*We got that power, power*

Chanyeol stopped the ringing alarm tiredly, fighting the urge to go back and sleep. He rubbed the sleep that accumulated in his eyes overnight and forced himself up. It was the same old routine: riding a bicycle to school, but this time around, he arrived at school early unlike yesterday which he was late for close to 30 minutes. 

Upon reaching his classroom, he sauntered to his seat leisurely and cracked some jokes with his classmates since Minseok hadn’t arrived. After a series of 'good morning', Chanyeol sieved out his smartphone and began to browse funny videos on the web. 

In the midst of watching a video of goose eating , a text message slid down the screen. Chanyeol stopped his hysterical laughter and hissed. After tapping a pause on the screen, he exited the web and opened the ‘messages’ application. 
 
Unrecognised number: Can I sit beside you?
Me: Who are you???
Unrecognised number: Baek.
Me: How did you get my number?
*Baek: I have my way of doing things.
Me: Are you a stalker?
*Baek: Faster reply.
Me: Are you crazy? Why do you want to come to my class?
*Baek: We are in the same class.
Me: Really?
 
The door then slid open which caused Chanyeol to look up from his phone. It was Baekhyun—wearing a mahogany red jacket on top of his uniform. Chanyeol looked around the classroom and apparently, no one was paying any attention to the introvert’s presence. 

Surprised to even see Baekhyun in his class, Chanyeol stretched his arms and tapped the shoulder of the student sitting right in front of me. “Is Baekhyun even supposed to be in this class?” 

The student stared wide-eyed. “Don’t tell me you have never seen Baekhyun in class? Oh my god, Chanyeol, are you daydreaming or what?”

It was the truth. Baekhyun was studying in the same class, but why had Chanyeol not realised this before? The introvert then dragged the empty chair and plopped beside Chanyeol. This action caused the entire class to look into their direction for two reasons.

One: Byun Baekhyun—being a smarty pants—usually sat at the front of the classroom, where he could pay attention to the teacher and take notes. He hardly asked questions during class but would arrange a one-to-one session with the teacher when in doubt. On the other end of the spectrum, there were people like Park Chanyeol—stupid with a pea-sized brain—sitting at the back of the class where it would be difficult for teachers to spot him dozing off. 

Why is Baekhyun sitting at the back? And beside Chanyeol, no less!

Two: Anyone could tell that Chanyeol’s best buddy was Minseok. They are always together. In class, in the soccer field, in the canteen—anywhere you name it, they would be together—just like the north and south poles of a magnet. Damn, Baekhyun has the balls even to take Minseok’s spot. He is so brave. I wonder where Minseok will sit after his is being snatched?

Unknowingly, Chanyeol began to fidget in his seat. He touched his thighs and drew circles on them. He didn’t even manage to make eye contact too. The thought of yesterday’s events rushed back to him. It made him feel even more nervous and awkward. The butterflies in his stomach soon doubled as everyone continued to stare at their direction.

Luckily, Baekhyun decided to break the ice. “Chanyeol, do you mind if I sit here today?” 

The said male almost vomit because Baekhyun’s voice was soft. It was unlike yesterday when he displayed his arrogance when talking. Chanyeol took a few seconds to consider, before replying hesitantly. “Aren’t you already sitting here?” Instantaneously, Chanyeol received a death glare from the introvert. He looked at him with pointy eyes, just like an eagle ready to devour its prey. “Um, yeah, you can sit beside me, ha ha ha…,” Chanyeol continued.

The introvert then took his smartphone out of his pocket and began touching the screen. Chanyeol had no idea what he was doing then, but all of a sudden, his smartphone vibrated once more. It was a text message from Baekhyun, which read: “Don’t worry, Minseok will not be coming to school today.” 

“How did you know?” Chanyeol blurted out of the blue which caused the class to look at them once more. The introvert looked up from his screen and gave a judgemental gaze, before punching his keyboard angrily once more. It read: “I have my way of doing things. And, are you stupid? Why are you saying out loud?”

“Why are you sad antsy this morning?” Chanyeol sent a text, but Baekhyun was not paying attention. He began to unpack his learning materials and place them on the table.

 
That day’s lecture was only three hours which went without hiccups. Chanyeol and Baekhyun seldom talked to one another. The two of them also share opposite learning habits. Baekhyun was more of an industrious type, taking down important notes and even snap photographs of the board. Chanyeol on the other hand was just there with the ‘what-am-I-doing-here’ expression. He was not even paying attention and just there contemplating the meaning of life.

When the lesson ended, Chanyeol muttered to himself, “Perhaps that’s why Xiumin is not coming because today’s lesson seems insignificant. It was so boring and pointless to learn about statistics. I mean, I don’t even think I will use the Independent Samples ANOVA test anytime in my life.” 

Baekhyun quickly packed his notebook and writing materials but was interrupted by Chanyeol. “Baekhyun, are you ignoring me?” 

The introvert stopped what he was doing, and stared at the latter. “Oh... you're talking to me?" Chanyeol furrowed his eyebrows, unsure whether was it an insult or was he genuinely clueless. The introvert then continued, "Don’t mind me, I’m leaving now.”

Mouth agape, Chanyeol said, “So early? Now, it’s only 12:00.” Baekhyun never replied and continued to pack. This time around, he was indeed ignoring Chanyeol. The tall guy then stood up and put an arm around Baekhyun’s shoulder. “Let’s eat, I shall treat you to lunch.” 

Baekhyun gave the ‘stop-pretending-to-be-nice’ kind of look and stared at him with daggering eyes. Chanyeol gave a sheepish smile and bent his body so as to whisper to Baekhyun’s small ear. “Come on, don’t be like that… I will take this time to know more about you, Byun Baekhyun, so that I can become a better… boyfriend.”

Chanyeol cringed at his comment, but it was true! He wanted to know more about the introvert so that he could continue getting paid for heeding his orders. Perhaps it was Chanyeol’s imagination, but Baekhyun seemed to blush when the word ‘boyfriend’ was addressed to him. 

No one heard their mini conversation but the class was in an uproar when Chanyeol placed an arm over Baekhyun’s shoulder. The introvert wanted to curse then and there, but he realised that there were too many eyes watching. Defeated, he agreed to the absurd request and took a bus ride with Chanyeol, which mind you, was his first time taking a bus. 

Around half an hour later, the duo arrived at a food court which was Chanyeol’s recommendation as the price of food was affordable, yet tasty. The two of them ordered similar dishes—a chicken cutlet meal with fries and a can of Pepsi. Chanyeol was the one who paid for both meals, as he wanted to thank him for that $200 yesterday. 

The food court was unexpectedly quiet as well. There were not many customers dining which meant that there were lots of empty seats. Moreover, the area was spotless—no trace of rubbish on other tables—and as a bonus, there was even relaxing music playing in the background.

“Why don’t you talk much in class?” Chanyeol asked. What great timing! Baekhyun was in the midst of gobbling down his food, which caused Chanyeol to chuckle. “Eat slowly… It’s okay…,” Chanyeol said. Honestly, Baekhyun looked cute holding the chopsticks, and the way his mouth moved while munching the food was adorable too. Furthermore, when Baekhyun opened his mouth when the food was hot, he had this habit of letting out some groaning noise. 

Baekhyun replied later after finishing his mouthful of food. “It’s just my personality.” He later recited a quote he read from the internet a few days ago, in a cool manner. “When you talk, you are only repeating what you already know, but when you listen, you may learn something new.” 

Chanyeol just sat there, nodding as if he knew what he was talking, but in reality, he was mind ed. Well, Chanyeol was actually too dumb to begin with, unlike Baekhyun who could be named as valedictorian. 

“But, you are too quiet in class,” Chanyeol persisted. “I didn't even realise that you are in my class until this morning.” 

“That's because you are playing with that Minseok and not pay a single attention to your surroundings!” Baekhyun replied. He then pierced a fried potato with his fork and put it into his mouth.

“What has Minseok got to do with this? Don’t tell me you are jealous?”

“I am not—”

“Wow, isn’t this Baekhyun?” A familiar voice echoed from behind. Chanyeol turned his head and saw a male who he vaguely recognised, sauntering towards them. He was dressed in a bright red bomber jacket and ripped denim jeans. “What the is he doing here,” Chanyeol and Baekhyun share similar thoughts.