Kyungsoo sat in front of the washing machine. He watched as his clothes twirled inside of it. He had been spending his days looking over that contract and seeing if there were any loopholes in it, but so far, he had been having no luck. They had already sent a copy of it to Junmyeon’s lawyer and Junmyeon had told them that they should trust him. But, he wanted to help in any way that he could. He remembers he had told Yunhyeong about it and the latter had been furious. “You can’t let her get away with this!” He had yelled as he pounded on the dough. Kyungsoo sighed, “We’re not, we just need a good defense in court.”

Kyungsoo threw his head down. He hoped that Junmyeon’s lawyer was good and that he could help them, he was afraid to lose and get his hope shattered once again.

“Kyungsoo?”

Kyungsoo looked up at the voice, Jongdae was standing with a basket of laundry in his hands. “Washing clothes?” The latter gave him a Cheshire cat smile as he placed his basket on top of a counter.

Kyungsoo smiled, “Yeah, it’s my day off and they been piling up.”

Jongdae chuckled as he opened the washing machine, “Yeah, same here.”

The elder placed his clothes in the washing machine, then the soap. He quickly shut it and it whirred to life as it began to wash.

Jongdae looked over at him, “Mind if I sit next to you?”

Kyungsoo shook his head, “Go ahead.”

Jongdae sat down, smile never leaving his face. “I actually been meaning to talk to you, but you and Minseok are never home.”

Kyungsoo and Minseok had been staying more hours in the coffee shop, they realized that it helped take their minds off of what recently happened. They had also been trying to hang out more with each other. It was better than being home sulking over what had happened, at home they spent a lot of time looking over the contract.

“Yeah, Minseok and I have been busy lately.” Kyungsoo replied.

Jongdae nodded, “I figured. Um…hey…I heard about what happened. With the coffee shop.”

Kyungsoo cleared his throat and looked ahead, “Yeah, it was a disappointment.”

“Yeah, I could imagine. I hope everything works out.” He gave him a gentle nudge, Kyungsoo looked at him. Jongdae was smiling, “You got this.”

Kyungsoo smiled back at him. He doesn’t know when he got this close with Jongdae, but he felt much more comfortable around him. So much so, that he would consider him a friend.

You kind of have to, he’s your love interest’s best friend.

Kyungsoo shook the thought away immediately, now was not the time to be thinking such weird things.

“Kyungsoo, I know you’re probably really stressed and I hope I could help you out with that.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, my company has decided to give me a vacation for a week. It’s an all paid trip to Los Angeles. I can bring friends along and I realized that you and Minseok are probably really stressed so I want you guys to come along.”

Kyungsoo’s eyes widened. He couldn’t believe that Jongdae was this kind. He wanted to help them out when they needed it the most. He didn’t know what to say.

“You don’t have to, I’m just inviting—“

Poor Jongdae read his expression wrong, “No, no! I’m honestly so grateful. Yes! I would be honored! Thank you so much Jongdae!” Kyungsoo knew he needed this more than anything. He needed to escape for a little bit and clear his head.

“Great! You think Minseok would want to come?”

Kyungsoo’s smile grew wider, “Of course! This means a lot, thank you so much.”

“That’s great! It’s in about a month. I’ll tell you guys the specific date soon, deal?”

Kyungsoo nodded, “Deal.” Kyungsoo suddenly felt excited. He had never been to Los Angeles, is it warmer? Is it true that people are more accepting over there? How would he have to talk? He would definetly need to work on his English a bit. Suddenly, Baekhyun appeared in his mind. He hadn’t seen the elder since the “kiss” incident and although he got embarrassed thinking about it, he had it in the back of his mind a lot of the time. He imagined Baekhyun with a snapback and suitcase as they got off the plane together.

“Hey, is Baekhyun going too?” Kyungsoo asked.

Jongdae’s smile grew a bit smaller, he let out a small laugh. “Kyungsoo, we need to talk about Baekhyun.” He looked ahead and rubbed his forehead, as if he was trying to concentrate on something.

Kyungsoo got slightly defensive, what was he about to say about Baekhyun? Maybe he shouldn’t have asked about him to begin with.

“Look Kyungsoo, you’re a great guy, but you need to…um…” His smile faded as his lips became a straight line. He suddenly looked around the laundromat. Kyungsoo picked up on the change in attitude.

“You need to back off a little.” Jongdae finally said.

Kyungsoo furrowed his brows, what the was he talking about?

“I don’t want to come off as rude, but Baekhyun is my best friend. If he gets hurt, I won’t hesitate to hurt you back.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Baekhyun needs time to himself, he needs to focus on himself.”

Kyungsoo twisted his mouth to the side, “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Jongdae chuckled and shook his head, “You can play dumb all you want, it’s pretty obvious what’s going on.” He stood up and took his clothes out of the washing machine, “I don’t want this to be awkward.” He proceeded to smile at him, “I just wanted to let you know.”

Kyungsoo looked down at the ground, unsure of what to say. He didn’t understand where Jongdae was coming from or why he thought he had a say in any of this. All he knew is that he wasn’t going to let Jongdae tell him what to do. He liked Baekhyun and no one was going to tell him otherwise. Especially now that he knew Baekhyun may actually return his feelings, he hadn’t forgotten their almost kiss. A thought infiltrated his mind, Jongdae likes Baekhyun. His eyes widened, Baekhyun had said that they were just friends, but Jongdae...

Kyungsoo looked up at him to see he was folding clothes, “I think the washing machine you were using is done.” Jongdae told him. He looked so calm as he stood there. Was it possible that Kyungsoo was right? Maybe Jongdae had always liked Baekhyun and now suddenly a new guy comes along and is trying to take him away. It didn’t seem very farfetched, if anything, it seemed plausible.

Kyungsoo stood up, smiling at him. “Thanks.” He took his clothes out and put them in the dryer. He then stood next to who he believed may be his rival.

***

Kyungsoo arrived from the laundromat sometime in the evening. He saw Minseok was cooking something in the kitchen. The latter had gone to hang out with that Chinese friend of his again. Kyungsoo had a hunch they were probably dating, but he didn’t want to pry. It did surprise him though that Minseok hadn’t really mentioned this girl much. He usually told Kyungsoo about his crushes, but he seemed to be secretive about this one, not that Kyungsoo minded. It’s just something he had taken note of. Instead of interrupting Minseok, he went into his room to put away his clean clothes.

He had more important things to think about, like the fact that Jongdae liked Baekhyun. It was a one sided thing, Kyungsoo was sure of it. Baekhyun didn’t like Jongdae in that way. But would he ever be able to have something with Baekhyun if Jongdae felt that way? Baekhyun cared very much for Jongdae, would he be willing to hurt him to be with Kyungsoo?

Kyungsoo sighed as these thoughts clouded his mind. This is why he wanted to wait until he had his café to focus on his love life, but it seemed like fate didn’t get the memo. He shut his drawer as he placed the last of his clothes in and stood up. He headed towards the kitchen, maybe Minseok could help get his mind off of things. He walked in and sat at the table, “Hey.” He greeted the elder.

Minseok looked over at him and smiled before stirring whatever he had in the pan. “Hey!”

“What time did you get home?” Kyungsoo asked.

“Not long ago actually, but I came home hungry.” He turned off the stove. “Come and get it.” He said as he got bowls from the cupboard.

“What’d you make?” Kyungsoo asked as he walked towards it.

Minseok shrugged, “I just threw some stuff together in with rice.”

Kyungsoo looked over his shoulder to find white rice mixed with bacon and seafood. It looked appetizing and smelled good. “Just got leftovers and mixed them in?”

Minseok giggled as he served himself, “Basically.”

They both sat down together to eat at the table. Minseok quickly began to eat what he had made, taking big spoon fulls instead of using chopsticks. Kyungsoo enjoyed eating with Minseok, the elder had a way to make food look more appetizing.

“You went to wash today?” Minseok asked.

Kyungsoo nodded as he chewed.

“Ah. I should have went with you.”

Kyungsoo chuckled, “You were busy, I get it.” He teased.

Minseok rolled his eyes in a playful manner, “Maybe I should have asked you to wash my clothes instead.”

Kyungsoo shrugged, “You should have, but you were occupied with other friends huh?” Kyungsoo quirked his eyebrow up, clearly teasing him. Minseok merely laughed.

“Oh! I saw Jongdae there too.” Kyungsoo added.

“Jongdae?”

“Yeah, did you tell him about the coffee shop thing?”

Minseok shook his head. “I only told Junmyeon.”

That meant that Baekhyun must have told him. The thought of having Baekhyun talking about him to others made his lips want to quirk upwards.

“Why?” Minseok asked, sensing that Kyungsoo was pondering something.

“Err…he knew about it and invited us to go with him on a trip to Los Angeles to help us deal with stress over losing the coffee shop.”

Minseok’s eyes widened and he swallowed the bite he had just taken. “Los Angeles?!”

Kyungsoo nodded, “He said his work is paying for it.”

“An all-expense paid trip to Los Angeles? And he is inviting us?”

Kyungsoo could hear the disbelief in Minseok’s voice. It’s not every day one gets invited to travel and have everything paid for.

Kyungsoo nodded, “Yeah, I was a bit taken aback too. But it would be nice to go, don’t you think?”

Minseok smiled wide as he nodded vigorously, “Yes! It would be amazing. Who else would be going?”

“Um…well Jongdae, you, me and uh…” Kyungsoo’s voice trailed off as Baekhyun entered his mind again. He was certain that he would be going, yet with Jongdae’s reaction at the laundromat, he isn’t sure if he wants to be around Baekhyun if Jongdae is going to be there.

“And…Baekhyun?” Minseok finished his sentence for him.

“Yeah, probably.” Kyungsoo responded.

“Kyungsoo, is everything okay?”

Kyungsoo nodded, “Yeah, why?”

“You’re doing that thing where you try and keep a straight face. What’s up?”

Kyungsoo twisted his mouth to the side. It’s not that he didn’t trust Minseok, on the contrary, he trusts Minseok with his life. But he didn’t know where to begin. How could he tell Minseok what was troubling him when he doesn’t know where to start?

“Well…there is something bugging me.”

Minseok sat still and stared intently at Kyungsoo. He waited until Kyungsoo spoke, never rushing him.

Kyungsoo sighed, “Jongdae acted weird today when I saw him.”

“Weird how?” Minseok asked softly.

“Well…I think Jongdae likes Baekhyun.”

Minseok let out a light scoff. “Kyungsoo I promise you, Jongdae doesn’t like Baekhyun.”

Kyungsoo looked up from his bowl to look at Minseok. “Then why would he tell me to back off of Baekhyun?”

Minseok’s smile faltered, “He…told you to avoid Baekhyun?”

Kyungsoo nodded and took some rice in his mouth.

“Ah…Kyungsoo…do you like Baekhyun?”

Kyungsoo swallowed down hard and didn’t look back up. He doesn’t understand why he was so hesitant of letting Minseok know, maybe it was because he was scared of rejection. Which is already silly because Minseok would support him, but a piece of him was still scared.

“Hey, Kyungsoo.” Minseok called out to him gently.

Kyungsoo took in an inhale and his eyes looked up slowly. Minseok was giving him a small smile, “I been keeping a secret too.”

“You have?”

Minseok nodded, “I was scared to tell you because I was scared you would think of me differently or something.”

“You can tell me anything, you know that.”

“And you can tell me anything too.” Minseok shot back.

Kyungsoo gulped, he felt like such a hypocrite.

“I’ll go first, okay?”

Kyungsoo nodded and listened.

Minseok sighed and shut his eyes, but opened them again. “Well…you remember that Chinese girl I been seeing?”

Kyungsoo nodded, “Yeah.”

“Well…Kyungsoo there was never a Chinese girl.”

Kyungsoo tilted his head a bit to the side. “What do you mean?”

“I been seeing a guy this whole time.”

Kyungsoo’s eyes widened but he quickly went back to his poker face.

Minseok smiled, “You actually met him.”

“I did?”

Minseok nodded, “Yes, at my graduation.”

The image of the guy who had come running to hug Minseok appeared in Kyungsoo’s mind. He suddenly began piecing everything together and felt so stupid to think he didn’t realize it sooner. All of this time he assumed Minseok was seeing a girl. He never even thought to ask.

“Luhan.” Minseok said.

Kyungsoo looked at him. “Luhan? Yeah, I remember.”

Minseok smiled, then looked down. “I wanted to tell you. I wanted you to meet him too, but I was just—“

“Scared of rejection.” Kyungsoo interjected.

Minseok looked up at him, “Yeah.”

Kyungsoo nodded slowly, he knew the feeling. “Yeah, I um…can relate.”

Minseok’s eyes widened, then his smile got bigger. “You…love Baekhyun. Don’t you?”

Kyungsoo cleared his throat as his eyes darted to the side. He felt the blush beginning to creep up, “Yeah.”

Minseok practically squealed in his seat. “I knew it! It was obvious but I wasn’t sure.”

Kyungsoo laughed.

“You’re perfect for Baekhyun!”

Kyungsoo placed his hand on his forehead and began to rub his temple, “Your rice came out really good.”

Minseok shook his head, “No! You aren’t changing the subject! Honestly…I think Baekhyun likes you back.”

Kyungsoo scoffed.

“No seriously!”

Kyungsoo shook his head. “It doesn’t matter. If Jongdae likes Baekhyun, then I doubt I have a chance.”

Minseok rolled his eyes, “I told you! Jongdae does not like Baekhyun.”

Kyungsoo shook his head, “Then why else would Jongdae tell me to back off? He sounded like a possessive boyfriend.” Kyungsoo rested his chin on his hand and he saw Minseok furrow his brows.

“Kyungsoo, don’t be so quick to judge.”

Kyungsoo scoffed again, “I’m simply stating facts.”

Minseok sighed, “You need to see it from Jongdae’s point of view. Baekhyun was in bad company when I met him.”

Kyungsoo rolled his eyes. Minseok saying that didn’t help him understand where Jongdae was coming from at all. If anything, it raised more questions about what exactly Baekhyun was hiding. “What does that even mean?” He asked, his annoyance was evident.

Minseok brows furrowed even more.

“Fine! You want to know why Jongdae acts like that?”

Kyungsoo slammed both hands on the table. “Yes! That’s exactly what I want!”

Minseok sighed, “Baekhyun…” Minseok hesitated, “used to date someone that treated him awful.”

Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow, “Awful? How so?”

Minseok sighed and shut his eyes. “He used to beat him.”

Kyungsoo eyes began to widen, then he began to feel his blood boil. How dare someone hurt Baekhyun?

“When I met Baek, he would constantly be checking his phone, constantly excuse himself to pick it up.” Minseok looked up at the ceiling. “Looking back, I realize the warning signs. He would always wear long sleeves and scarves.”

Kyungsoo was facing the ground, jaw clenched and fists tightened. He can’t imagine Baekhyun getting hurt, the screams he must have let out when he was getting hit.

“I’m not sure how long he stayed with him, but ever since the breakup he didn’t let anyone in. He was nervous around everyone. According to Jongdae, he would have recurring nightmares where he woke up screaming. Baekhyun only feels himself when Jongdae is around, he doesn’t like being alone with anyone else.” Minseok looked directly at Kyungsoo, the latter looked up as well, eyes as hard as steel. “And then you come along and tell me that Baekhyun is alright with being alone with you.”

Kyungsoo scoffed as he shook his head, trying to control his anger. “I understand why you always gave me that weird stare now.”

Minseok gave a light chuckle. “I was surprised when you told me he wanted to go places with you…just you! He didn’t mind that Jongdae wasn’t around.”

Kyungsoo shook his head. Everything made sense now, he could see why Jongdae would be protective of him. Baekhyun was very vulnerable right now, he understood why Jongdae would be weary of Baekhyun suddenly jumping into another relationship. But, Kyungsoo wouldn’t rush anything. If Baekhyun wanted to take things slow, then that’s what he would do. He doesn’t even know if Baekhyun would want to be with him.

Kyungsoo twisted his mouth to the side, “But, you said that he’s been alone with you once. That means he trusts you too, right?”

Minseok blinked, “Um…well kind of I guess.”

“Kind of?”

“Well, we were alone together because we had to be. Not because Baekhyun wanted to.”

Kyungsoo raised an eyebrow, “What does that mean?”

“Um…Kyungsoo you’re already irritated. I don’t know if I should say.”

Kyungsoo’s eyebrows furrowed, “What the does that mean?” He felt his blood boil again. What does Minseok mean by they HAD to be together?

Minseok sighed, “Kyungsoo, calm down, okay?”

Kyungsoo let his muscles go limp. There was no point in acting up. Minseok was already telling him what he had been wanting to know from day one. He should just let Minseok speak without making him feel as though he was going to lose his temper.

“Sorry, continue.” Kyungsoo responded.

Minseok looked away, obviously thinking how he should word what he was about to say. Kyungsoo waited patiently, hands intertwined together as they rested on his lap.

Minseok ultimately looked back at him, “Remember the day that I told you about Jongdae wanting to move in with his roommate?”

He nodded, the memory was fuzzy, but Kyungsoo remembered that day because Minseok had missed work and texted him later how he wouldn’t be able to make it.

“Well do you remember why I wasn’t able to go to work that day?”

Kyungsoo thought and did his best to remember. That had happened before Baekhyun and Jongdae had moved in, practically seven months ago. “I think…” then it clicked. “You said because a friend of yours was getting beat up in the…” Kyungsoo froze.

Minseok gulped, “Kyungsoo?”

“That er beat him in public?!” Kyungsoo stood up, fingernails digging into the back of his neck. He paced towards the living room and stood in front of the sofa. If he was able to have that son of a in front of him right now, he doesn’t know what he would do. Too much thoughts were swirling in his mind, none of them were innocent.

Minseok stood up and walked over to him. He placed his hands onto Kyungsoo’s, slowly bringing them down. “Kyungsoo, Baekhyun doesn’t see him anymore. He learned his lesson and honestly, you help him so much. I have never seen him smile so purely around someone.”

Kyungsoo looked directly at him.

“You’re the reason he is beginning to trust again. I see it, the change.”

“Then what was with the bruises on his arms?”

Minseok bit his bottom lip. “I don’t know. But it’s like you said, we trust him right?”

Kyungsoo clenched his jaw and looked away.

“You know what I found…pretty amazing?”

“What?”

“That day when I saw the bruises and was asking him what happened…he ran behind you. He relied on you for protection. He only does that with Jongdae.”

Kyungsoo blinked, he never thought about that. His eyes reverted back to Minseok.

Minseok smiled wide, “You and Baekhyun are perfect for each other.”

Kyungsoo couldn’t help the smile that went on his face, he was still upset. But thinking that maybe he was the reason behind Baekhyun’s happiness was something that made him feel warm inside.

“Hey, and for what’s it worth,” Minseok began, “When I saw Baekhyun in that alley, I beat his ex’s .”

Kyungsoo smiled wider, “Well…that’s good.” He was glad the guy got what he deserved. He was just slightly disappointed that it wasn’t him who had given that some punches.

“Honestly though, I only know these things because of Jongdae. But Jongdae didn’t tell me the whole story.” They both stayed silent for a bit before Minseok spoke again, “But I have a feeling that Baekhyun would let you know more.”

Kyungsoo twisted his mouth to the side, “I hope he can trust me that much one day.”

Minseok placed his hand on Kyungsoo’s shoulder, “He will.”

It was quiet again, not awkward or weird, but a soothing quiet. Kyungsoo was taking in the information that Minseok had just given him. Minseok was letting it sink in, but then smiled softly as he shook Kyungsoo’s shoulder, “Don’t linger on it too much yeah? Just know that Baekhyun is fine and that Jongdae cares a lot for him, but not in the same way you do.”

Kyungsoo went slightly red and shrugged Minseok’s arm off. “Yeah, thanks.” He muttered.

Minseok chuckled, “I’m happy for you. But I’m going to shower before it gets too cheesy in here.” Minseok turned to head towards the restroom, but Kyungsoo grabbed onto his wrist, “I’m happy for you too.” Kyungsoo told him. “But I need to meet this Luhan guy properly.”

Minseok laughed, “Such a protective brother,” He teased as he shoved Kyungsoo playfully.

Kyungsoo laughed along with him as Minseok walked towards the restroom and shut the door. Kyungsoo let out a small sigh as he walked back into the kitchen. He grabbed the dirty dishes and proceeded to wash them. He could now understand why Baekhyun was so guarded when they first met. It all made sense. He couldn’t even be upset with Jongdae anymore, Kyungsoo may actually do the same thing if it was Minseok in Baekhyun’s situation. There was probably more to this than Minseok knew, but he would wait until Baekhyun told him the full story. The more he thought about Baekhyun, the more protective he felt towards him. As he placed the dishes onto the drying rack he thought about how he would not only be there for Baekhyun, but keep him safe and comfortable no matter what.

***

Kyungsoo sat at home after work. It had been extremely slow and in all honesty, a little dull today. Their appointment to meet with Junmyeon’s lawyer was fast approaching and Kyungsoo was a little nervous. He stared blankly at the television screen but his mind was on the appointment. How exactly do these things work? Do they just sit with him and talk about what happened? The only expertise he had was based on television and that didn’t seem like such a reliable source.

He heard a knock on the door that interrupted his thoughts. He was pretty sure that Minseok took the keys with him when he stepped out, but he could be wrong. He got up and walked towards the door, opening it slowly. He expected to see his roommate, but it wasn’t Minseok. Baekhyun stood there, wide eyed and smile slowly coming up.

“Hey.” He greeted happily.

Kyungsoo’s smile began to creep up as well, “Hey Baekhyun.”

Baekhyun stuck out folded clothing towards Kyungsoo. They were the clothes that he had let Baekhyun borrow while he stayed here.

“You washed them?” Kyungsoo asked as he took them.

Baekhyun nodded, “Yeah, I told you I would.”

Kyungsoo smiled at him, “Are you sure it wasn’t Jongdae?”

Baekhyun shook his head, “Nope, it was me.”

Kyungsoo chuckled and opened the door wider, “You want to come inside?”

Baekhyun looked over his shoulder, then back at him, “Honestly, yes. But I have work in an hour.”

“Ah…you got the late shift?”

Baekhyun nodded, “Yeah, I just came to drop off the clothes.” Baekhyun sent a wink his way and Kyungsoo scratched the back of his neck.

“You’re weird.”

Baekhyun shook his head, “You’re weird. You’re getting embarrassed from a wink.”

Kyungsoo smirked, “Honestly Baek, these clothes seem too clean, are you sure it was you that washed them?”

Baekhyun pouted, “Yes! It was me.”

“Then why did I see Jongdae washing a couple days ago?” Kyungsoo fired back.

Baekhyun’s mouth dropped, “You went on Wednesday?”

Kyungsoo nodded, “Yup.”

Baekhyun shook his head playfully. “I should have went on Wednesday instead of yesterday.”

Kyungsoo laughed but suddenly the memory of what Jongdae told him came up in his mind.

You need to back off a little.

Kyungsoo gulped as he looked at Baekhyun who looked so innocent and pure. His smile was wide and his eyes shined. Kyungsoo understood where Jongdae was coming from. He should respect his wishes until he was able to have Jongdae’s trust fully. Baekhyun cared very much for Jongdae, he knew Baekhyun would appreciate it that way too.

“Hey Baek, I have to go.” Kyungsoo said.

Baekhyun nodded, but his smile faltered a bit. Maybe he caught the change in Kyungsoo’s demeanor.

“Alright, is everything okay?” Baekhyun asked.

Kyungsoo looked in his eyes and realized that he couldn’t lie to him, he has been telling Baekhyun the truth ever since they met, and there was no reason to start lying.

“Everything is fine. I just…Jongdae and I talked the day we saw each other.”

Baekhyun raised both eyebrows, “About what?” He asked.

“Um…well just stuff. It isn’t a big deal, don’t worry.”

“You sure?”

Kyungsoo nodded, “Yeah. But I understand that you need to get ready for work too, so I’ll say bye for now.”

Baekhyun gave him a half smile, “Okay, I’ll be seeing you, yeah?”

Kyungsoo smiled. “Of course.”

Baekhyun smiled back and walked away, Kyungsoo shut the door.

***

Baekhyun walked into his home and headed straight towards Jongdae’s room. Why did Kyungsoo suddenly cut their conversation short? What did he tell Kyungsoo? He opened Jongdae’s door and peeked inside, “Jongdae?”

Jongdae was on his bed, laptop in front of him. His glasses were on and he wore his sweats and muscle shirt.

“Yeah?” He responded, his eyes stayed glued on the screen.

“I need to ask you a question.” Baekhyun answered as he walked inside.

Jongdae looked up at him, “What happen?”

“Did you see Kyungsoo a couple of days ago?”

Jongdae raised an eyebrow, “Yeah, why?”

“What did you tell him?”

“We just had small talk.” He shrugged. “Nothing big.”

“I just talked to him. He cut our conversation short.” Baekhyun declared, his tone was serious.

Jongdae went back to typing. “Maybe he was busy.”

Baekhyun shut the laptop and continued to stare at his friend. Jongdae stared at his laptop then wet his bottom lip as his eyes went up to look at Baekhyun.

“What did you tell him?” Baekhyun asked again, eyes furrowed.

Jongdae chuckled as he laid back in bed, “You really like this guy?” It was more of a statement than question.

Baekhyun sighed, unsure of how to answer.

Jongdae sat up straight, “I just told him to give you a little space.”

“What?!”

Jongdae grabbed onto his shoulder, “I’m doing this ‘cause I care for you.”

Baekhyun shrugged him off, “So you’re deciding what’s best for me now?”

Jongdae shook his head, “You know I mean well.”

“Yeah, but you’re not my mom Jongdae! You’re my best friend, you’re there for me when I need you, not to decide things for me.” He answered in an annoyed tone.

“Well it’s kind of hard not to worry over you when I would see you covered in bruises and do nothing but cry every time you walked through the door!”

Baekhyun gasped and Jongdae shut his mouth. The younger knew he had just crossed a boundary. Baekhyun had shut that part of his life out, Jongdae had no right to bring it up. It was silent, neither of them said a word. Baekhyun had stiffened and Jongdae knew he really ed up. Jongdae looked down as he clenched his jaw, “I just don’t want to see you like how you were before.”

Baekhyun let his muscles relax and slowly gave him a half smile. He was no longer that guy who would allow himself to break. He was healing and he wasn’t about to crumble now, that part in his life did happen and there was no reason to run away from it. Instead, he would confront it.

“I won’t ever make that same mistake again. I learned my lesson Jongdae.” Baekhyun loved his best friend and he knew that Jongdae watched out for him at all times. He would forever be grateful to have Jongdae in his life.

Jongdae looked up at him and hugged Baekhyun as he let out a soft sigh. Baekhyun smiled and hugged him back. It was a tender moment, but it only lasted a couple seconds before the both of them parted.

“Promise you’ll trust me and let ME decide what I want, deal?” Baekhyun was healing and it was because of an emotion he didn’t believe he would ever be able to feel towards someone.

Jongdae let out a soft laugh as he flicked the elder’s forehead. “Fine. But know if anything, I’m here. Got it?”

“Got it.” Baekhyun responded as he smiled and rubbed his forehead.

“So…Kyungsoo huh?”

Baekhyun laughed. “Shut up Dae.”

Jongdae rolled his eyes, “I’m trying to understand you.” He pouted, “How much do you like this guy?”

Baekhyun pierced his lips together, “I’m late for work!” He yelled as he got up to get ready.