieces even though Baekhyun wasn't in love, only hurt by the cruel words thrown at him, hurting so much no matter how many times he has heard the exact same words from different mouths before. 

"I just want to know, but you don't have to answer," Kyungsoo says, bringing his hands up in surrender. 

"I don't like him in that way," Baekhyun deadpans. Yes, it's true that during the hug yesterday, Baekhyun's heart beat really fast and strong against his ribcage, but that was because he hasn't heard such sincere and beautiful things from someone other than his closest friends in a while. Chanyeol made his heart beat crazily not because there are stronger feelings that friendship, but because hearing Chanyeol say that the brunet can trust him made him so excited and happy. 

It's also true that Baekhyun's heart stops and his breath hitches in his throat when they have one of those awkward, space-violating encounters, but what would you expect from him? The close proximity with a handsome man like Chanyeol is stressing, after all. 

And it's also true that Baekhyun had a hard time breathing when he saw Chanyeol's body earlier. But that is blamed because Chanyeol's body is as good as his face, and Baekhyun is just a simple man that can't let a sight like this go unseen. It's just physical attraction from Baekhyun's side, definitely. Baekhyun can only imagine Chanyeol as his friend, nothing more.

However, the quiet voices in his head would like to disagree. What a pity that they are shushed by no other person than their owner. 

"Maybe not now," Kyungsoo starts. "But I think you could, sometimes in the future."

"Definitely not," Baekhyun shakes his head with dismissal, snorting at the thoughts. No, Baekhyun can never fall in love with Park Chanyeol. 

"Okay..." Kyungsoo's voice trails off, and the cook slaps Baekhyun's hand away as the brunet tries to dip his finger in a bowl with melted chocolate, saying that he will still need it and would be glad if Baekhyun let it be. "When you know what you feel, then it's okay."

"I do. Chanyeol is just a friend. Just because we get along well doesn't mean that either of us will fall for the other," with that said, Baekhyun excuses himself with saying that he should really start working now, otherwise the boss wil kill him.

--

Chanyeol opens the door to his office at 10.12, throwing his work bag on the couch as he walks over to his comfortable armchair and sits down, letting out a deep exhale as he sees the pile of papers on his table. Meeting the new client is scheduled for 11.30, and Chanyeol hopes to get his work done before that.

The time flies when Chanyeol tries to sort out the papers as fast as possible so he can get ready for the meeting as well, readings some more information about the company the client owns, and by the time he is done with the paper that were left at his desk yesterday, the clock on the wall says it's ten minutes before 11.30. And so, Chanyeol who is always early to meeting so he can wait for his client in the meeting room, gets up from his armchair and while being a little nervous because his knowledge about the company they are about to make a deal with is lacking, his steps as he walks to the meeting room are confident. After all, Jongdae is going to be there too. 

The meeting with the new client goes smoothly and they are done sooner than Chanyeol has expected. He's glad that once in a lifetime there is a client that isn't problematic and doesn't act like he's the king of the whole world when in reality he doesn't understand almost anything when it comes to business. The client wants just a simple, six seconds long add that would go just before some new reality show starts, telling people that are watching that the company is a sponsor of the upcoming show. They have two weeks to get the add done, and Chanyeol thinks it's enough time to come up with something good.

"So, how was-" Jongdae stops mid-sentence when the sound of a message notification is heard, and the male leaves his question unfinished in order to check his message. His ran over the words before a big smile appears on his face.

Chanyeol, noticing how happy his friend looks, asks, "What is it?"

"Baekhyun sent me a message saying that Sehun and Jongin are now officially Luhan's backup dancers. We are going to celebrate today, and he said Minseok is also invited," Jongdae says as he answers Baekhyun's text, and while Chanyeol is extremely happy for the two dancers, he can't help but feel a little disappointed that he isn't invited. He didn't expect that he's going to be part of the group of friends so soon, but he truly had fun on Saturday and he would like to celebrate with them. Even Minseok is going...

"That's good," Chanyeol nods, smiling despite his current emotions. Then, Chanyeol feels his mobile vibrating in his pocket without and he pulls it out without much enthusiasm. His face lights up and his heart stops though, when he sees who is the message from. Baekhyun, he reads the name in his mind but it doesn't escape his lips, his mouth opened without a single syllable making it's way out. 

His fingers move quickly on the screen as he unlocks his iPhone, clicking on the message inbox and opening the message from Baekhyun to read the text. 

<< From: Baekhyun>
13:02
Sehun and Jongin got the job  o(*^▽^*)o  ... wanna go celebrate with us? you can invite them to your party in person as well if you go~  ( •̀ ᴗ •́ )و  >

Aside from thinking how cute it is that Baekhyun uses emojis in texts, Chanyeol feels a warm feeling spreading through his body as he's done reading the text. Baekhyun just invited him to come too, just seconds after he invited Jongdae. His heart starts beating again, but Chanyeol doesn't know if the way it's beating so fast and strongly is better than when his heart stopped beating for a moment. He guesses none of the emotions that are making his heart react like this are right.

"Oh, I see you got invited too," Jongdae muses and looks Chanyeol in the eyes, the CEO unable to read the emotions in his friend's orbs, but he still feels somewhat uncomfortable while Jongdae stares at him like that. 

"Yeah," Chanyeol confirms and looks away, not really sure what else could be said in response to Jongdae's observation. Even though he's averted his gaze and isn't able to see Jongdae, he can feel the man's eyes on him, burning a hole in his face with the intense stare. Chanyeol just nervously waits for Jongdae to say something, and busies himself with writing a response to Baekhyun's text while waiting. He doesn't have to wait long, and as he sends the message to Baekhyun, feeling strangely excited about exchanging texts with Baekhyun for the first time, Jongdae speaks up.

"Did you have fun with Baekhyun?" Jongdae's tone is light, too light, and Chanyeol doesn't know if Jongdae is just pretending to be nice before he drops the bomb. Yesterday when he reacted so differently than any other time when Chanyeol told him that he's staying with Baekhyun, the CEO knew that something isn't right. He's just waiting for Jongdae to say that he doesn't like him spending time with Baekhyun, though he would be really glad if the time when Jongdae says that didn't come.

Chanyeol nods before he elaborates his answer. "I would say so. We ordered pizza and watched the drama he promised you to see. That was basically all we've done."  

"Is that so," Jongdae pockets his phone. Then, after a beat of silence, he adds, "I'm glad you had fun, really."

It doesn't sound like Jongdae doesn't mean it, truth be told, it sounds very honest. When Chanyeol looks over at Jongdae from the corners of his eyes, he doesn't expect his friend to be smiling fondly, his eyes not focused on Chanyeol anymore, but on the way that is ahead. Jongdae doesn't look the slightest bit angry that Chanyeol was with Baekhyun yesterday and also spent the night with him, and it's so weird, because Jongdae used to freak out whenever Chanyeol even uttered Baekhyun's name. What has changed? 

"Are you okay with that?" Chanyeol asks cautiously. 

Jongdae is quiet for a while, probably thinking over his answer. When he speaks up, Chanyeol is left shocked. "I am."

"Really?" the CEO blinks at his best friend in surprise, not expecting this answer. What made Jongdae change his mind about Chanyeol being friends with Baekhyun? It's true that they haven't really talked since Saturday, but is it possible for Jongdae to change his opinion in just two days? 

Jongdae's expressions turns serious as the really falls out of Chanyeol's mouth, and though Chanyeol expects Jongdae to say something along the lines if you hurt Baekhyun I'm gonna kill you what Jongdae says in reality is completely different. 

"Yes... I heard from Kyungsoo that you took care of him on Saturday without doing anything... you shouldn't be doing," when Jongdae mentions Saturday night, images of Baekhyun stradling his hips and kissing his neck flashes before his eyes, but he quickly gets rid of them. Jongdae, along with everyone, doesn't know what truly happened on Saturday night, and Chanyeol wants to keep it this way. Even though he wants to tell everyone how good of a man he is for not taking advantage of the brunet when he had the chance and make everyone see that he isn't as bad as they seem to think, Chanyeol doesn't do it. He won't risk Baekhyun finding out. "And I realized how bad of me it was to doubt my best friend. It's true that Baekhyun is my friend too, and I care about him very much, but I've known you longer. You are like my brother and I acted so wrongly toward you, for that I'm sorry... I can't order you to leave Baekhyun be, it's not my place to say things like that, and I know that too. The only thing I can do is ask you to not hurt him."

To say Chanyeol is shocked is an understatement. Chanyeol is so much more than that, his emotions changes so fast he is left overwhelmed by them. Firstly he was surprised and confused, then he felt extremely moved by Jongdae's words, and in the end he is left emotional and unbelievably happy. All this time, he needed Jongdae to trust him, needed the support of his best friend who would give him advice of what to do. It's true that he felt sad and was fairly disappointed when Jongdae chose to behave the way he did, but all the negative feelings are gone after hearing that Jongdae knows about his wrongdoings. 

The whole time, Chanyeol just wanted to have back his best friend.

"It's okay," he ginned widely at the man beside him, nudging his ribs playfully. Before Jongdae could protest and hit Chanyeol in the arm, Chanyeol adds with determination, "I won't hurt him." 

Jongdae's eyes widen at the serious tone Chanyeol uses, then his features soften and a smile replaces the slightly shocked expression. "Good."

"Yesterday," Chanyeol starts after a few seconds of silence. Before, he felt like he needs to leave out the details about their serious conversation in the middle of the night and about how they practically fell asleep cuddling, but now when Jongdae apologized he doesn't feel that way anymore, the CEO just wants to tell Jongdae everything, gossip like high school girls or the old ladies on the street. "Baekhyun told me about his family."

"He did?" Jongdae asks and stops walking, looking at Chanyeol like his friend just said that he plans on quitting his job or something as ridiculous as that. He gets that it's shocking, but to this extent? 

"Mhmm," Chanyeol nods. "Judging by your expression you can't really wrap your head around why he did that." 

"I can't, true," Jongdae agrees, and Chanyeol just snorts. Jongdae probably bet that Baekhyun would never tell such things to Chanyeol. "He didn't even tell his previous boyfriends."

"What?" Chanyeol furrows his brows. He understands that it must be a sensitive topic for Baekhyun, but is it really true that the brunet had never told about it to someone he was dating? Why did he tell Chanyeol about it then, when the two of them aren't near as close as people in relationships are supposed to be? 

"Only a few people know about his family. Actually, only me, Jongin, Kyungsoo and Sehun. He never told anybody else," Jongdae says and okay, now Chanyeol understands why Jongdae looked so out of it as Chanyeol told him that Baekhyun talked to him about it. At the moment, he is as shocked as Jongdae was just a second ago. 

Chanyeol stays silent, rendered speechless after what he's heard. While being extremely confused about why Baekhyun would tell him instead of the people he dated in the past, Chanyeol can't help but feel happy as hell. 

"He must really trust you," Jongdae tells Chanyeol and pats him on the shoulder before going to the elevator, leaving Chanyeol standing in the middle of the hallway. 

--

The celebration has to be without strong alcohol, since all of them have work tomorrow. Although Baekhyun has heard that Chanyeol is never hangover and can hold his liquor very well, the CEO doesn't request a bottle of any alcoholic drink apart from the beers they all have in their hands - Jongdea and Chanyeol having beer with zero alcohol since they will go home with their own cars. Instead of getting drunk, they order tons of different foods and eat in Kyungsoo's and Jongin's living room where the celebration is held at, cursing after their tummies are full. The only one that continues to eat is Baekhyun who's stomach proves to be a black hole, and everyone bets on how more Baekhyun can eat before he collapses on the floor with his stomach hurting like never before. 

Jongdae, Minseok and Chanyeol are sharing the largest sofa together, while Jongin and Kyungsoo are squashed together in the other, smaller one. The couple doesn't seem to mind it when they shamelessly cuddle and show how disgusting in love they are in front of everyone. Sehun and Baekhyun decided to ditch sitting on a couch, and made a place for themselves on the floor, pillows under their bottoms to make it more comfortable. 

Sehun and Jongin tell them everything since the moment they stepped into the company, and everyone listens with interest as the two of them talk about their day and how they got their dream job. Since they were approached personally by the people who have the final word at choosing the backup dancers for the Chinese singer, they were automatically sent to the last round of audition.

Everything they talked about was amazing, but of course, the most fun is when they all tease Sehun about Luhan together.

"I was told that Luhan may come to look at the auditions today and I didn't want to tell Sehun because he would freak out and getting his hopes up when Luhan probably won't even show up seemed stupid to me. But Luhan actually showed up, and of course Sehun almost died. Look, I have a picture," Jongin turned his phone with the picture of red-faced Sehun looking at the idol with that was standing in front of him with his mouth hanging open. While Luhan was smiling gently at him, Sehun was visibly out of it. Everyone started laughing the moment they saw the picture, Sehun sighing in embarrassment as he told them to shut up. Baekhyun laughed too, but he thought it was mostly cute how Sehun with his though-looking face became so soft while looking at the Chinese man.

"They actually talked?" Minseok asked.

Jongin laughed loudly before he answered, "After a few minutes of freaking out completely, Sehun said that he has to take a photo with him because this is the last chance in his life he can do that if we won't get the job. I was looking from afar, and when Sehun approached him, Luhan smiled at him and it was all it took for Sehun to forget how to talk. So he just stood there in front of him, in silence. One eternity later, he was finally able to ask for a photo." 

"Can you stop?" Sehun whines, his face burning red as he hides it in his hands. While still laughing, Baekhyun throws an arm around Sehun's big shoulders - really, they are too big, they once measured it just to find out how large they are exactly - he tells his friend that it's a payback for all the jokes about short people Sehun has said over the years. 

"But the best thing is," Jongin starts again and Sehun groans. "That before Luhan got the chance to take a photo with him, he was dragged away by his manager and Sehun was moping the whole time because he didn't have a photo with his dream man. But we were actually chosen for the job in the end and when we were going home, it was Luhan who approached us and apologized for having to leave earlier."

"What?!" everyone shouted in unison. 

"Yeah, I know. And then he asked Sehun if he still wants to take a photo together since we are going to work together anyway, and Sehun just stood there as if he was deaf, just staring at Luhan like before. So Luhan took it as a yes and took a selfie with both of us. When we left I thought Sehun will start crying, and if it all wasn't enough, Luhan actually posted the photo on instagram."

"Really?" Chanyeol asks and immediately unlocks his iPhone, opening the Instagram up and typing Luhan's name in the search bar. Jongdae and Minseok peer at the device in Chanyeol's hand, and the three of them start laughing loudly a moment later, Chanyeol having even tears in his eyes. 

"Show me, show me!" Baekhyun insists, and Chanyeol gladly complies, turning the phone for Baekhyun to see. The brunet eyes the photo, and he bursts out laughing too right away, throwing his head back in amusement.

On the photo, Sehun looks like a statue, his eyes staring at the camera but his face is blank, but extremely red, contrasting Luhan's pale face or Jongin's bronze skin tone. It's rather funny how shook Sehun looks alongside handsome Jongin and cute Luhan.

Then, thinking that this photo is on the internet for everyone to see, Baekhyun tries to calm Sehun down as he realizes that there must be tons of people laughing at his friend. "Look at it from the brighter side... You got a photo with him. And it was him who asked for it." 

"True that," the corner of Sehun's lips are tugged up at Baekhyun's comment, and Baekhyun pats his back before bring the leftover pizza closer to him.

The brunet takes a piece in his hand and says, "Here, have some food for your embarrassed soul." Baekhyun feeds Sehun the pizza, Sehun letting him take care of him like the overgrown baby he is. 

When Baekhyun turns his head to right to search for his beer, he accidentally catches Chanyeol's eyes, the CEO looking at him intensely. They hold eye-contact for a moment and Baekhyun feels kind of uneasy while being at the receiving end of those fierce eyes that are most of the time playful, but now they are full of something Baekhyun can't decipher. Baekhyun shudders under the other's gaze and quickly averts his eyes, taking his beer in hand and turning back to Sehun.

The evening is spent in a good atmosphere, and Baekhyun would like to stay longer, but it's getting really late and he still has to wake up early for work. He's not the only who thinks this way, seeing how Minseok stands up to leave as well while yawning. Jongdae, to nobody's surprise, tells that he's going drive him home, being the only one along with Chanyeol who had beer with 0% of alcohol in it. He asks Baekhyun if he should drive him home as well, but Baekhyun declines politely, saying that he will just walk home. He doesn't want to the two. 

"You can't go by yourself," Jongin protests immediately, shaking his head. "No way."

"I'm not a kid," Baekhyun rolls his eyes and stands up, throwing the pillow he was sitting on the couch. 

"Baekhyun, you-" Kyungsoo starts, having the same opinion as his boyfriend. 

"I'll walk you," Chanyeol cuts the cook off. "I have a car parked there anyway." 

"Why though?" Minseok asks.

Chanyeol shrugs and answers lightly, "I went to pick Baekhyun up but he said he wants to walk, so I left the car there." He explains, and everyone just nods, some letting out an ohh in understanding. 

"Okay, then let's go. It's pretty late anyway," Jongdae says, walking to the front door with Minseok following behind him. Chanyeol smiles at Baekhyun warmly and gestures for him to go too, and Baekhyun smiles back as he leaves the living room to put his shoes and coat on. Kyungsoo and Jongin follow them as well, walking their guests out politely. Sehun has decided to stay the night in the guest room in the end, too tired to even move, nor go home. 

They bid their goodbye and thank the two for having them, knowing that they made a big mess with all the food and drinks. Since Kyungsoo hates having the place dirty, Jongin will probably have to clean up with him before going to sleep, and Baekhyun can't imagine how mortified Jongin is because of it - after all, Jongin has always hated cleaning. At least Sehun is there to help, though the guy probably won't do much. 

"Be safe on the way back," Kyungsoo says, looking at everyone before they leave, his look telling them that if they had an accident or something like that, Kyungsoo would certainly hurt them too for not being careful enough. 

"Goodnight," everyone says back and then leaves, the door closing behind them as they exchange their last smiles. On the way out of the apartment complex, Baekhyun steals Minseok from Jongdae and starts asking him if he had fun, smiling brightly at the receptionist who nods his head and tells him that he really enjoyed the evening. Baekhyun is glad, since all of them like Minseok very much, already making him part of their little group of friends. 

They talk until they are outside the building and part ways, Jongdae and Minseok going to Jongdae's car, while Chanyeol and Baekhyun starts walking in the opposite direction, the street lamps casting a gentle light at the otherwise dark streets they are walking through. There is a comfortable silence between them, the aftermaths of the amazing evening that has come to an end lingering in the air along with the good atmosphere. Baekhyun would like to turn back time the time so he can live this evening again, having so much fun that it leaves him smiling on the way home. 

"Thank you for inviting me... I truly enjoyed it," Chanyeol speeks up after a few minutes, catching Baekhyun's attention. Chanyeol is having a small smile on his lips as well, but there is something off about him, Baekhyun can feel it. 

"I'm glad you had a good time," Baekhyun says, unconsciously moving closer to Chanyeol as they walk through the streets, now side by side with almost no space between them. Baekhyun likes going out during the night, but after he got robbed on the way home some time ago, he is kind of afraid of the dark corners, though he won't say it and rather acts confident about it, like it was nothing. Chanyeol is giving him a feeling of security with his height and strong built body, and Baekhyun quite likes it.

Another silence comes, and Baekhyun keeps looking at Chanyeol as they walk, trying to figure out why the other man looks so troubled, his eyebrows furrowed and eyes focused on the ground. They spend almost the entire walk back to Baekhyun's flat in silence, and when they are already near Baekhyun's apartment complex, maybe mere five minutes away from it, Baekhyun can't take it anymore, and asks, "Is something wrong?"

Chanyeol turns his head to him, his eyes rather wide. He probably didn't expect Baekhyun to ask. It shouldn't come as surprise, since Baekhyun is known to be very curious about everything, wanting answers for his questions or he's going to be sulking until he gets them. Baekhyun is rather childish, if he were to say so himself.

"I just..." Baekhyun listens to Chanyeol as the CEO's voice trails off, Chanyeol looking frustrated when he doesn't know how to form the right words. Baekhyun has time, he can wait. Chanyeol doesn't have to feel pressured. "Do you-... Do you like Sehun?"

This time it's the brunet who is left surprised after hearing what was on Chanyeol's mind this whole time, what made him look so conflicted.

It isn't the first time someone asks if Baekhyun likes Sehun, or even if the two are dating. Baekhyun has always been rather affectionate with Sehun, biting his shoulder and leaning his head against it whenever there was a chance. He guesses it's because Sehun is his ideal type - tall, with a handsome face and strong features, great sense of humor and caring personality. But although Sehun is his ideal type, Baekhyun didn't feel anything special, anything more than friendship toward the young dancer. Baekhyun didn't know how it's possible when Sehun is everything he wants in a boyfriend, but he supposes love isn't as easy as that. They even tried to kiss a few years before, but neither of them felt any connection. And so, they stayed friends who enjoyed skinship a lot, but that's it.

Baekhyun seeing why would Chanyeol asks the question doesn't answer with ugh, him? Why would you think that?, choosing a better answer. "Only as a friend. I think love is supposed to feel different."

By the time Baekhyun actually answers Chanyeol's questions, they are already standing in front of the entrance door to the old building, Chanyeol standing a little closer to him than would be appropriate for just friends. Strangely, Baekhyun doesn't move away, standing at the exact same spot motionlessly. This part of the street is only dimly lighted, lots of lampposts not even working anymore, and the shadows on Chanyeol's face are making him look even more handsome than during the day.

Once again, it's just an observation. Nothing more.

"How is it supposed to feel?" Chanyeol asks, his deep voice quiet in the silent night, but in Baekhyun's ears it's as loud as if he was screaming the words at him. Their close proximity would usually make Baekhyun feel awkward, nervous, or even embarrassed - because of their rather big height difference, mostly - but now Baekhyun doesn't feel any of these emotions. In a way, standing so close to Chanyeol and looking up at him feels... good. He can not only see Chanyeol's breath in the air as it leaves his mouth, but also feel it on his face. That should be enough of an indication that they are standing way too close, but Baekhyun ignores it. 

Then, when Baekhyun gets over how perfectly deep Chanyeol's voice is and simply gets over Chanyeol, he focuses on the question Chanyeol asked, "I don't know yet." The shorter male answers, a small, sad smile playing on his lips. "I've never been in love." He feels embarrassed about saying it, since he guesses that Jongdae told Chanyeol about the pretty big amount of boyfriends he had in the past at some point, and he doesn't want Chanyeol to think that he's heartless or anything like that for not being in love with the ones he dated. He doesn't want him to think the same thing as almost everybody. 

Baekhyun looks down, not being able to keep looking into Chanyeol's eyes after what he's said, afraid of the judgment in those expressive eyes.

"Me neither," comes out of Chanyeol's mouth almost immediately, the CEO probably sensing the reason of his sudden uneasiness. Baekhyun looks up after hearing it, locking his eyes with the taller's ones once again. He doesn't see any judgment there, and the fear of Chanyeol looking at him like his ex-boyfriends fades away, leaving Baekhyun feeling warm and giddy when the honesty in Chanyeol's eyes is combined with his words. "So feel free to tell me how exactly it feels when you fall in love."

"I will, don't worry," Baekhyun nods, smile on his face. Finally realizing how intimite this all feels and how his heart is beating rapidly inside his ribcage, Baekhyun steps away.

Chanyeol seems to came out of the weird bubble they were in too as Baekhyun creates more distance between them, and the CEO clears his throat before saying, "Thank you again for tonight.."

"It's alright. We are going to have even more fun at your birthday party, right?" Baekhyun doesn't stop smiling, and his cheeks hurt from it already. He can't stop, though.

"Yeah," Chanyeol agrees, his lips forming in a grin as well. "Goodnight, Baekhyun."

Ignoring the way he shivers when this husky voice calls his name, Baekhyun bids Chanyeol a goodnight of his own before he turns around and places the chip on the reader, the door unlocking as the ringing sounds pierces the quietness of the night. Baekhyun opens the door and before disappearing in the building, he has the urge to look at Chanyeol for the last time, and when he does, he is surprised to see Chanyeol still standing in the same place, looking straight into his eyes. Not knowing what to do, not expecting Chanyeol to actually be still looking at him instead of walking back to his car already, Baekhyun smiles awkwardly at the taller, thinking that he must look really dorky and stupid, but as Chanyeol returns the smile, he realizes he doesn't care about his looks.

Baekhyun doesn't stop smiling during the way to his apartment and also during the shower he takes when he is finally at home. Even when he lies down and covers himself with blankets, tired after a long day, Baekhyun falls asleep with a smile on his face, not even knowing about the corners of his mouth being tugged upwards as the sleep takes over.