A/N:  Last time I said that there would be more chanbaek scenes, and there had been, before I re-wrote the whole chapter because I want to have things that will happen in the next chapter together without posting a long- chapter or dividing it in two parts, so... yeah. I'm sorry?

Anyway, thank you for all the comments, upvotes, bookmarks, everything. I have a lot to do lately because of school and some personal problems, and when I finally have time to write I'm so tired that I just go to sleep because I know that writing while I'm tired af would be pointless. That's why I am really happy and feel inspired to write when I see that people actually like this story, so I am very thankful for that. :)

If any of you have some questions or something about this fic, ask them on my TUMBLR

--

Baekhyun pushes the door open with a grimace and steps out of his workplace, his mood more bitter than this morning when it was the start of his shift. Park Chanyeol is watching him with that stupid smirk on his face as if he’s enjoying Baekhyun’s misery, turning a blind eye to the fact that Baekhyun doesn’t look like he is pleased to see him again at all. Instead of understanding that Baekhyun doesn’t want to talk to him – which he could figure out easily when Baekhyun started walking in the direction of his home, not caring if Chanyeol follows him or not – and go back to where he came from, the CEO falls into step with Baekhyun with his hands in pockets like he’s known that Baekhyun will just start walking away the second he sees Chanyeol.  

"Why are you here again?“ Baekhyun asks with a frown, slowly getting irritated by Chanyeol’s mere presence. His discomfort is written all over his face, so either Chanyeol decided to ignore Baekhyun’s feelings regarding this situation or he is too self-centered to even notice.

"I told you yesterday that I’ll come again, didn’t I?“ Chanyeol says light-heartedly, and Baekhyun groans, closing his eyes for a while in an attempt to calm himself down. Every word the giant says to him is making Baekhyun want to punch him, it doesn't even have to be offensive in any way. 

"And I told you that I don’t want you to come again,“ the words are full of hatred toward the black-haired man walking by his side, and Baekhyun hopes that Chanyeol will finally understand that Baekhyun just wants him to leave, since his tone was as harsh as it could be, but Chanyeol just grins and turns his head to him, averting his eyes from the street and focusing on Baekhyun’s face instead. The mischievous spark in Chanyeol's eyes is telling Baekhyun that Chanyeol won't just back down that easily.

"Guess I didn’t hear you,“ oh, that er, Baekhyun thinks. There is no way that Chanyeol didn’t hear him. He literally screamed it at the man yesterday. Baekhyun eyes him from the corner of his eyes, and it only takes one look at Chanyeol’s facial expression and Baekhyun knows that he most certainly heard it the other day, but decided to ignore it, like any other hints about Baekhyun not being interest in the man along with it.

"Well, now you know I don’t want you here, so why don’t you go home? Or to work, I don’t care as long as you leave me be,“ someone would think of Baekhyun as a rude person, but Baekhyun is really anything but. He prefers to be nice to people for many reasons, the most important one being that he was raised well and the second important being the fact that one can never know when the help from that one particular person will be needed. So you see, Baekhyun is not a rude person. Unless people like Park Chanyeol approach him, practically asking to see Baekhyun’s not-very-polite side that is usually hidden under the thousands of layers of his kindness.

"You have a smart mouth,“ Chanyeol observes with a chuckle. Baekhyun probably thinks that if he talks to Chanyeol like that, Chanyeol will lose interest in the shorter male and eventually leave him be, but Baekhyun is so, so wrong. That feisty attitude is just making Chanyeol amused and wanting to stay longer in order to hear more.

It’s also making him wonder if Baekhyun’s attitude changes when he’s having , or if he’s still mildly aggressive, lively and provocative like now. Chanyeol would like to find out soon.

"I take it as a compliment,“ is all Baekhyun says, walking faster so he can get home sooner and get rid of the annoying man. What has he done wrong to deserve this torture?

"I wonder what else is that mouth of yours good for,“ it’s not even surprising when Chanyeol gets hit after that everything-but-innocent remark, but in Chanyeol’s opinion, it was definitely worth it. The hit wasn’t very strong, just enough to let Chanyeol know that Baekhyun doesn’t appreciate these type of comments, and definitely not in public.

"Oh, come on, do you get flustered every time someone says something rated?“ Chanyeol shouldn’t push, he knows, but it’s just so entertaining to make the shorter man angry. The slight pink color of his cheeks and ears, the way he looks away, trying to find something to distract himself with, and how he purses his mouth a little - it was all so endearing and if Chanyeol had the chance to just to experience the sight at least one more time, he would take it without thinking.

While Chanyeol is enjoying himself way more than he should, Baekhyun is dying internally. Not that he didn’t see any of those remarks coming – really, one look at Chanyeol and Baekhyun was sure that something rather inappropriate will fall out of the man’s mouth sooner or later – but it’s still making him feel embarrassed nonetheless. It’s not because it’s Chanyeol saying these things, no. Baekhyun actually gets nervous every damn time someone gives him a compliment, or tries to flirt with him. He has never thought of himself as handsome or beautiful, Baekhyun is just... normal, not ugly but not exactly someone who stands out in the crowd either. Every time someone takes interest in him, he can’t help but feel happy and that makes him react to the attention in this way. It doesn’t matter if the person giving him compliments or having ual remarks is a jerk, it’s still making him feel flustered.

"No,“ Baekhyun replies curtly, hoping that Chanyeol can't see right through his lie. How would he, anyway? They don't even know each other.

"Oh, so it’s just with me, then?“

"It’s because I’m embarrassed to be seen with someone like you,“ they turn a corner, and Baekhyun prays that the approximately ten minutes that are remaining until he gets home will pass quickly, not wanting to be in Chanyeol’s presence any longer. It's making him too nervous for his liking.

"You shouldn’t feel embarrassed. I know that I’m good-looking, but you’re not bad yourself,“ Chanyeol says, chuckling at the unimpressed look Baekhyun shoots him.

"I heard somewhere that good-looking people are usually nice because lots of strangers approach them in order to befriend them – or more – and it’d be such a let down for others if the handsome person they decided to talk to comes out as an . If you think you’re so good-looking, you should do something about your personality too, so it’d match your looks,“ Baekhyun says and turns his gaze away from Chanyeol, kicking a small rock that was in his way. He kicks it with so much force that it’s gone in a second, and Baekhyun feels a small amount of the frustration he feels right now disappear along with the poor rock.

"That’s the first time you said something so lengthy to me,“ Chanyeol lets out a small laugh.

"Did you even listen to wh–... whatever,“ to Baekhyun it looks like Chanyeol wasn’t even listening, but the truth is, Chanyeol did. He actually read somewhere about it on the internet, too. Baekhyun probably heard about it from Jongdae because Chanyeol send the article about this topic to him when he was done reading it, wanting to hear his friend’s opinion.

"There was a thing about ‘ugly‘ people being more grumpy too. Something about them being jealous of the good-looking people getting attention and bitter about not being approached too,“ Chanyeol can clearly see how surprised Baekhyun is that Chanyeol actually paid attention to him. His eyes are blown wide when he realizes that Chanyeol not only listened, but also added something to what Baekhyun’s said earlier.

"Do you think it’s true?“ the question falls out of his mouth before he can stop it. Baekhyun doesn’t even know why he asked, it’s not like he cares about Chanyeol’s opinion anyway. 

Okay, maybe he does, but just a little. 

"Hard to say. It’s not about who’s pretty or ugly, in my opinion. It’s more about who’s aware of their appearance. If a good-looking person knows they are pretty, they can easily become smug and conceited – which isn’t part of a nice personality, right? And when it comes to ‘ugly‘ people... Did you ever look into mirror and hated what you see?“ Chanyeol questions with a smile, but Baekhyun could tell that there is much more behind it. Baekhyun doesn’t answer Chanyeol because he can tell that it was just a rethorical question, but he can’t stop saying too many times in his mind where nobody but him can hear it.

Baekhyun clearly remembers all the times during his school years when he just lied in his bed, stared at the ceiling and wondered how would it be if his face and body looked different. He wished to look different, wanting to get rid of the acne that came with his teenage years. He wanted to have bigger eyes and lips that are more full, wanted to be just at least a little bit taller so his classmates wouldn't make fun of his height so much. 

Baekhyun hated too many things about himself, and he sometimes had a hard time falling asleep, because whenever he accidentally just as much as touched himself, Baekhyun would frown and clench his teeth, not wanting to even feel his body. 

"I think the bitterness in their personality isn’t there because of the hatred toward the people that are being approached instead of them, but because of the hatred they feel toward themselves. And is there even an ugly person in the world? It’s not about the person, it’s about personal preference. Someone says that men with long hair are ugly, but the next person loves long-haired men. Some people like blonds, some prefer brunettes. We should ban word ugly, and if we don’t like how someone looks, just say not my tipe. It’s much less insulting than calling a person ugly, don’t you think?“ Chanyeol finishes his rant with a question, and honestly, Baekhyun is stunned, which can be clearly seen from his shocked face.

Chanyeol chuckles when he sees Baekhyun’s expression and adrresses it, „What’s with your expression?“

"I’m just–uh... I didn’t think that... that you actually, uhm.. You sounded really intelligent – stop looking at me like that! – and I guess I just didn’t think that you’d answer so.. I don’t know, truthfully? I thought you’d give me a one word answer or say something really cringy and inappropriate – the usual – so I’m just really surprised,“ Baekhyun can’t express his feelings, mostly because he doesn’t understand them himself. What he’s said is just a half of what’s in his mind, but that’s all Chanyeol needs to know.

 Chanyeol doesn't need to know that Baekhyun's opinion is so much similar to Chanyeol's.

"In other words, I impressed you. Maybe if I say something more that will sound intelligent, you’ll agree to sleep with me?“

"Oh, god. Congratulations, you ruined the little bit of good opinion I had about you,“ Baekhyun groans. One second Chanyeol sounds like a motivational speaker who talks about how everybody should love themselves because there is not such thing as ugly person, and then he’s back to being the same Park Chanyeol whose every sentence is something erted or egoistical.

"It was a joke, Baekhyun. Maybe not entirely because I wouldn’t mind taking you home if you finally gave me the green light, but still a joke,“ after that, Baekhyun is left wondering if there is another person out there in the world like Chanyeol because who else than him can say that the the previous flirting was a joke, and then try to cover it with more flirting. Even if Baekhyun would never admit it out loud – and has a particularly hard time admitting it in his mind too – but for a second when Chanyeol was talking about his opinion, Baekhyun didn’t mind having a conversation with the man. Truth be told, he even wanted to talk more about similar topics with Chanyeol, thinking that the man can have some pretty good opinions about things.

"Can’t you take the hint? I’m not going to say yes to you. Not now, not tomorrow, not a week later; never,“ Baekhyun’s voice is angry, but he’s more angry at himself than at Chanyeol. Okay, maybe not, but the anger he feels toward himself is at least as big as the anger he feels toward the man walking beside him. Baekhyun wants to slap himself for thinking, even for a fleeting second, that Chanyeol can be a good company.

He wonders if Chanyeol’s joke was just a joke. Did the black-haired man realize that Baekhyun doesn’t like cocky guys like him, so he tried to seduce Baekhyun by saying something smart? If that’s the case, Baekhyun feels two times more naive for thinking that there is something more to Park Chanyeol than a beautiful face and a handsome body. How could Baekhyun forget that everything Chanyeol does and says is because he wants sleep with him?

"You sound so sure about it,“ Chanyeol snorts, and if Baekhyun was angry before, now he’s ing fuming. If this was a cartoon, there would be furious flames around Baekhyun’s body, killing everything within one kilometer's reach.

Chanyeol sounded like there is no way Baekhyun won’t fall for his charm in the future, like he’s a living interpretation of and nobody, nobody can say no to him. Baekhyun thinks about how right Chanyeol was when he was talking about how people easily become smug and conceited if they are good looking. Chanyeol is the living example.

"Maybe it’s because I am sure,“ Baekhyun says sharply, digging his key out of his jacket’s pocket when he sees his building as he turns another corner. Finally, runs through Baekhyun’s mind. He was never as happy to see the ugly, old, shabby building as he is now. Baekhyun imagines that the main entrance door to the building is the finish of a particularly hard level in a video game, and he’s about to win it any moment now.

"How can you be, though? Anything can happen.“

Just ten meters. Baekhyun quickens his pace.

"Maybe you’ll be the one who will come to me, in the end.“

Four meters. So close, so close.

"How about–“

Zero meters.

"Looks like I’m home already. What a shame. Bye,“ Baekhyun interrupts Chanyeol and presses the small chip against the reader. A long beeping sound can be heard, and Baekhyun is quick to grab the handle and pull the door open. Before Chanyeol can say another word, Baekhyun closes the door behind himself, letting out a loud exhale when he knows that he’s now freed from Park Chanyeol. What a relief.

"I’ll be back!“ Chanyeol exclaims loudly, but Baekhyun just smiles.

He’s not coming back again, Baekhyun thinks happily. Nobody would try so hard just to get laid.

--

Baekhyun didn’t see Chanyeol on Tuesday, since he didn’t have to work a shift at the restaurant yesterday. However, while working behind the pult at Twenty, Baekhyun was honestly afraid that Chanyeol will appear out of nowhere. Because of this, he was tense all night, just slowly anticipating the moment the black-haired man shows up and tries to flirt with him again. It may have been the luck finally taking his side, but Baekhyun didn’t even see the giant at the bar, meaning he was stressed out for nothing. Maybe Chanyeol would have come if he knew when Baekhyun’s working at Twenty.

But that brings another question – how the hell does Chanyeol even know when his shifts start and end at the restaurant? Was it Jongdae who told Chanyeol, since they are close? No, Jongdae wouldn’t do that... or would he? Or did Chanyeol come when Baekhyun wasn’t working and asked his co-worker about Baekhyun’s shifts? Could it be one of the jerks that work with Baekhyun on Sunday? They don’t get along at all, but that doesn’t mean they can just throw these information around like it’s nothing. Would they be so low to do that? Baekhyun wonders if Chanyeol offered them money in exchange.

Too many questions, Baekhyun frowns and sighs deeply. There are tons of other possibilities of how Chanyeol found out about Baekhyun’s shift, but Baekhyun just wants to let it go. Chanyeol probably understood that Baekhyun won’t sleep with him after Baekhyun shut the door in his face on Monday, so leaving it in the past is the best he can do now.

"Baekhyun, boss wants you to come to his office. Now,“ a voice that belongs to the petite waitress that shares the shift with Baekhyun pulls him out of his thoughts. He turns around to face the woman, his alarmed eyes meeting hers.

"He didn’t say why,“ she adds quickly before Baekhyun can open his mouth to ask. Guess his look of complete horror indicated that he wants to asks this exact question.

"Okay,“ Baekhyun says slowly, putting his pad and pen on the counter, blushing slightly when the waitress raises her eyebrows at the doodles that could be seen on the front page. To Baekhyun’s defense, he already gave all of the orders to Kyungsoo and didn’t have anything to do while waiting for the food to be ready. There is nothing wrong with entertaining himself while there’s nothing to do, right?

Baekhyun opens the staff only door and closes it quietly, taking slow and short steps in the direction of his boss‘ office that is on the end of a short hall. If he’s boss wants to scold him for something, Baekhyun should be walking faster, but he’s too afraid to move quicker than he already is. He hopes to gain some self confidence to face his boss if he walks slowly, having more time to steady his breathing. His boss was really angry with him when Baekhyun arrived to work with his button-up stained with coffee, and Baekhyun is afraid that if he’s done something wrong in these past days again, he’s going to get fired in a matter of minutes.

When he’s standing in front of the wooden door, he takes a deep breath and exhales slowly. He closes his eyes and clears his throat, making sure that his voice won’t come out weird when he greets the man that holds Baekhyun’s fate in his hands. He grabs the doorknob and pushes it down, cursing when he feels how sweaty his hands are already.

"Good morning. Did you call me, Mr. Sang?“ Baekhyun praises himself when his voice wavers only a little.

"Oh, Baekhyun. Yes, I did. Sit here,“ his boss gestures to a chair that’s in front of the man’s work desk. His expression doesn’t give away a single emotion, as always, and Baekhyun takes a shaky breath as he nods and walks over to the chair, sitting down with a gulp. The fear of being fired is getting to him more and more.

"Do you like working here, Baekhyun?“ the man asks while tapping his pen against the wooden table. The sound would usually go unnoticed, but the deadly silence in the room is making the tapping sound not only noticeable, but rather loud to Baekhyun’s ears. His boss‘ eyes are looking straight at him, and Baekhyun shivers under the intense gaze.

"I do, sir. Very much. It’s a great restaurant and–“"

"Okay,“ his boss interrupts him, closing his eyes and bringing a hand up to shush Baekhyun. Baekhyun gulps loudly and closes his mouth, playing with his fingers nervously. He can already feel sweat forming on his forehead. The tension in the air is making it hard to breathe and Baekhyun swears he’s going to faint every second. He is ninety-nine percent sure that he’s going to have to look for another job because today is the day his boss finally decided to fire him.

"I’ve been wondering... there is a lot of students who need a part time job, and you’re not a student anymore, Baekhyun. Shouldn’t you have a full-time job, since you’re an adult?“ the man asks, and Baekhyun takes his lower lip between his teeth, biting it nervously. He looks down at his feet and his hands are clenched in fists as he tries to remain calm and collected, even though he’s dying inside, already thinking of where he can find another part-time job that pays as well as here.

"Isn’t what I’m saying the truth, Baekhyun?“ the way his boss‘ repeats Baekhyun‘s name after every sentence is making him really, really uneasy.

"It is,“ Baekhyun confirms his boss‘ words. He tries to remember if he saw a help needed sign somewhere, because he can’t have only one job. If Baekhyun loses a job now, he’s going to have a hard time paying for the next month’s rent, since the winter is coming and he needs to pay extra money to the land lady because of the heating.

The silence stretches, and Baekhyun’s heart beats so loudly that he wouldn’t be surprised if the man opposite of him heard it.

"Do you know where I’m going with this conversation, Baekhyun?“ can’t his boss just leave his name out for once? And yes, it’s pretty obvious what are going to be the next words that he’ll hear, but Baekhyun stays silent, not voicing his thoughts. When Baekhyun hears his boss taking a deep breath, he closes his eyes and waits for the inevitable. „I want to offer you a full-time job at this restaurant.“

"What?!“ it’s out of his mouth before he can stop it. He clasps a hand on his mouth and mumbles a quiet sorry, sinking back to his seat, ashamed of his reaction.

Baekhyun can’t believe it. Being offered a full-time job here wasn’t on his list of how can this meeting with his boss go. It has never even crossed Baekhyun’s mind – not even once, believe it or not – that he can get an offer like this. Yes, he is good at his job, charming everyone with his bright smile and personality, but he makes a lot of troubles too. The thought of his boss offering him a position like this... it is unbelievable.

There is silence once again, but Baekhyun doesn’t mind it this time. He is too shocked to even notice that everything has gone quiet, too busy dealing with all the thoughts in his mind. It’s simply impossible, it can’t be true, Baekhyun must have over-heard something because this is just... wow.

"The pay would be better – of course – and your working hours would be from seven in the morning to four in the evening, from Monday to Friday. You would have the weekends off, and you’d be working with Kyungsoo most of the time, since he’s got almost the same working hours. What do you think?“ his boss explains, and even though the man said it all too fast, Baekhyun’s heard it all very clearly. No more waking up on Sunday, no more annoying co-workers that practically bully Baekhyun because he’s younger. Plus having the same working hours as Kyungsoo is awesome. But...

Having a full-time job here would mean that he has to quiet working at Twenty. There is no way he can have a full-time job and also have a side job at the club, where his shift ends at two in the morning. It would be like having a Wednesday almost every day, and Baekhyun’s not ready for that. His body is not ready for that. Baekhyun is not stupid, he knows that if he worked the two jobs at the same time, he would eventually die from being too tired to live. Yes, as Jongdae told him before, Baekhyun pushes himself too much and often forgets that his health come first, but even Baekhyun isn’t dumb enough to think that he could do this.

And when it comes to money... Would he get a better income if he worked full-time here and didn’t have the second payment from the club that he does now when he work part-time at both places? He’s never been good with numbers, but maybe Jongdae can help him figure it out.

Then, on the top of that, he gets to be with Jongin during his shift at Twenty unless Jongin is working at the VIP section. There has been very little time the two could spend together in the past days, but Baekhyun was at least able to see Jongin at work. He doesn't want to throw away the opportunity to be with his best friend, even though that their time together is spent working.  

"I-I don’t know,“ Baekhyun decides to say in the end. He doesn’t even want to look at his boss, too afraid of what he would see. Would he see disappointment in the man’s eyes? Frustration, because Baekhyun got a fantastic offer but still can’t decide?

"You don’t have to answer now. Let it sink it, think it through and tell me your answer on the following Friday,“ this calms down Baekhyun, just a little, but still. "That’s all, you can go.“

"Thank you, sir,“ Baekhyun bows deeply after he gets up from the chair, walking toward the door with clumsy steps. He’s too shaken up to even walk normally, what an embarrassement. Before leaving the office, Baekhyun bows one more time, just to let his boss know that he is grateful for the offer, altough he may not look like it.

When he closes the door, he leans against them and closes his eyes, running both of his hands through his hair. What I am going to do? Baekhyun asks himself desperately, pulling at his hair.

Don’t get him wrong, Baekhyun is happy, but he is also too worried to give in to the happiness that easily.

--

The club is quite busy for a Wednesday night, but surprisingly, Baekhyun doesn’t mind. The need to get away from all the thoughts running through his mind is so strong that he doesn’t have a problem with burying himself in work more than ever before and get himself busy enough so he wouldn’t think of anything beside what the person in front of him ordered. From what Baekhyun gathered as he listens to customers talking while he‘s preparing the drinks is that some kid is celebrating her nineteenth birthday today. That’s most probably the reason why there’s more people than usual at this time of the week.

Even though Baekhyun is feeling anything but happy, he hands out every single glass filled with some kind of alcoholic drink with a bright smile on his face, not wanting to spread around any negative vibes. And maybe if he puts on a happy mask, he will eventually believe that there isn’t anything worrying him as well, even if it’ll be just for a while.

Some of the customers try to flirt with him too – nothing out of ordinary. When Baekhyun started working at Twenty, which was maybe a year ago, he really didn’t like it when customers would throw dirty comments about his body at him, saying things Baekhyun doesn’t even want to think about. At least one quarter of the people who approached him during the time he’s been working here were really bold, telling him how good they would make Baekhyun feel if he agreed to give his body to them. Baekhyun did fool around a lot, true, but he had standards. He always detested these kinds of people who were just too straight-forward and also overly self-confident, like they thought that there is no way Baekhyun will turn them down. After he politely declined to have a quick in the bathroom, saying that he isn’t interested and isn’t looking for a partner for tonight, he got a few insults in return from people who had their ego hurt by Baekhyun, but he could live with that. The problem was with the customers who didn’t accept his answer and pushed harder, going as far as offering him money for a  if nothing else. It disgusted Baekhyun and made him feel extremely uncomfortable – and it still does – but he learned to ignore it, knowing that dealing with s is a part of this job. If the person still didn’t back down after Baekhyun said no multiple times, he always called for the nearest guard and the customer would be thrown out mercilessly.

Then, there was the type that would flirt with him with saying how beautiful he is, leaving out any ual remarks that would make Baekhyun uncomfortable. They would start a friendly conversation, the customer asking all kinds of questions that aren’t too personal, just the basic things like age, school, hobbies, and so on. There were times when Baekhyun actually chose to spend the night with them, feeling comfortable in their company and not seeing a problem with hooking up with a guy who has manners and is good-looking.

And lastly, there were the shy ones who needed tons of encouraging words to even say hi to Baekhyun in the first place, ordering a drink as an excuse to talk to him. Baekhyun could sense that they are nervous when he heard the slight trembling of their voices or see them struggling to hold eye-contact. If Baekhyun wanted to get laid that night, he would take the iniciative and flirt with them, making it obvious that he’s interested, but if he didn’t want to, Baekhyun would gently say that he’s already taken, lie so they wouldn’t think it’s because the fault is in them.

Long story short, Baekhyun is already used to the flirting, and that’s why he doesn’t understand why he’s blushing like a teenage girl every time someone compliments him. Maybe it’s because Baekhyun simply can’t believe that a person that attractive would want him – plain and uninteresting. Hearing that there is actually something outstanding about his appearance is too surreal.

"Hi there,“ Baekhyun jumps in surprise and lets out a very un-manly yelp when he suddenly hears a smooth voice too close to his ear. After turning around to find the identity of the person who managed to give him a heart attack, he slowly exhales while touching his chest with his hand when he sees the familiar face just a few centimeters away from him.

"Jongin, you scared me,“ the brunet says like it’s not perfectly obvious and hits his friend’s arm playfully. He folds his arms on his chest, frowning and pouting at Jongin who doesn’t look like he cares in the slightest. Telling Jongin to stop greeting Baekhyun by startling him to death is pointless, so Baekhyun doesn’t even bother repeating how much he hates it because Jongin won’t listen to him anyway.

"I still can’t understand how you can get scared so much because of it,“ Jongin chuckles and leans against the pult, clearly happy that he got Baekhyun this time too. Explaining to Jongin that he doesn’t understand it either is meaningless, so Baekhyun just mumbles jerk and turns his attention to a new customer who orders two shots of vodka. It takes only thirty seconds to pour the liquid in the the small glasses and hand them to the black-haired girl with a friendly smile, to which the girl responds with a smile on her own, thanking him before paying and taking the glasses in her small hands and walking back to her table in the corner.

"It’s so busy today, weird,“ Jongin wonders out loud as he looks around the club, his head resting on his hands.

"I heard that some girl is celebrating her birthday here,“ when hearing an explanation from Baekhyun, Jongin hums in understanding but doesn’t look for the potentional birthday girl. Instead, he turns his head to look at Baekhyun and waits until Baekhyun decides to stop staring thoughtlessly into the space and meets Jongin’s eyes. Baekhyun probably feels Jongin’s burning gaze because it takes only ten seconds for him to make eye-contact with his friend.

"What?“ Baekhyun questions when Jongin just stares at him without saying anything. Jongin opens his mouth to speak, but he is interrupted by another customer who asks for a glass of water, explaining that his throat is hurting a lot, even thought Baekhyun didn’t ask. He nods and takes a three deciliter glass from a cupboard, filling it with water to the brink and handing it to the guy who thanks him before he takes five large gulps, and then the water is gone. The guy asks how much should he pay, but Baekhyun tells him not to worry about it. When someone orders just water, the bartenders usually give them a 0,5l soda for which the customers have to pay, but Baekhyun feels generous today. And the boy in front of him has a dazzling smile on the top of that.

"Thank you then,“ the guy winks at Baekhyun before disappearing in the mass of people, and as usual, Baekhyun smiles shyly to himself like it’s the first time someone winked at him. He ignores Jongin’s snickering completely and takes the now-empty glass in the sink, washing it quickly and putting it back in the cupboard after he dries it.

"So, you were saying,“ Baekhyun returns back to Jongin, copying his pose and leaning against the pult, gesturing with his hand at Jongin to talk. Judging by the fact that Jongin came down here to bother him, there probably aren’t many people in the VIP section where his friend works today and so Jongin thought that down here it’s going to be rather empty as well.

"Isn’t there anything you might want to talk about?“ Jongin asks, making Baekhyun furrow his brows in confusion. Does Jongin want to know if there are any news about his situation with Chanyeol, is that it? Baekhyun told Jongin about his two encounters with the CEO yesterday, and since Chanyeol didn’t show up today, there isn’t anything Jongin doesn’t know about already.

Yes, the unbelievable happened, and Park Chanyeol most probably came to his senses and understood that Baekhyun isn’t interested in him. Or so Baekhyun thinks because Chanyeol wasn’t waiting for him today at the end of his shift, although he said he’ll be back when Baekhyun closed the door in his face on Monday. With too many thought on his mind, Baekhyun is really happy that he didn’t have to deal with Chanyeol’s bull today.

Finally gave up, huh, Baekhyun thinks. Shouldn’t he be happy? Chanyeol is the definition of everything Baekhyun hates, and yet... he doesn’t feel as good as he should be feeling after realizing that Chanyeol’s not coming back again.

"I don’t think so, no,“ Baekhyun shakes his head, but Jongin isn’t having none of it. The kick that follows makes Baekhyun let out a low whine, bending down to caress his hurting ankle with pained expression. It’s official, Jongin became more violent since he has started dating Kyungsoo.

"Think again,“ Jongin demands, narrowing his eyes at Baekhyun. Not wanting to get kicked again, he looks into distance and wonders what it is that Jongin wants to hear so badly.

"Being offered a full-time job? Rings a bell?“

"Ohh, that... uhm, yeah,“ Baekhyun doesn’t know what to say, not really ready to talk about it, not even with his best friend. It’s not that he doesn’t trust Jongin or anything like that, it’s just that Baekhyun himself doesn’t know what to say about it. But maybe talking to Jongin about the offer will help him decide later, so Baekhyun decides to spill. However, not after taking another two orders from a girl and a boy who don’t look like they can take another drink, but it isn’t Baekhyun place to care as long as they pay for it.

"So, shoot,“ Jongin insits, encouraging smile on his lips because he knows Baekhyun too well, and if Baekhyun doesn’t come to him first and start talking Jongin’s ear off with describing everything that had happened to the tiniest detail, the topic must be hard for Baekhyun to talk about and he will need every form of encouragement Jongin is able to give.

"How do you even know about the offer, though?“ Baekhyun questions before he starts.

"From Kyungsoo, duh. The boss asked him about his opinion before talking to you,“ Jongin answers quickly. "Don’t change the subject, Byun Baekhyun. You know you can talk to me about everything.“

"I know, Jongin, but... I don’t know, it’s just,“ Baekhyun groans, unable to find the right words to describe how he feels. So he just takes a deep breath, and starts. "It’s a great offer, really. You already know about the working hours from Kyungsoo, I suppose, and it’s great that I get to have free weekends, but... It’s about money, too. I have two incomes right now, but if I quit working here and take the full-time job at the restaurant, will the payment be better than when I’m having two-part-time jobs? On the top of that, I’m already used to going to sleep at three in the morning, but if I have to wake up at six in the morning every day, I’ll have to go to sleep much sooner so I won’t die during the day. I have a week to decide, but I don’t know if it’s enough to sort out my thoughts.“

Jongin is silent for a while, absorbing every bit of information Baekhyun gave him, thinking through what to say. The fact that Baekhyun doesn’t care about his health is known to everyone around him, and it’s so sad that when Baekhyun gets and an offer which would finally give him more time to rest and live his life while he’s young, not spending it with working until he can’t move no more, Baekhyun thinks more about his income than about his well-being. Jongin knows why’s that, but still, he would be more than happy if his dear friend thought about himself and his condition first, putting money aside when his health is in question.

"Is there someone who can take my order or are you two going to ignore me forever?“ a low, angry voice interrupts the two friends, and both of their heads snap to the side to look at a tall, middle-aged man.

"Let me,“ Jongin holds Baekhyun in place with a gentle touch, asking the customer what does he want to order, not even bothering to offer the man a polite smile because this guy doesn’t deserve one.

"If you listened to me, you would have heard my order,“ is all that Jongin gets instead of the answer he was looking for, and he sighs deeply. He glances at Baekhyun, and Baekhyun returns the look with the same amount of desperation hidden behind the gaze. And Baekhyun thought that there won’t be any rude customer tonight for a change, what a let down.

"I’m deeply sorry for not paying attention,“ Jongin says with fake remorse, knowing that this is the best way to deal with these types of people. "Can you please repeat what you want to drink?“

"Shot of tequilla,“ the customer answer with brow-furrowed in annoyance, murmuring something about incompetent employees as Jongin reaches for the bottle of tequilla.

That’s what Chanyeol ordered too, comes to Baekhyun’s mind, and he is totally taken back by his thoughts. Why does he even remember that? He wasn’t even there when Chanyeol ordered the drink on Friday when he was there with Jongdae. A co-worker of his told Baekhyun about how the Park Chanyeol ordered a tequilla shot while he was working a shift, and he looked like it was the best thing that has ever happened. Baekhyun wasn’t supposed to remember something like this.

"Here, sir,“ Jongin brings him back to reality with an overly-sweet voice as he hands the small glass to the customer who almost spills everything when he takes the glass from Jongin ungracefully. He downs it in one gulp and slams the empty glass on the pult, and Baekhyun is just happy that it didn’t break. Another glance is shared between the two bartenders, who just raise their eyebrows at each other with silent judgement.

"You don’t deserve it, but I’ll be generous just because you look able,“ the money is practically thrown at Jongin, and then the man is gone. Jongin turns to Baekhyun with a disgusted grimace, scrunching his face as he mockingly repeats the customer’s words, and Baekhyun just laughs at the face Jongin’s making.

"Anyway,“ Jongin starts. "About the job offer... you know what I want to say, right?“

"I know,“ Baekhyun nods. Jongin is always very straight-forward when it comes to lecturing Baekhyun about his health, and it’s clear to him that Jongin would like for Baekhyun to work in normal working hours instead of having shift both during the day and night.

"But I know you will ignore me if I say something about you needing to take care of yourself more, so I won’t say anything about it. I also know that your priority is money,“ God, that sounds so bad, Baekhyun thinks as the words leave Jongin’s mouth, but it isn’t what is sounds like. Baekhyun doesn’t need money only for himself, that’s why the income is so important to him. There is a person who depends on him, and he can’t let the person so dear to him down because he is incompetent to fulfill his promise. "You should talk about this with Jongdae, I’m sure he’ll be more than glad to help you out. But, please, just think this through even if the payment ends up being a little worse than it is now. It’ll look good on your resume if you have a full-time job. And then, maybe you can find a job you really like somewhere else. It’s not like you’ll be stuck there forever.“

Jongin is wrong. He is stuck with working as a waiter, or a bartender, or something equal to that because he isn’t qualified to do anything else. After quitting university after his first year in order to work, all of the chances and dreams about his future disappeared. Jongin might not understand it with graduating as the best dancer in the class along with his dance partner, Sehun, but there is nothing for him out there. Bakehun has fallen into a hole and there is no way he can climb back up, where his dreams are waiting for him, never having the possibility of being fulfilled. It’s better not think about it, forget about things that can never happen. Baekhyun doesn’t voice his thoughts though, not wanting to say out loud how hopeless his situation and life is. Keeping it in himself is proven to be a better option, he has found out thorough the years.

"I’ll call Jongdae tomorrow– today, I mean,“ he corrects himself when he realizes that it’s already thirty minutes after midnight. "Don’t worry about me, okay?“

"I’ll always worry about you, you .“

"You don’t have to,“ how can Baekhyun reassure Jongin if he doesn’t even believe himself when he says it?

"Who else will if it’s not me? I can’t rely on you to take care of yourself,“ it shouldn’t be more than a playful remark, but it still cuts too deep for Baekhyun’s liking.

There is nobody else. You don’t have anyone. You’re all alone.

"I-I didn’t mean it like that, Baek,“ Jongin steps closer to him, realizing it came out differently than intended. Jongin‘s gentle hand then grabs Baekhyun‘s shoulder and squeezes it slightly, wanting to let Baekhyun know that he’s telling the truth now. "I just meant that I care about you more than you yourself do, and it’s not right. It wasn’t what you thought, I’m sorry if it came out wrong.“

"It’s okay,“ Baekhyun tries to smile, but it’s just a grimace that Jongin sees through immediately.

"Baek–“

"Really, it’s nothing. I understand,“ Baekhyun’s own hand reaches out to touch Jongin’s. Maybe it’s not okay, but Baekhyun wants to let his friend know that it wasn’t his fault that Baekhyun reacted the way he did. It’s not Jongin’s fault for stating the truth.

"I’m sorry anyway,“ Jongin simply can’t let it go, can he?

"Jongin, please stop apologizing. It’s weird when you’re so nice to me,“ Baekhyun says and chuckles, wanting to ease the mood. If the way Jongin slaps his arm is anything to go by, it worked.

"I’m always nice to you, you jerk!“

"That’s better.“

"Jongin, what are you doing here?“ they both freeze when they hear their boss‘ voice, turning around to face the tall, blond woman with sweet smiles on their faces, fearing for their life when they look her eyes.

"I-uhm.. I was just on my way back, yeah,“ Jongin stutters, knowing very well that their boss doesn’t appreciate him visiting Baekhyun when they are supposed to work on different sides of the club. "I’ll wait for you at the main door after work, I have some news too.“

And then Jongin is walking away from him, leaving Baekhyun alone again. There is no helping Baekhyun’s quiet laughing when he sees Jongin getting hit by their boss on the way back to the VIP section. Baekhyun returns back to work too, nodding in gratitude at his co-worker who took eighty percent of the orders while Baekhyun was talking with Jongin, and wonders what Jongin’s news can possibly be.

--

Baekhyun strips off the tight leather jeans he has decided to wear to work today, changing in the more comfortable sweat pants. It was too hot in the club today and the leather has been uncomfortably sticking to his legs the whole time, and Baekhyun thinks he’s going to cry when he finally takes off the jeans. He changes his shirt too, putting on a grey sweater that he took from home before coming here, knowing very well that it’s going to be cold as hell on the way back at this hour.

The jeans and the shirt are stuffed in a plastic back, and since they are both going to the laundry when he gets home, Baekhyun doesn’t bother with folding his clothes. He puts on his coat and heads out of the club, saying goodbye to the co-workers who has to clean up today. Poor them, Baekhyun pities them in his mind on the way to the door where he’s supposed to meet Jongin.

True to his word, Jongin is waiting for him at the main door, not noticing Baekyun getting closer to him because he is too invested in some game he’s playing on mobile to notice Baekhyun’s arrival. Jongin doesn’t look up from his phone until Baekhyun clears his throat loudly beside him, which startles the younger and ends with Jongin losing the level he was trying so hard to beat.

"Baek, I hate you so much,“ Jongin whines at Baekhyun, pocketing his phone while pouting like a small child. I was so close, Jongin thinks sadly and sighs, throwing Baekhyun an angry look.

"Such news,“ Baekhyun laughs and tugs at Jongin’s arm, making him know that they should start moving in order to get home. It usually takes about half an hour for Baekhyun to get home, but Jongin lives at least ten minutes further. They always walk, even thought they can just call a taxi because it’s much safer – which Kyungsoo likes to remind them almost every day. It’s just that they are best friends, have been for seven years already, and the amount of time they spend together isn’t nearly as enough as both of them would like. Walking home together allows them to be together just a few more minutes before they go back to their busy schedules.

Jongin’s been working on a new choreography with Sehun these past days, and Baekhyun doesn’t want to bother him when he finally decides to take a break. If Baekhyun’s not spending time with Jongin because his best friend is too busy dancing, how does Kyungsoo feel when he isn’t getting as much attention from his boyfriend as in the past? Baekhyun doesn’t want to interrupt their well deserved time together when Jongin isn’t in the studio, dancing his soul out accompanied with Sehun.

", so cold,“ Jongin mutters when they get out of Twenty and shivers It’s so cold that they can see their breath in the air. Well, it’s November already, so it isn’t surprising that the temperature is so low. Baekhyun still hates it, though. He has always hated winter because he loathes being cold.

"Look at you and maybe you’ll figure out why you’re so cold,“ Baekhyun shoots him a disapproving look and eyes his clothes judgingly. Jongin is wearing black, ripped jeans and a simple shirt with black leather jacket like it’s ing September. Style comes first, Jongin would say every time Baekhyun scolds him for his choice of clothing. Does Kyungsoo agree with you? Baekhyun would shoot back, laughing loudly when Jongin shuts his mouth immediately when Baekhyun mentions his boyfriend.

"Okay, yeah, I get it,“ Jongin rolls his eyes and starts walking again, cursing under his breath. Following after him, Baekhyun agrees with every insult Jongin directs at this cold season, adding a few insults of his own.

"What did you want to tell me, by the way?“ Baekhyun questions after a few minutes of cussing, not hiding his curiosity. Seeing Jongin’s small smile, Baekhyun thinks that it must be some good news.

"You know that I’ve been working on a new choreography with Sehun lately, right?“ Baekhyun nods. "So, there is a dancing competition at Two Moons on Saturday, and we’ll use the choreography. I wanted to ask you if you could come? I know that you have work on Sunday, and you have to get up early–“

"Are you stupid?“ Baekhyun cuts him off immediately. "Of course, I’m going to come.“

"But I don’t want you to be tired in the morning...“ Jongin has the nerve to look guilty about it. How can Jongin even be unsure if Baekhyun would come to the competition? Tired or not, he’ll be there, cheering his best friend on, standing in the first row ready to be the first one to clap after the performance is over with Kyungsoo by his side.

"You know I love to see you dance. It’s been a while since I saw you perform. I’m really looking forward to it,“ Baekhyun’s grin is so wide that Jongin guilty feelings are slowly being forgotten.

"What prize are you going to get?“ Baekhyun asks.

"Only the winner gets the prize, Baek,“ Jongin says as if Baekhyun didn’t know that.

"I know. So, what prize are you going to get?“

"You make it sound like you believe we’re going to win,“ Baekhyun really hates that Jongin doesn’t believe in himself and Sehun as much as others do, including Baekhyun. Both of them are extremely good dancers, they were top of the class for ’s sake, and Jongin still doubts their skills.

"You’re going to win for sure,“ Baekhyun says matter of factly, nudging Jongin to the side when the younger doesn’t say anything back in agreement. "You are!“

"It would be nice... Maybe I could take Kyungsoo somewhere nice if we won. The price is 1 500 000 won,“ Baekhyun’s jaw drops. "I know, right? It’s a really big contest.“

"You should take me somewhere nice too, then,“ Baekhyun jokes.

"I will, promise,“ Jongin takes it seriously and smiles at Baekhyun, one of his biggest and most beautiful smiles. Baekhyun smiles in return, thinking how lucky he is to have Jongin as his best friend.

"I look forward to it, then.“