I suppress a smile when I notice a familiar broad back walking ahead of me. For the first time, I am the one creeping up on him. With light steps, I move forward and tap on his shoulder blade. Surprised, Baekhyun stops talking to his friend and turns around. His lips pull into a tender smile when he sees that it’s me.

“You,” he clucks his tongue in affection, slipping his arm around my waist, pulling me to stand between him and his friend.

I look to the side and see that it is Kyungsoo this time. I smile politely at him and bow my head as a greeting. Baekhyun has introduced me to his friends one by one over the past week, knowing how shy I can get in a big group. So even though I have yet to hang out with Baekhyun and his whole group of friends, I have at least met them all individually.

“Going to the library again?” Baekhyun asks. When I shake my head, he quirks an eyebrow in surprise.

“I’m going to watch you practice.”

His eyes immediately light up at that. “Really?” I giggle and bob my head. “Ah, you're such a sweetheart,” he coos, leaning down to kiss the top of my head.

My face feels like it is on fire, receiving affection like this so openly in public. Not to mention how Baekhyun is a popular guy while I am just a nobody. The sight of us together normally turns heads.

“Don't you normally study in the library?” Kyungsoo asks me when I follow them towards the field.

“Yeah. But I just thought I could use a break today.”

“To watch your boyfriend at rugby practice?” he wonders seriously though I know that it is his quirky way of teasing people.

But still, my cheeks redden even more. Baekhyun chuckles but doesn't say anything to that. We enter the field where most of the team is already present, chilling by the stands.

“Aye, Kyungsoo, Baekhyun!”

I notice Jawline Guy (or rather, Kai) waving at the two guys next to me. He glances at me and when he sees that I’m there, his grin widens. (He apologised for the Dare when Baekhyun introduced us for the first time. I forgave him but he still bought me a hot chocolate as peace offering.) I glance at the guys around him and notice belatedly that the rest of Baekhyun’s usual clique is already there, watching Baekhyun and me. Embarrassed by their stares, I move closer to Baekhyun. He rubs my side comfortingly.

“Good afternoon, malady,” Kai curtsies and bows at me when we reach him.

“Hi,” I murmur quietly, shyly.

Baekhyun takes his arm away from me to put down his duffle bag. Instinctively, I hide behind him like a child, my eyes casted down on the ground, too shy to look at the guys.

“Where's Xiumin hyung?” Baekhyun asks, eyes roaming about to count the heads of his friends.

Though he doesn't seem like he is aware of my shyness, he reaches his arm around and pats the slight curve of my bum, trying to make me feel less nervous about being in front of so many of his friends.

“He has to go for a medical check-up,” Suho says. “So he won't be joining practice today.”

Baekhyun nods his head. He glances back to see me hiding behind him. “Baby, sit down.” He pushes his duffle bag away slightly though he had already accommodated an empty space for me initially. “Here,” he murmurs.

He holds out his hand when I move forward. I take his soft hand lightly but he tightens his hold on me. As I take a huge step to get on the stands, Baekhyun has a hand on the side of my waist to steady me. His eyebrows are furrowed in concentration. When I am up on the bleachers, he lifts his eyes to mine, making sure that I’m okay. I smile at him and take a seat on the spot he reserved for me.

Baekhyun turns to his duffle bag when I am seated, taking out his cleats. He pushes his bag away and sits next to me, our shoulders touching each other, the side of his thigh pressed to mine. Even though some of his friends are sitting behind us, I don't feel as uncomfortable with Baekhyun next to me. He is talking to his teammates as I watch him change his shoes for his cleats. I turn my head to bury my nose into his shoulder, making him turn to me when his friend is speaking. I take in a deep breath, flooding my veins with the scent of Baekhyun that reminds me of baby powder and his cologne. And when I have taken in that deep breath, I move to rest my chin on his shoulder. Baekhyun stares at me for a moment, eyes soft.

“You smell nice,” I murmur softly.

Automatically, his lips curl in affection. He doesn't say anything but he leans in to meet my forehead with his lips. I keep my head on his shoulder even as he converses with his friends. I let myself drown in his comforting husky voice, tone somber and captivating as they talk about a serious topic.

Baekhyun’s voice is slowly, surely becoming my favourite soundtrack.

My eyes never leave Baekhyun the entire duration of his practice. Watching him interact with his teammates, hearing him communicate with them, I find myself enjoying the sport, but only because Baekhyun is in it.

By the time he is done with training and has returned to the stands, he is sweaty and panting. I don't smell him this time. He grins at me when he comes over, already pulling his shirt over his body, making me look away quickly, blushing. But then I realise that the other team members are doing the same thing too and no place is safe for me to look at. I can already hear them discussing dinner plans as I train my eyes on the ground.

I hear loud whispers and squeals from the girls who are here to watch the team practice. I glance at them and see them staring with wide eyes, totally enjoying the view of hot guys taking off their shirts to show off their sweaty bodies. It still half-fascinates and half-confuses me how they don't seem to have anything to do but to watch the rugby team at practice.

“Let’s go out for dinner,” Baekhyun says, making me turn back to him. He is already fixing his new shirt. “I’m starving.”

So, the moment Baekhyun is done changing out of his shoes, he stands with his duffle bag, jumping down the bleachers easily. He turns to me from the ground, holding his hand out for me to take. He helps me down and when I am on the ground with him, he intertwines our fingers together. He says goodbye to his teammates who all echo their greetings. I bow and murmur a goodbye, which receives softer and less gruff Bye!’s compared to what Baekhyun got. As we pass the stands, Baekhyun and I bow to his coach before almost running out of the field.

“What do you feel like having?” he asks the moment we step out of the fenced area.

“Hmm, burgers!”

Baekhyun turns to me, eyes twinkling. “Oooh, good choice.”

I smile back at him. As we walk to his car in the cool weather, I ask Baekhyun why he didn't want to have dinner with his teammates. Surely it would bond the team even more.

“I see them so much already,” he shakes his head and groans tiredly. “And they have dinner after every practice anyway.”

“Don't you guys get sick of each other?”

As a home person, I can never understand how people stay out so much. And as an introvert, it is almost impossible for me to understand how people could even be around each other so much. The only other person I can ever feel comfortable spending time with is Baekhyun. And that's because he's my soulmate (and okay, because I really like him too).

“Sometimes,” Baekhyun shrugs. “Like Xiumin and Kyungsoo. The rest of us don't mind hanging out.”

In this world, where soulmates are actually real, people who have yet to Sync normally like being around other people. From what I deduce, it is because then, they will be able to pass time less sadly, not just waiting for that one person to make their life meaningful. Because when you are destined to be with someone else and you've not found them yet, your heart is never really whole.

The minority of people — and I really mean the minority, I’m talking statistics of six out of every 100,000 — are people who prefer to be by themselves, to save themselves for their soulmates. You don't really come across people like these much. After all, no matter how well your self-control is, it is easier to give in to your attraction to someone that might not even be your soulmate. (I would know, I have been there before. Though lucky for me, the person I was falling in love with was also my soulmate.)

Of course, it doesn't mean that the 99,994 people out of the hundred thousand sleep around before even finding their soulmate. Most of them prefer to just hang around people, just like how some of Baekhyun’s friends are like (definitely not Chanyeol though. But I would think Jongdae is one of them). Some others don't mind hanging out and sharing some intimacy together, which would be people like Rose and — before she found her soulmate — Jennie. (I wonder briefly how her soulmate thought about that. Or maybe, he was just like her too?)

A reason why I wanted to save myself for my soulmate is so that he could have all of me, not just parts of me. I want him to be my first and my last; my past, present, and future. I am one of the six in every 100,000 that puts my soulmate and our bond before my desires and needs for myself. Or at least, I tried to when Baekhyun showed up. (I am really lucky he turned out to be my soulmate because otherwise I swear I would have gone over to the dark side.)

“What about you, then?” I ask when we are in his car.

“Me?” he repeats distractedly as he turns the ignition and gets the car started up. “What about me…”

He can't seem to multi-task very well. I watch him focus on getting out of the parking lot. Just when I thought he must have forgotten my question, I realise that in his silence, he had been thinking of the answer to my question.

“I think we’re very different people,” he murmurs, glancing at me briefly. I swallow. Well, at least I know I’m not the only one who thinks that. “You like being by yourself, don't you?”

I look away from him, staring out the windscreen. “Yeah,” I affirm softly.

“I’m different,” he says. “I like being around people.”

My heart beats a little too hard from the anxiety of Baekhyun potentially letting me know that maybe he hadn't been as faithful as I was to him before we had even known each other.

“I’m a People Person like others,” he confesses and I let out a quiet sigh of relief, now knowing that he wasn't actually doing what I thought he did. “Except you,” he adds, glancing at me. I don't say anything to that. “But when I’m home, I like to stay by myself and my soulmate.”

At the mention of soulmate, I turn to him, wondering what he means by that. He hadn't even known that it was me then. How did he spend time with me?

He doesn't look over but he must have sensed my gaze. “I listen to your songs on our playlist,” he murmurs. “Only the ones you chose. I listen to them on repeat.”

“I didn't know you could do that,” I mutter.

“You can't,” Baekhyun clarifies. “I just gotta keep queueing them.”

“That's a lot of work.”

“I like being around people,” he says again, quietly. “But when I’m home and away from my friends, the loneliness is unbearable. Your songs don't make me feel that way.” We come to a stop and he turns to me, his brown eyes sincere and soft. “Your songs make me feel whole, like I’m actually with someone else when I’m not. No matter how much work I had to do, I just keep doing it night after night.” I am still trapped in his gaze when he says, “You can only imagine how bad I felt towards my soulmate when I met you and that feeling became real. Being with you was different from being with the boys.” The light turns green then, causing him to break the eye contact. “You made me feel like it was summer at the beach — at peace but yet filled with so much energy.”

I want to tell him that I feel sort of the same way, except I don't go out much in summer because of the rays, but he makes me feel like curling up in a sofa seat in front of a fireplace, reading. I feel too comfortable with him. Though I want to say that, I don't, afraid to break this moment. So I wait for him to continue.

“Being around you was so nice and so fulfilling…” Baekhyun murmurs. “And I never felt that even when I was with the boys, or when I was listening to your songs. I felt so bad.” I fix my eyes on him, watching him talk even as he concentrates on driving. He looks so much more handsome. “I felt like I was cheating on my soulmate when I was with you, but somehow, I felt okay with that. And it scared me because I'm not that kind of person. I don't even involve myself with girls.” He glances at me, “You're the first one.”

I can't help when I whisper, “And the last.”

His lips curl into a smile. “Yeah,” he nods his head. “And now I know why I felt so comfortable around you. Thinking back to those times when I felt bad about being with you, I feel so stupid.”

“Neither of us knew.”

“Because we didn't even think we would be soulmates.”

He is right. We never thought we would be soulmates. After all, it is never this easy for other people. Sometimes, they might even have to travel for a holiday to be able to accidentally bump into them. Even then, they might not even Sync right away. Finding your soulmate in the same campus as you are had just seem too easy, too impossible. We just never thought that it was plausible.

“We never even thought of Syncing,” I mutter, now thinking about it.

“I did, actually.” I turn to Baekhyun, surprised that he actually did. “But I was afraid that if we weren't soulmates, I might lose you altogether. And there never really was a good time to bring it up.”

I don't say anything to that and Baekhyun doesn't add either. So for the next few minutes, our conversation dwindles. I am going over what we were talking about when something hits me.

“We’re so different in personalities… How are we even soulmates?”

“Haven't you heard that opposites attract?” Baekhyun teases.

“Yes,” I roll my eyes, slowly getting braver around him. “Opposites attract, but do they end up together forever?”

He doesn't have anything to say to that, which makes me a little less comfortable now, knowing that he doesn't even know the answer himself. But a minute later, he says something that is so reassuring that I don't think I might be stressing over this insecurity too much anymore.

“Well, I’m going to cling onto you until I die so we’re going to end up together forever, whether you like it or not.” Baekhyun has a teasing smirk on his face when he turns to wink at me. “And start getting used to people because your boyfriend is just such a People Person.”

“Then you'd have to get used to staying home because your girlfriend is just such a Home Person,” I say back, a hint of smile on my face.

“Too easy,” he crinkles his nose at me, a soft smile on his lips.

After dinner, Baekhyun and I find ourselves over at my place. He took a shower here since he didn't have one right after training. Then, we sit on the ground, just talking and getting to know each other.

“Why Let It Go?” I ask when it is my turn.

Baekhyun purses his lips. “What?” he mutters quite defensively, pressing and pulling my big toe between his fingers in a massage. I have my leg stretched out in front of me, my foot resting on his lap. “I like that song,” he scowls.

I giggle softly. “Did you like the movie too?” I find myself teasing.

It's funny how easily Baekhyun brings out another side of me. I have never known I could be this playful, though definitely not as playful as Baekhyun. I feel like a whole other person when I am with him.

“I watched it with my niece,” he grumbles, sounding quite pouty. “It is a nice song, okay.”

“No, it is,” I agree even though I am still giggling. He tsks and flicks my little toe. “It was even playing when you bumped into me,” I recall.

“I know,” he says, looking quite pensive now. “Out of all songs…” he mutters thoughtfully.

It makes me realise that maybe that had just been Destiny’s way of bringing us together even before we knew what was happening.

“What were the odds, right?” I hum, wiggling my toes when he stops massaging them.

Baekhyun blinks and looks at me. A cute smile spreads slowly on his lips. He continues massaging my middle toe.

“How embarrassed were you when I found out that you were listening to Let It Go?”

“Very,” I answer in a huff.

“And in front of such a cute rugby play—”

A loud knock on my door interrupts Baekhyun’s playful comment, at the same time making me jump. Baekhyun raises an eyebrow at me as he caresses my calf to soothe me from the shock. I look back at him with a confused and surprised face, bobbing my shoulders to reply to his wordless question. Another set of knocking before my door is opened. Baekhyun and I turn our heads to look at the intruders.

Rose and Jennie are standing outside. Jennie glances at my leg resting on Baekhyun’s lap, his hands resting on my ankle and shin.

“What time are you leaving?” Rose tips her head at Baekhyun. “You're not staying over, are you?”

I frown. What's with the questions? She sounds like a very protective mother and I would never, in a million years, think that about her.

“Um,” Baekhyun stutters, glancing at me. “I don't know.”

The two girls look at me, raising an eyebrow. Being with Baekhyun gives me a sort of confidence I never would have when I am by myself. I have already realised that when I wordlessly announced Baekhyun’s and my Sync to my housemates.

“Why? Can't he stay over?” I say back.

I actually never thought about asking him to stay over and I know Baekhyun wouldn't ask either. But I end up countering their question because I just don't like how they're suddenly so involved in my life now.

Rose seems surprised by my outspokenness. At her speechlessness, Jennie speaks instead.

“No.”

I frown. “What? Why not?”

“Because.”

Highly dissatisfied with that answer, I open my mouth, about to snap at them when Joohyun appears. Jennie and Rose blink at her, not expecting her to leave her room.

She sighs at the two girls. “Just let her do what she wants. She's found her soulmate already, hasn't she?”

“But unnie—”

She raises an eyebrow at Rose quietly. Joohyun is that kind of girl who is quiet but lethal. She is scary when she is pissed, I have seen her getting mad when Rose and Jennie brought back friends who were too loud for this house. Despite her cold and aloof attitude though, she is warm on the inside. Sometimes, she might bake just to de-stress and she'd leave the treats out for us to eat.

“You have guys sleeping over every weekend too,” Joohyun nods at Rose, who looks away guiltily. “She's only letting one sleepover. And he's her soulmate. What's wrong with that?”

“But she's not that kind of girl,” Jennie counters.

My frown deepens. What is going on? I turn to Baekhyun, who is simply observing in amusement, looking like he is watching TV. I turn back to my housemates.

“But he's her soulmate,” Joohyun stresses. “You girls don't know what that means, do you?”

“I know they're supposed to be together and—”

“It means their souls are intertwined and no one else should intervene,” the oldest girl interrupts bluntly. No one says anything. She sighs. “I get that you're worried for her but she's his now. If anything, he should be worried for her,” she says, pinning her stare on Baekhyun.

Worried? Worried? The girls, they're worried for me? I think back to the previous years when we lived together without saying much to each other. Our characters are so different and we never tried striking up conversations. Only after last week, when I brought Baekhyun home, the two girls started poking their noses into my life. At first, I had thought it was because they were simply unhappy about me finding my soulmate already. But now that Joohyun mentioned that, are they really worried for me?

It takes a while for the silence to be broken. I blink out of my thoughts.

“The walls are thin in this house,” Rose warns Baekhyun. Then, she turns and walks off to her room.

Jennie watches her leave before turning back to me. “Be careful,” she mutters awkwardly.

She returns to her room as well so that only Joohyun is left. She stretches her arm to reach the doorknob. As she pulls the door shut, she smiles warmly at me.

“Don't worry about them.” She looks at Baekhyun. “I’m right next door. Don't try anything funny,” she threatens calmly.

She closes the door then, leaving Baekhyun and I alone again. I blink at the door, confused. I turn to Baekhyun, who is smiling down at my foot as he watches his fingers massage my toes again. I retract my leg, folding it under my body. He frowns and looks up at me.

“What just happened?” I ask in confusion.

Baekhyun shrugs, bringing his fingers to his nose and pretending to gag. Momentarily forgetting about the girls, I scowl and lean forward to hit his arm painfully. He only laughs. I know that Baekhyun is only joking but I am still glaring at him when I sit back in my spot.

“You and your housemates don't interact much but they care about you,” he says.

“But why?”

He tilts his head. “What do you mean why? Does there have to be a reason for someone to care for someone else?”

“I mean… we don't even talk. We barely even know each other…”

Baekhyun is patient when he asks, “How long have you guys been staying together?”

“Two years,” I mumble.

“In that two years, you guys might not have spoken to each other but if they hadn't like you like you thought they did, they would have already moved out of this house.”

Now that I think about it, he's right. Why put up with people you don't like for two years when you could simply just move out?

Seeing how I am finally thinking about it that way, Baekhyun continues. “And in the two years you've lived with them, they know what you're like. Of course they'd be worried for you when you suddenly act out of character.”

The longer I dwell on his words, the more it made me realise that he is probably right. They have never shown me any scorn or dislike before. We just simply don't talk because we’re different kinds of people. They can't just dislike me now, all of a sudden, because I have a boy at home.

“Then why did they sound so… annoying when they asked me questions?”

Baekhyun hums. “Staying together for two years and not interacting, they probably don't know how to show their affection when they have never shown it to you before. It's awkward for them.”

“Oh.” That makes sense. “So they're not actually being rude?”

“I would think they're being rude to me. But no, baby. They're not being rude to you if you understand their motives.”

I nod thoughtfully, taking his words to heart. I am still mulling over the entire situation and the new revelation when Baekhyun gets my attention by humming.

“So am I actually invited to stay over, or were you just trying to piss them off?”

I flicker my eyes to him. He is looking at me with a soft look in his eyes, like he already knows what my answer is before I even thought about it. I give him a sorry smile.

“Maybe next time, Baekhyun.”

“What happened to not crossing boundaries?” Baekhyun pants when he jogs over for a water break, seeing how I am doing my reading for tomorrow’s class while waiting for him to end training.

“I got bored,” I sigh, lifting my head to watch him down huge gulps of water. “Besides, my boyfriend is a rugby player. I should know the basics of crossing lines too, don't I?”

He takes his bottle away from his lips and grins at me. I chuckle when he nods in agreement. Before he returns to his training, he slides his hand in my hair, his palm resting on the side of my face. He pulls me in close and gives me a quick peck on the lips. He kisses my cheekbone before turning away, jogging back to practice.

I watch him for a while, observing him do push-ups on the grass. Then I realise that he just touched my face with that hand. I sigh and brush the side of my face with the back of my hand, trying to get rid of the bacteria though I know it would still be dirty. I notice Baekhyun getting up from the ground and shaking out his arms, only to end up hitting and tangling his hand with Junmyeon’s. I sigh and shake my head endearingly.

I go back to read my paper, finishing in about half an hour. When I am done, I spend the rest of the time watching Baekhyun interact with his team, making them laugh and being an idiot. It’s funny how just two months ago, I thought he was this mysterious, cool rugby player, but now that I have gotten to really know him, he’s all but that.

Today’s practice finishes earlier than usual. The team swarms back to the stands after their coach dismisses them. Baekhyun and Sehun are shoving each other, laughing. My lips unknowingly curl in an affectionate smile. Baekhyun stops next to me when he reaches, looking up at me from the ground. He brushes his sweaty hair back, making it stand slightly.

“Might be a stretch but it’s Jongdae’s birthday today, do you want to join them for a celebration?” he asks me, eyes darting about my features to spot any change in my expression. He’s too good at reading me.

“What about you?” I ask instead.

He shrugs, scratching the back of his neck. “I want to go,” he mumbles like he doesn’t want to say it out loud to me. He’s not even looking at me.

“Then go,” I tell him.

He glances up at me sheepishly. “But I want to be with you too.”

“We spend a lot of time together, Baekhyun,” I tell him gently.

It’s true. Ever since the Sync, Baekhyun and I have been seeing each other almost everyday. While I used to listen to our shared playlist to get to know my soulmate, I am now spending time with him physically. Finding your soulmate and having one are two very different stories.

“But,” he pauses, nibbling on his bottom lip. He glances to the side when he hears his friends chortling with laughter. He looks at me with his cute droopy eyes. “Can’t you come with us?”

“I don’t want to intrude.”

He straightens up a little and shakes his head enthusiastically. “No! Jongdae actually invited you too!” Then he pouts and holds my hands in his. All I can think of is the mud staining his palms now staining mine, too. “Please?” he begs.

“Okay,” I murmur, relenting. My eyes are on his hands.

“She said okay, Jongdae!” Baekhyun announces in a loud voice, sounding way too happy.

The boys hear the announcement and start to cheer excitedly. This is the first time I am saying yes to going out with them. Baekhyun has tried many times to make me hang out with his friends but he knows how shy I can get around a big group of people. He’s been trying to get me to familiarise myself with them though and now that a month has passed and I can actually cluck my tongue at Kai and Sehun when they untuck each other’s jerseys just to annoy each other, he thinks that I am at a good standing to have at least a dinner with them.

I give Jongdae a bashful smile just as something cool touches my palm. Jongdae gives me a wide grin and an enthusiastic thumb up while my palm is being wiped. I turn my head to look down and see Baekhyun cleaning my hands with a wet wipe while talking to Sehun, who is right next to him. I flicker my eyes up to look at him, watching him converse. I smile at his affection and his attention to details. He knows how icky I can get about dirt and germs (I wouldn’t let him sit on my bed unless he’s showered). After all, it was also me who put the pack of wet wipes in his bag.

When he is done wiping my hands, he cleans his own quickly, way less thoroughly than he did for me. He leaves the used wipe on the seat in front of him before taking off his shirt to change out to a fresh one. This time, my eyes are too slow to avert my gaze, so I end up staring at his collarbones, admiring his milky skin and his hard chest. Suddenly realising that I am actually gaping and being a ert, I snap my eyes up. Baekhyun is watching me in amusement, his lips pressed together to keep from laughing. I flush and look down in embarrassment. He only chuckles.

Once he is changed, he looks at me. “Ready?”

Quickly, I pack up and stand. Baekhyun wraps his arm around my waist this time, carrying me down the stands easily since I am wearing a dress today. When I have my feet on the grass, he takes his duffle bag, hanging the strap on his shoulder, and gets the used wipe. I walk next to him as he joins the rest of the group at the front of the bleachers. I stand close to him, my arm pressed to his side.

“Jongdae wants to have chicken,” Suho tells us, glancing at me for a moment. “And beer.”

Baekhyun dips his head to look at me. “You don’t have to drink if you don’t want to.”

“I’m not a little girl, Baekhyun,” I grumble. He takes care of me a bit too much. I’m not complaining, it’s just that he worries over even the smallest thing.

Minseok, who is next to me, hears and sniggers. Baekhyun clucks his tongue. “I know you’re not, I’m just telling you. You’re not obliged to drink.”

“What about you?” I ask, lifting my head to look at him.

He frowns. “I’m drinking.”

“But you’re driving.”

He blinks, like he had forgotten about that. We start walking with the rest, towards the carpark. The boys are noisy with chatter and laughter. Baekhyun and I are at the back of the group, still in our own little bubble.

“I’m not sitting in your car if you’re going to drink and drive,” I tell him seriously. He opens his mouth to retort, but he knows that he wouldn’t risk my life like that anyway, even if he would only be drinking a bit. So he shuts his mouth. Seeing his contemplation, I relent. “You’re lucky I can drive,” I say, poking his arm just as he throws the used wipe in the bin when we pass it.

“You can?” he looks at me in surprise.

“I’m 21,” I whine slightly. Does he really see me as a baby?

“I just thought… Because you don’t drive…” he mumbles to himself, eyebrows furrowed.

“I don’t need a car so I just don’t drive.”

“Oh.”

“I’m not a baby.”

“I know you’re not,” he rolls his eyes. “You’re just… you’re just super precious to me.”

I don’t know what to say to that because if he had said that I was a baby to him, I’d probably argue that I am not one until he promises he wouldn’t treat me like one. But him saying that makes me feel so fuzzy inside that I just leave it at that.

“Baekhyun,” Chanyeol calls. We look up and see the giant standing by the side to wait for us to reach him. He walks next to Baekhyun. “We’re going to SUM chicken.”

“Okay,” Baekhyun nods. Chanyeol doesn’t leave though. So my boyfriend raises an eyebrow at him.

“Can I ride with you guys?” he asks sheepishly, glancing at me. “I’ll sit in the back.”

“Why don’t you want to ride with Sehun?”

“He didn’t drive today. He’s going with Junmyeon.”

“I’ll sit in the back,” I pipe up, though my voice is a little too soft still.

“No, I’ll—”

“You’re tall,” I gesture to his legs with my eyes. “I don’t mind sitting at the back.”

Chanyeol looks at me unsurely before sliding his eyes to Baekhyun, as if asking for permission to let me let him sit in front. My soulmate sighs and nods wordlessly. The giant grins widely at the both of us.

We walk to the car park where we split up into groups. The boys promise to see each other at the restaurant. Baekhyun leaves his duffle bag in the back next to me before going to the driver’s seat. I am right behind him. When Chanyeol enters, Baekhyun immediately reminds him to strap up. Chanyeol grumbles but does as he is told.

“He never likes wearing his seatbelt,” Baekhyun tells me as he starts driving.

“Isn’t that illegal?” I say. I know that it is illegal.

Baekhyun snorts. “His presence is illegal, sweetheart.”

I giggle at that. Then I listen to the two friends arguing and annoying each other. It is amusing, watching them fight like this. They’re both older than I am but they act like kids. It’s cute.

The entire ride there, they fill the car with rude remarks and snipes. As fascinating as it is, I am still glad when we park outside the chicken place. A group of the guys is already waiting outside. We join them. I stand close to Baekhyun, feeling a bit intimidated that I am out with a group of all boys.

“Are you ready to take care of Baekhyun?” Jongdae asks me while we wait for the others. I frown, wondering what he means. “He can’t take his alcohol.”

“I can!” my boyfriend indignantly counters.

Sehun snorts. “A bottle of beer barely even counts as alcohol, hyung.”

I look up at Baekhyun in amusement. He is glaring at the youngest guy, lips screwed up in annoyance. I laugh quietly.

“That’s okay,” I answer to Jongdae’s question. “He takes care of me a lot so I guess now I can take care of him too.”

“Ah,” Baekhyun whines and groans. He swears to me, “I can take care of myself!”

I press the back of my hand to my lips so I don’t laugh too loud. Baekhyun is extremely touchy and jumpy and loud after just drinking two somac’s. Suho only laughs and shakes his head while Jongdae gives me an ‘I told you so’ look.

“Stop disturbing Kyungsoo, Baekhyun,” I say gently, though with a hint of laughter in my voice. I pull his wrist away from Kyungsoo’s straight face, whom Baekhyun had been trying to feed a piece of chicken to.

Baekhyun lets me pull him away but once I let go of his hand, he turns to me, trying to feed the chicken to me instead. I glance at him in amusement. He is watching me intently as if that would make me eat it. I grin and take the food in my mouth.

“Ah, what a good girl, my baby!” he practically coos, stretching his arm around me, pushing the side of my face to him. He gives me a big, moist kiss on the cheek.

I am already blushing when he lets go of me, but when I lift my eyes and notice some of the other boys smiling affectionately at us, I flush an even deeper hue of red.

“Baekhyun,” I whine quietly, pushing his thigh.

“What?” he mumbles, turning to face me with his cheek jutting as he chews on his food.

I stare at him watching me with curious eyes. He doesn’t look wasted. Actually, I would think that Baekhyun just likes to let loose when he drinks. I shake my head. He goes back to eating and talking with his mouth full.

The dinner takes almost two and a half hours. By the time we are done and Baekhyun is wrapped around my arm, it is nearly nine. We stand outside the restaurant, thanking Jongdae for the treat. Baekhyun’s cheeks are rosy and his lips are in a constant pout. Our fingers are intertwined in a hold and he is standing so close with his cheek pasted on the side of my head.

“Karaoke, anyone?” Chanyeol raises his hand, looking around excitedly.

“Oh, that’s a good idea,” Jongdae nods.

I turn my head to look at Baekhyun. Karaoke means more drinks, right? He is already so touchy with me now, what if he drinks more? Will he start draping himself over me like a feather boa?

“I don’t think so,” Baekhyun mumbles when the rest are looking at us, wondering if we’re joining them. “I’m tired.”

Kai raises an eyebrow. “But you like going to karaokes.”

Suho adds, “And you never say no to drinks.”

“No matter how bad your tolerance is,” Kyungsoo mutters.

Baekhyun stands upright and scowls at them, his hand tightening on mine. “Another time,” he says in a tone that would have no space for arguments.

I tilt my head to look at him, to really look at him. He isn’t drunk. He doesn’t sound drunk. Neither does he sound tired. When the boys only nod and let him go, Baekhyun turns to me, the hard expression on his face now turning soft. That’s how I know that he rejected the offer to join his friends at karaoke because of me.

“Let’s go,” he mumbles. I open my mouth, wanting to tell him that it’s okay if we go, but he seems to know what I am going to say. Because he wrinkles his nose slightly and subtly shakes his head. He turns to his friends then. “See you guys tomorrow.”

They say goodbye to us. We leave them and once we’re in the car, Baekhyun thumps his head back on his seat.

“Why didn’t you want to join them?” I ask softly as I strap up.

He turns his head to look at me. “It’s a weekday. And I’m tired.”

“No, you’re not,” I accuse, starting up the car.

He tsks. “Okay, I’m not. But aren’t you?”

I keep quiet then. Because I am. It is quite tiring to be around so many people. Any longer with his big group of friends and I might have just shut down. Knowing that I am no longer going to say anything about his decision to sit out the karaoke, he turns away.

“Park my car at your place, I’ll take a cab home,” he tells me.

I drive in silence, biting on my bottom lip. The car is quiet for a long while before I speak up softly, shyly. “Stay over, Baekhyun.”

I hear Baekhyun’s hair scratching against the leather of his headrest as he slowly turns his head to me. I glance at him. He has a surprised but excited look on his face.

“Seriously?” he breathes.

I swallow, my heart thumping in my chest. “Yeah,” I whisper.

“You’re serious about this?” Baekhyun asks again for the fourth time when I enter the room after letting my housemates know that he is staying over.

(Rose and Jennie didn’t seem too pleased about it but when I sort of gave them permission to come in anytime they thought I was in trouble, they grunted and closed the door on me. Joohyun only shrugged.)

“Yes,” I answer patiently, turning off the light.

“But this is the first time you’re sleeping with a guy,” he whispers as I make my way blindly to the bed, as if we have to be soft in the darkness.

“Is this not your first time you’re sleeping with a girl, then?” I ask, a little defensively, my heart thumping at the thought of his response.

“It is,” he mumbles. “It’s just… are you sure?”

I sigh and stop crawling on the bed. I sit on the spot where I am. I can see Baekhyun sitting up as well, no longer leaning against the headboard.

“Do you not want to sleep over?”

“I just don’t want to make you feel uncomfortable,” he says quietly in a small voice.

I stare at him in the dark and suddenly it dawns on me. All the little things that Baekhyun sees about me, they’re so important to him because he doesn’t want me to be uncomfortable. With him. He doesn’t want me to not like him. He just wants me to like him as much as he likes me.

I move and crawl forward. I bravely sit on his lap, making him gasp softly. I’m not the touchy one in this relationship and sitting on his lap like this probably comes as a surprise for him. I wonder if his heart is pounding just like how mine does when he touches me.

“I’m not uncomfortable with you,” I tell him in a gentle voice, wrapping an arm around his neck. “You make me feel safe around you. Sometimes I’m even too comfortable.”

Baekhyun takes his hand out from under the blanket slowly, carefully draping his arm around my waist like he is afraid I might just run away once he does that. “Really?”

“Yes,” I reassure him. “I like being with you. I didn’t ask you to stay over the previous times because I wanted to make sure I’m ready to go to sleep with you. What if I snored and you left me?”

He laughs at that, making me smile too. “I’ll snore too so we won’t have to leave each other.”

I keep the smile on my face, but don’t say anything for a while. When he splays his hand out on my thigh, I whisper, “Baekhyun, this is a big step for me.”

“I know,” he whispers back.

“I’m completely letting you into my life now,” I tell him quietly, my insecurity apparent. “I’m letting you in, Baekhyun. You can’t leave me.”

“Never,” he promises sincerely.

That night, for the first time ever in all 21 years of my life, I don’t sleep with my playlist on. Because Baekhyun’s presence is the only melody my heart will sing to.