7 - It Finally Starts

K. H. Entertainment Building

President’s Office

Baekhyun expected to see Chanyeol at the President’s office, surprisingly, the guy seemed to be late— or so he thought. 

“You’re just on time, have a sit” Heechul smiled at his dear artist Baekhun which the lad had complied right away

“Shouldn’t we wait for Chanyeol?” 

“No, I’ve already talked with him yesterday”

“Am I getting back on track now?” smiling, Baekhyun was hopeful to get back on his usual work routine, but Heechul simply shook his head.

“Unfortunately, this is just the start. A week hasn’t even passed yet and your dear brother’s scandal hasn’t fully settled down yet. Do you really want Kyungsoo’s identity to remain hidden?” 

There was a pause. 

Baekhyun couldn’t give Heechul an answer. 

Yes, he expected a huge backlash from his fanbase. However, this is just too painful for him to handle— and he will be handling all of these by himself.

“I figured you’d be bored without any work, so I asked Chanyeol to bring you to a nice place. You two should get to know each other. You’ll be working together after all”

Baekhyun couldn’t say anything.

He knows his President is doing all of these to help him protect his brother. However, he couldn’t help but feel angry towards his President. Isn’t this too much of a cover up? 

Perhaps, Baekhyun just noticed now, but why does it feel like the President is too invested in this. Like suspiciously invested. 

Don’t get him wrong, Baekhyun is really happy that the President is willing to risk Baekhyun’s years of well-built reputation, just to be torn down. It’s also badly affecting the company. But even for him, the person who asked for the scandal, is regretting his decision a teeny tiny bit. 

But that’s not the case for President Heechul. 

Baekhyun just felt really helpless. It’s a situation he chose to go through, but is half regretting his decision. 

He could feel his tears welling up, but he should hold it in.

He’s Byun Baekhyun, he's tough and he shouldn’t appear weak, especially in front of his President.

He chose to be in this situation. 

“He’ll pick you up around 9:30 in the evening”

The two went on to chat more. It wasn’t like Baekhyun was really interested in it. 

It was already 5 in the afternoon when Baekhyun stepped out of the K.H Entertainment Building. 

He still has a few more hours ‘till Chanyeol will pick him up from his apartment. 

Apparently, him and Chanyeol should go on a date tonight. Talk about things, how they met and all. 

Baekhyun could feel something wasn’t right. Why was the President so invested on this matter? As if his life depended on it? 

Not to toot his own horn but Baekhyun is President Kim’s top earner. He pretty much made the new K.H. Building in Busan, currently the largest K.H Entertainment Building. Why would he willingly throw his top earner under the bus, just to help him conceal Kyungsoo’s identity?

Something wasn’t right. 

Well, suppose President Kim is trying to bury his son’s scandal which could potentially ruin his candidacy? Why would he even use his top earner? Isn’t just too huge of a risk?

Nothing was adding up. 

In One of Legacy Korea’s Shop

“Isn’t that Baekhyun?”

“Poor him”

“What a gold digger”

Baekhyun could hear murmurs around him. It hurt, especially that none of the things they were talking about was real.

He couldn’t even say anything at this point. All he can do is pretend he heard nothing. Walk with chin up, walk with pride, and walk with his head held high. 

Baekhyun was looking for something to wear. He’s already out of his house, better yet make it worthwhile, right?

He’s already out of his boring house and he’ll be having a date later. Real or not, he should look good. If he’s doing it, then he should go all out. 

“The coat fits you really well” the sales lady gave him a slight nod and a smile. 

“You think so? I also like the cloth. It's soft.” Baekhyun smiled back, took the coat off, and checked the brand. 

“Not bad” Baekhyun thought as he continued touching the coat.

“I’ll take this and this scarf” he instructed the sales lady who then went on her way to comply Baekhyun’s request. 

After his quick shopping, Baekhyun went home and prepared himself. He felt better. At least he no longer feels as horrible as before.

He just couldn’t shrug the feeling that something was off with President Kim. Strange as it is, but it somehow felt reassuring. 

Maybe because he can now blame someone other than Kyungsoo or Jongin? He wasn’t really sure. He’s been blaming himself for something he voluntarily did. Knowing that President Kim had an underlying motive made him feel better.

Perhaps, he should dig deeper into this matter? It can be something that he can use in the future. Don’t be mistaken, Baekhyun isn’t the person who will take advantage of someone. But if it’s someone who is taking advantage of him, he won’t feel bad.

So much for that. It was already around 9:20 PM and Baekhyun was ready to go. 

He was wearing a simple white tee and paired it with a jean. He then topped it with a cream colored trench coat and wrapped the scarf around his neck. It should be warm enough.

Not long after, Baekhyun’s doorbell rang. That should be Chanyeol. He opened the door and he was met by a large awkward smile from his date. The guy took a deep breath, pursed his lips, smiled again, raised his brows and said “Are you ready?”

Okay, weird. The last time he checked, this guy was grumpy. As if he was PMSing. Now that the taller is smiling— pretty awkwardly, he certainly looks better. 

Baekhyun would be lying if he says the guy doesn’t take his breath away. 

Chanyeol is effortlessly handsome. For goodness sake, the guy was only wearing a gray sweater with his hair down. He just wasn’t in his best look at the fashion show. The guy’s grumpiness took a toll on his overall vibe.

Today, Chanyeol looks like a whole snack. Baekhyun just finds his awkward smile cute too. To top it all off, Chanyeol was tall. If there’s one thing that makes Baekhyun weak, it’s tall guys. 

“I guess I’m a bit overdressed. Give me a moment. I’ll go change” Baekhyun commented when he saw that Chanyeol was wearing something simpler.

“I heard from President Kim you get cold easily so that’s fine. That should keep you warm all through the night”

Of course Chanyeol recognized his coat right away. It was part of last year’s winter collection. 

“I was anticipating I’ll be warmed by your arms” Baekhyun smiled. He feels better to have someone to talk to. 

Chanyeol on the other hand simply smiled, head shaking and palms covering his face. 

Still, Baekhyun was able to see the guy’s dimple. And darn those dimples just had to be so deep it grabbed Baekhyun’s entire soul. 

“Stop looking so gorgeous. I want your entire attention for the entire night. I wouldn’t want girls to be surrounding you tonight” Baekhyun cupped Chanyeol’s face and walked out of the door. 

“Let’s go” he added 

“Anyway, I love the cloth, it’s super soft and cozy. I just wish you had an orange-y brown hue for this” Baekhyun commented as they headed towards Chanyeol’s car. 

It was a great suggestion. Chanyeol thought he could recycle the design, but make some changes for his holiday collection. 

“I can make you one if you want to,” the taller man replied.

“It’s fine. I like this one too”

“Well, it wouldn’t be bad if you had another color for this right?”

“Of course! Just give me a discount”

“I’ll give it to you for free if you want to”

The ride to the bar went better than Baekhyun expected. 

Everything was going smoothly. Chanyeol wasn’t as bad as he initially thought.

On his defense, Chanyeol wasn’t exactly the gentleman that he is right now, during the Fashion Show. Today, however, he’s kind of redeeming himself.

Pork Bo’s Bar

When they arrived, Baekhyun didn’t notice anyone with a large camera. At least none that he recognizes. Who knows where that little has been hiding. They should be around. After all, Chanyeol’s been doing really well. 

He should give them a good show tonight. After all, between Chanyeol and him, Baekhyun is the artist.

“Don’t go out yet, I’ll open the door” Chanyeol was unbuckling his seatbelt and was about to go out. 

“No need, I can go out by myself, thank you” Baekhyun (and his pride) opened the door and jumped out of Chanyeol’s car.

Now, the thing about Chanyeol’s car is that it’s quite tall. At least on Baekhyun’s point of view. So he had to brace himself when he got off it. 

Of course, getting out of Chanyeol’s car was easy.

“I’m holding your hand alright? If we’re doing this, then at least let’s make it believable” Chanyeol grabbed his hands and started walking.

But of course it won’t be Baekhyun if he won’t trip over nothing. 

Believe it or not, he has a special talent of tripping over nothing. Luckily, Chanyeol was there to catch him. 

As cliche as it is, they were both frozen in shock because first of all, how was Baekhyun able to trip without having to bump into something? How clumsy could he get.

Second of all, why would Chanyeol even catch him?

After a few seconds of frozen frames between the two, Chanyeol asked Baekhyun.

“Are you alright?” Chanyeol asked checking Baekhyun if he was alright.

“I— um, I— yes. Yep, I’m alright” he replied, stuttering because, wow, Chanyeol has big eyes. Not in a bad way, okay? Chanyeol had big charming eyes. If he will be able to sleep tonight., without a doubt, he will be dreaming of those large round charming eyes. 

“Great, so, let’s get in?”

“Yeah. Yeah sure”

Baekhyun looked around. He feels as if he’s being followed— which in this case, is a great news. That means they caught him and Chanyeol ogling at each other’s eyes. That will be at least romantic. 

Would their date be at least romantic?