Baekhyun woke up to a light click of the door. The room was dark but he could still see the silhouette of his roommate. He watched as Chanyeol tiptoed towards the bathroom trying to be as silent as possible. However, before he could reach his destination, his toe had been stubbed by the corner of the table. The tall man withered down until he was a big lump. “Ah….ow…...ow….ow” Baekhyun heard some more whispers of pain. The giant continued to walk towards the bathroom and closed the door. Baekhyun stared at the bathroom door until sleep overtook his body and he once again fell into a deep slumber.

Morning came and Chanyeol was the first one up. He peered at his phone and realized it was only six so he decided to take his time. He rolled over and climbed out of his bed. Ruffling his hair, he looked over at the other bed where a still sleeping Baekhyun was. The bed sheets have been wrinkled and only his stomach was covered. Geez, how much does he move in his sleep? Chanyeol leaned over and grabbed the rest of the blankets off the floor and retucked Baekhyun back into bed. He washed up and was beginning to change his clothes when Baekhyun’s bed began to move. He looked over and saw two arms stretching upwards while the legs had begun to spread apart. Soon, a very messy haired Baekhyun revealed his face and let out a slight yawn. He blinked. Then he blinked again. After the third blink Baekhyun had started noticing Chanyeol. The taller had already stripped himself of his shirt and was starting on taking off his sweatpants. “Good morning. It’s still early so you can go back to bed. It’s a Saturday too so no need to go to class.” Chanyeol said while looking for his shirt. Baekhyun quickly looked away and decided to also get up. Before going into the bathroom, he turned back to Chanyeol. “Hey, I uh…...want to thank everyone for uh…….everything that happened last night. Could you maybe ask them if they all want to hangout today? My treat.” Chanyeol quickly agreed and sent out a mass text message about the day’s plan while Baekhyun got dressed.

All twelve met up in front of the school. They had decided to make their first trip to the mall after they grabbed some breakfast. the mall was walking distance to the school and opened quite early on the weekends. Tao and Kris both headed towards a clothing store and so the rest just followed. Soon, all the members were roaming the lines of clothes and trying on different outfits.

“ This might match the pair of shoes I bought last week!”

“I think this might be a little too mature for me.”

“Do you think this might look good on me?” The boys had each picked out clothes that satisfied them. Before anyone could pay however, Baekhyun had already notified the store that all payments will be on his card. Some members complained while others quickly grabbed some more items.

“How do you have the money for this?” Kris asked while handing over his clothes to the cashier. “This is my parents money. They have their own business so I don't think they'll care if I carelessly spend some money on friends.” Kris looked at Baekhyun for a few seconds and gave his shoulder a slight squeeze, “ just…..don't over do it.” Baekhyun nodded and proceeded to pay for everything. The day carried on with every arm being occupied by at least three shopping bags. They decided to have a quick break at a cafe. They stumbled into their booths and ordered some refreshments. “So I’ve been wondering…...who here is gay?” Chanyeol said while slowly sipping on his coffee. Baekhyun sat up a little straighter. “Chanyeol please. I’m pretty sure you already know who..” Kai said leaning on Kyungsoo. “I know that you two are but I’m not exactly sure about the others.” “Well me and Lay are gay too.” Junmyeon said nonchalantly. “Yeah, me and hyung just found out yesterday. He was drunk because he was celebrating too hard. Junmyeon can barely remember what happened.” Lay said with a cute dimple smile. “I thought you guys were..” Kris said with an unsure tone while pointing to the both of them. Lay smiled even brighter. “Don’t worry, we’ll get there.” “Get where?” “Nowhere, just focus on your drink, hyung.” Lay reassured Junmyeon with a pat on the thigh. Lay turned towards Chanyeol. “What about you, Chanyeol? Are you straight?” Chanyeol thought about it for a few seconds. “I actually don’t know. I thought I was straight but now I’m not so sure…” Kai and Sehun laughed. “What the hyung! Why are you having an existential crisis so young!?” Tao hollered.

Baekhyun was surprised at how well they took their uality. At his old school, getting ridiculed for liking the same gender was absolute. He watched as the others continued to pick fun at Chanyeol’s mental state. “Tell me Kyungsoo. How did you know you were gay?” Chanyeol said with all seriousness. Kyungsoo shrugged. “You just sort of realize. You know, the person you like has a fine but they also have a . And yet, you don’t mind.” Kai rested his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder. “He loves both of them.” Kyungsoo lightly slapped his thigh. “Ew gross, o details please!” Chen said while using his hands to cover up his eyes. And ears. Kai snuggled even closer and gave Kyungsoo a quick peck on the cheek. Everyone cheered while Chen still had his eyes covered. “How about Baekhyun? Got any men in your sight?” Luhan asked. Baekhyun decided not to hide anymore. What was he afraid of? Almost half the team already confessed. “I’m bi. So my attraction could be to anybody!” He added while throwing an awkward smile. “That’s cool. Found anyone you like yet?” Sehun said while finishing his drink and getting up to get another. “Um well yeah, actually I did but I’ve decided to rule it as unrequited love.” Sehun gave him a confused look. “Why? It can’t be Aisha can it?” He said with no ill intent. But as soon as he heard her name, his whole body stiffened. Sehun’s eyes turned wide. “No ing way. Dude. bad idea.” By this time, Sehun had forgotten to get his drink and instead slid into the seat next to Baekhyun. “She looks nice and soft but as soon as you get too close to her, she starts toying with you. And then you’ll break!” He said loudly into Baekhyun’s face. “Oh, wow, um okay. I get it.” Baekhyun said. Sehun nodded and proceeded to buy his other drink. Chanyeol noticed that Baekhyun’s phone was lighting up. “Hey, Baek your phone.” He said softly. Baekhyun looked down and a grim face appeared when he saw the caller’s name. “I’ll be right back.”

Chanyeol watched as Baekhyun was talking on the phone. The guy looked tired talking. He stared at his roommates back until Kai’s shouts and nudges were getting annoying. “Dude, chill I can hear you just fine!” Chanyeol said while dodging Kai’s swift fist. “Well I would like it if you responded to my question.” Chanyeol now focused his gaze on Kai. “What question?” Kai huffed. “See, you weren’t listening, you . I was asking when you had created a nickname for Baekhyun.” Chanyeol mulled over the question and shrugged. “It just felt  natural to call him Baek. It might have been around the time our performance ended. I can’t remember.” Kai stared at Chanyeol. “Hyung, is Baekhyun the reason why you don’t think you’re straight anymore?” Chanyeol’s eyes widened. “WHAT?! NO! I...I DON’T, I CAN’T, ….” everyone stared as Chanyeol was having a mental meltdown. “I…...don’t know…” He finally said and leaned back in his chair. His gaze returned to Baekhyun’s back and he watched as the little guy seemed to be angry and hung up on the person. He continued watching as Baekhyun opened the door to the cafe and approached their table. “Sorry that took awhile. I had some business to attend to..” He said as he gently threw his phone on the table and grabbed his drink. “Great timing Baekhyun! I think Chanyeol has something to tell you.” Kai said. The shocked Chanyeol choked on his drink. Kai gave a few hard pats to calm his friend down and also signaling for him to man up. “Um No actuuuuuaallly” Chanyeol said while smacking Kai’s hand away. “I was wondering when we were going shopping again, cause Tao looks like he’s about to pounce at the shop next door.” Tao was already judging the clothes on display. Baekhyun laughed and agreed that the break was now over. Everyone got out of their seats and started to hold their bags of merchandise. Before anyone could make it out the door, a man wearing a dress shirt and pants opened the door and began taking the bags from them. “Wha- hey, that’s mine!” Tao said He was about to kick the guy down there when the finely dressed man nodded. “Sir, I will assist your friends with their bags. I hope you have a nice day and please be back before curfew.” Everyone was confused. Sir? Did he just say sir to a bunch of teenagers? They looked around at each other trying to find who was the so called ‘sir’. Chanyeol looked down at Baekhyun and the guy just slowly nodded back. The gentleman quietly gathered all the bags he could take and put them in a car. Two more guys exited the car and relieved the members of their bags. After everyone’s bags were safely tucked into the car, the three men bowed and drove away. “Was….was I just respected?” Chen asked with confusion. “No you arse, I think he bowed to Baekhyun.” Chanyeol said. Now everyone turned to Baekhyun. “What exactly does your family do?” Baekhyun’s gaze went anywhere but near the team. “Like I said, business stuff.” Chanyeol felt the tension build and was about to cut in when a very excited Tao started pushing everyone toward the clothing store. “I don’t ing care what your parents do unless they hinder my plans to buy that new jacket I see in that window.” He barked. Baekhyun gave a sigh of relief as everyone continued to walk to the store. Chanyeol couldn’t help but notice how tired he looked.

Chanyeol slammed open the door and immediately jogged towards his bed. “Oh mi amor, I have missed you so much.” Chanyeol said as he hugged his pillow and blanket. Baekhyun stumbled in behind him and also plopped down on his bed with a sigh. “Remind me to put restrains on Tao the next time we bring him anywhere. How does he get lost in a clothing store?” Chanyeol started stretching on his bed. “Well it’s Tao, what do you expect?” The giant continued stretching until a sharp pain was felt on his back. “AHH! OW, ing hell. My back…..back…..ow….” Baekhyun looked over at a struggling Chanyeol. “Relax Yeol, you just strained your back a little, geez.” Baekhyun walked over to his bed and started rubbing his back. Chanyeol eased under his touch and was soon starting to doze off. He felt Baekhyun’s weight disappear from the mattress and soon the warmth he was enjoying was gone. He heard the door crack open. “Baek? I like the name Yeol…..sounds nice….really reeaaaallly nii-” Chanyeol didn’t get to finish his sentence as his eyelids shut. Baekhyun shuffled towards the cafeteria and bought drinks for both him and Chanyeol. He was about to leave the room when someone called his name. He turned around to see who it was but the person didn’t seem familiar. “Byun Baekhyun! I found you, finally!” a dark haired boy said while jogging over. Baekhyun stood there as the guy tried to catch his breath. “Did you need something from me?” Baekhyun asked softly. The guy shook his head. “Nah, just wanted to make sure that didn’t do anything to you yet. Glad you still have that cute face of yours. Names Scott. I wanted to let you know to be careful.” He gave a flirtatious smile and then walked off. Baekhyun was stunned. After a few blinks, he continued walking towards the dorms.

He now understood. Just because he goes to a new school doesn’t mean people will treat him any different. He wanted to slap himself. Why did he ever think he could live happily. He closed the door to his dorm and placed both drinks on the table. He sighed and decided to take a shower. He cursed at himself and angrily took off his shirt and pants. Why did he hope for anything? Just because he has friends now won’t change the fact that people still dislike him. What an idiot he was…..

That night Baekhyun spent thirty minutes standing in the shower crying silent tears. He promised to himself that he wouldn’t show his tears to anyone. Not even Chanyeol.

Chanyeol opened his eyes to the sounds of water hitting the shower walls. He slowly forced himself to sit up and noticed the drinks set on the table. Assuming one of them was for him he grabbed juice and began drinking it. He looked over at his desk which was piled with bags full of clothes, a new hat, some shoes, and a laptop. He must have spent three whole months of his allowance. He stared at the pile for a while longer and wondered why Baekhyun seemed so drained today. Maybe the guys bought more than he expected and now he is in debt. He shook his head. Someone who has adults calling them sir definitely have no financial problems. He was going to lay down on his bed to continue his nap when a small letter slid through the bottom of the door. He picked it up and noticed how cute and pink it was. Definitely a love confession he thought. For Baekhyunnie!! It read on the front. Chanyeol glanced at the bathroom door where the shower sounds were still going. It couldn’t hurt to look, right? He carefully teared the letter to reveal a crisp white paper folded into a heart. He was gagging from the girliness. He opened up the paper and began to read the confession of lo-

Chanyeol’s eyes widened at every word. The handwriting was clean cut but the vulgar language depicted hell and torture. He grimaced at the details and threats until he couldn’t stand to read the rest. What kind of ty confession was this? He was about to toss the letter when Baekhyun walked out of the bathroom. He immediately hid the note and gave the most awkward smile. “Oh hey, you’re out! Um...how was ..the shower?” Chanyeol said with nerd level awkward. Baekhyun gave a hard look at Chanyeol and noticed the white piece of paper behind his back. He sighed. Of course. “Chanyeol, hand me the letter.” He said while stretching out his hand. Chanyeol laughed. “Oh.. th- this? This is for me. You know how I am. Handsome, popular me!” Chanyeol said trying to divert his attention. But before Chanyeol could walk away Baekhyun’s arms reached over and grabbed the note. “And I’m guessing people call you Baekhyunnie.” He said in a monotone voice. Chanyeol panicked. He didn’t want him to read the disgusting words on that lo- hate letter. He watched Baekhyun’s face in horror. He never seen Baekhyun have a look of disgust. Chanyeol braced himself but the facial expression never came. The guy read the letter, walked over to the trash can, and dropped it in. “Can you forget you saw that?” Chanyeol nodded and Baekhyun continued to get dressed. Chanyeol rolled over on his bed and realized something drastic. Baekhyun was tougher than he looked. Baekhyun realized something too. He won’t let anyone break him. No one.