Bleary skies weren’t uncommon this time of year. The endless stretch of grey effectively hid the sun, casting a gloom over the streets below. On days like these, Hoseok could actually glance up at the sky without having to squint. 

 

The low whirr of an airplane above made him look, even if no traces of said airplane could be seen. The man wasn’t very fond of planes, having once forced himself aboard one to go visit his sister in the United States. He’d been very clear afterwards that if she had any desire to see him that she’d need to be the one to come here, not the other way around. Three bouts of turbulence, and Hoseok had been certain his death was imminent. His bakery would fall into abandon and Seokjin would die of starvation from being unable to buy his apple fritter every day. Planes truly did spell the end of the world.

 

The baker hugged his pea coat tighter around himself against the bite of the cool breeze sweeping down the street this Monday morning. His walk to work was a short one, thankfully, and there was no one around to see his black hair blown clean off his forehead in a jagged tiara at this time of day. Most would still be sleeping at this hour, with a few perhaps awake and sluggishly prepping for work. It was a mighty good thing Hoseok was a morning person, for he needed to open up shop bright and early before the morning rush of people scrambling to get to work and requiring a quick breakfast on the way by. 

 

Rounding the corner, Hoseok jumped at the sight of something hanging from the pedestrian bridge ahead. At first assuming the worst, he quickly realized the thing—or person, rather—was not hanging by their neck. The person was stretched out horizontally, laying mid-air. An awfully long body they had too. Dozens of ropes had been looped around the steel beams beneath the bridge, each tied to a different body part. The mess of ropes was haphazardly knotted in a bunch of different places, some ends loosely dangling from the body. The person looked like they were laying in a hammock, albeit one that had lost one too many threads and had definitely seen better days.

 

Much more alarming was the red staining some of the ropes. Was he bleeding? Hoseok ran up the street, feeling his heart hammering in his chest in panic. “Sir! Are you alright? Sir?” 

 

He was met only with silence and the persisting sound of the wind whistling between close-set apartment buildings. The baker stopped just as he’d stepped beneath the bridge where the street dipped down. Seeing the whole thing up close didn’t make it any less mind-boggling, he discovered. In fact, it only made him more confused. The man, dressed in a baggy white shirt and jeans, was smeared in red. Paint. The smell gave it away instantly. His lilac hair remained untouched, but a swath of red stained half his face. His eyes were peacefully closed as he dangled at head-level, lightly swinging in the breeze. Catching his breath from the sprint over, Hoseok could only stare. On the one hand, it was a weirdly elegant rendition of something he might expect to see in a horror film—not that he had the stomach to watch those—but on the other hand, it vaguely reminded him of an extreme version of that thing Yoongi had once drunkenly confessed he liked doing with Jimin. Hoseok’s cheeks warmed slightly before he cleared his throat.

 

“S-sir? Can you hear me? Are you conscious?” he asked, brows knitting in concern. How on earth had he even tied himself up like that? Most of the ropes supported his hips and shoulders, and one leg was suspended higher than the other, lightly bent at the knee. One of his wrists was tied in an awkward position way above his chest, while his other arm hung limply out between the ropes. “Sir?” he tried again, beginning to think he might have to call the paramedics. He would shake the man, but was a bit hesitant to touch him in this strange state. What if he was dead?

 

The man slowly turned with gentle shoves from the wind, his head rounding to meet Hoseok. Upside-down eyes abruptly opened, and the baker jumped back with a yelp, clutching his chest. “Phew, okay. Definitely not dead. That’s…that’s good.” He made a face, remembering that the man could hear him. The pair of eyes simply stared at him, unfazed. “Do you need help getting down from there? I, uh, have some shears at my shop; it isn’t too far from here.”

 

Silence. Hoseok swallowed, running a hand through his hair. He needed to deal with the situation quickly else he’d be late to open the shop. Heck, he was probably already running late. “Can you speak?” he asked after one too many seconds had passed. The man’s head shook from side to side in the smallest of movements. A sweaty palm found the back of Hoseok’s neck. “Right, so, are you okay, then? You’re not in need of rescuing? I could call the police if you n–” He was abruptly cut off by the man shaking his head again, this time with more force. Hoseok got the message. 

 

“Okay, um, have a nice day, then. Don’t let too much blood rush to your head.” That felt like a stupid thing to say to a guy who could have been hanging here for hours, but he was genuinely concerned. Still perplexed, the baker nodded and rushed off down the street, leaving the dangling red man behind. 

 

Hoseok scrambled to get all the pastries arranged in their displays and got the ovens going. His employee Taehyung should be coming in about half an hour. While he set about dragging the tables into place and setting the chairs around them, the television on the wall replayed the previous evening’s news. The main story was of course the ongoing corruption scandal within the South Korean government involving some casualties out West. The female reporter’s voice was meaningless white noise in Hoseok’s ears, having heard the story endlessly already over the past week. 

 

The jingle of the door alerted Hoseok to the arrival of Taehyung, red staining the collar of the younger’s jacket. Hoseok eyed him suspiciously. 

 

“What’s up with the guy hanging under the bridge?” Taehyung asked a little breathlessly.

 

“What…” Hoseok frantically gestured to the other’s front.

 

“Oh,” Taehyung glanced down at the offending red stain before flashing a boyish smile. “I may have run into him. Or through him.” The same smile that got him out of trouble time and time again, no matter how many times he forgot to shut off the oven at the end of the day or dropped a batch of dough on the ground when he was distracted singing Wonder Girls at the top of his lungs. But the boy was fiercely loyal and really did want to be a good baker, and Hoseok could never find it in him to let him go. Taehyung’s presence, he would admit, was pretty irreplaceable. 

 

Hoseok’s eyes widened. “Is he okay?” The image of the man’s ropes snapping and his long body crashing to the pathway below appeared to mind, and his gaze flitted to the door.

 

“He got a jostling, but yeah, he’s okay. I apologized, told him his setup was pretty cool, and then came here.” Taehyung slipped off his jacket, frowning down at the stain as he rubbed his thumb over it. “Ugh, my grandmother’s going to kill me.”

 

Several questions still lingered, the hanging man never having actually left Hoseok’s thoughts since arriving at the shop, but he shoved them aside in favour of handing Taehyung his apron and heading to the kitchen to get some dough rolled for a hefty wedding order.

 

***

 

Upon turning over the ‘Open’ sign to its ‘Closed’ counterpart, Hoseok leaned back to peer down the street. A horizontal figure still dangled from the bridge, much stiller than before now that the wind had calmed. After tucking the keys into his pocket, the baker made his way over, unsure if he should acknowledge the man on his way by or not. In the end, he found himself stopping to apologize for Taehyung. “The boy really needs to pay closer attention to his surroundings. It won’t happen again; I’ve threatened him with a rolling pin.” What was he even saying? He had no reason to believe the man would still be here tomorrow. It would be insane to remain here overnight. The hanging man blinked, eyebrows rising up his forehead, which caused the dried paint there to crackle and flake off. “In any case; have a good evening.” With that, Hoseok walked on, eager to end his bizarre day and start fresh tomorrow.

 

***

 

“What do you think he does when he needs to pee? Is he wearing a diaper?”

 

Hoseok looked up from the cupcake he was frosting to see that Taehyung had ceased kneading his bowl of dough to glue his face to the window. It was sunny today, and the rays of sun pierced through the glass to illuminate the younger’s face, making the soft brown strands nearly covering his eyes shine a little. “I don’t know, Tae. He might not even have to pee if he’s not putting anything in his body. This is his second day out already; I’m surprised he isn’t dehydrated.” 

 

The sight of the man this morning had startled him nearly as much as it had the previous morning. He still dangled there in jeans and a white shirt, although his coat of red paint had been renewed. This led him to believe that he didn’t stay up in his bindings the whole time, but he had no way of knowing for certain.

 

“Being artsy sure is rough. I think I’ll just stick to baking fabulous cakes and eating burnt cookies.” Leaving the window, Taehyung plunged his white-dusted hands back into the bowl.

 

Hoseok had just finished drawing the ’S’ atop his cupcake, pushing it aside to the cluster of its immaculately frosted companions. “You keep saying it’s artsy—is that really what he’s doing?”

 

“I mean, it sure looks artsy. I don’t see what else it could be. When I told him it looked cool yesterday, he kind of just smiled.”

 

“But why would you do that to yourself?”

 

“Maybe he’s trying to make a statement. Like protesting, but way edgier.” 

 

Hoseok made a face. “About what?”

 

“I’d say you could ask him, but I don’t think he’d answer.”

 

“You’re right,” Hoseok sighed. He laid his palms flat on the counter. “All my years owning this place, and I’ve never seen anything like it near here. The customers neither; some of them have complained—something about it being too disturbing.” The complaints tended to come from those who complained about the bakery’s prices or had no problem sharing their opinion on the government scandal that had overtaken most news stations without having been asked. 

 

“I mean, you could always call the cops on him. I’m not sure how legal it is to dangle yourself like that in a public area.” Taehyung shrugged. “If it’s affecting business, y–“

 

“No.” His reply came without hesitation, quick and firm. “I–I couldn’t do that to him. He isn’t harming anyone, and…” He frowned, unsure where that sentence was even going. Hoseok grew silent for a time as he frosted up five more cupcakes before piping up again. “Maybe I should bring him something to eat… He must be starving.”

 

“You really worry about him, huh?”

 

Hoseok didn’t reply to that; Taehyung already knew the answer anyway. 

 

“I can cover for you in case we get any customers while you’re gone. I left a few burnt cookies in the back. I was gonna eat them for lunch but–“

 

“I’m not bringing him burnt cookies, Tae. Those are all yours to enjoy.” Hoseok opened the glass door to pluck a few puff pastries, setting them on a small porcelain plate. 

 

“Oh so now he gets fresh pastries, but you make your employee eat the burnt leftovers. I call abuse.” The younger clutched his chest dramatically. 

 

Hoseok simply rolled his eyes before grabbing a paper cup and filling it with water. A sweep of his jacket and a jingle of the door later, he was on his way down the street. A mother and her child lingered beneath the bridge, but dispersed upon seeing Hoseok approaching. Rounding to the lilac-haired individual’s head, he was glad to see that his eyes were open. He was still alive and conscious. Somehow that remained a constant concern for him, hence why he was out here with water and puff pastries. “Hi. It’s me again.” 

 

The man’s face was unreadable, ah, but then—then he cracked a smile, and his gaze dropped to the plate in the baker’s hand. It was soft and almost too innocent for someone boldly laying here in knots and smeared in something that looked a lot like blood. Hoseok was glad his face was only minimally covered in paint—it made looking at him feel less outlandish, and it otherwise might have masked the deep dimples that appeared when his lips stretched outward. “I thought you could use some food and water, you know, after dangling here for hours.” Hoseok was a very bright and sociable person, but speaking to someone who would not respond was a bit trickier to handle. It was like having a one-sided conversation with a wall, except the man did offer physical feedback every now and again. Hoseok appreciated that greatly. The smile was a small gesture, but it let him know that his presence was not unwelcome. 

 

“I hope you like puff pastries. These ones came right out of the oven this morning. Um…” The baker looked up and down the man’s body, trapping his bottom lip between his teeth as he tried figuring out how this would work. “Okay, so if you can hold the cup with your free hand, I guess I can feed you the pastries.” Hoseok quickly looked around, making sure no one was in the vicinity. It would look a bit odd to have him standing here, hand-feeding a dangling stranger. It definitely struck the baker that this was bizarre, but it was the simplest solution he could come up with, given the circumstances. “You might want to lift your head a bit so you won’t choke.”

 

The man did exactly that, taking the cup from Hoseok with his free hand and carefully drawing it through the ropes so he could take a sip. The sigh he released was the first sound the baker had heard him make since he first appeared here yesterday. Taking one pastry between two fingers, Hoseok held it before the other’s mouth. The man took a large bite, nearly clipping Hoseok’s fingers with his teeth, as the cream oozed out from the pastry. His cheeks were quite full, and some cream lingered on the corners of his lips. “You have a little…”

 

The man’s tongue came out to give a proper sweep over his lips, which Hoseok now noticed were rather plump. Despite this, some cream stubbornly clung to his skin, and without a moment’s thought, Hoseok’s index finger swiped it up before holding it to the other’s mouth. “I promise, my hands are clean.” The man looked at him uncertainly for a moment before he puckered his lips to Hoseok’s finger, and he felt the wetness of a tongue along the pad. The sensation shocked him, even though it shouldn’t have, and he couldn’t help stiffening slightly. He really hoped Taehyung wasn’t trying to spy from the window right now.

 

He fed the man the other half of the pastry before letting him drink up a little more water. Once the two other pastries were gone, he couldn’t see any more reason to linger. He ought to get back to the shop. “I should get going, but I hope that helped.” The other’s hand made to abruptly reach out to him, but he seemed to forget that he was still holding a cup that contained liquid, and so the cup went sailing, wetting the bottom of Hoseok’s pants on its way down, before landing hollowly on the ground. The man’s face shifted to that of pure horror, and Hoseok could see him internally panicking. “Oh, don’t worry about it; it’s fine. It’s fine. It’ll dry. If you’re still thirsty, I can go get you another one.”

 

A quick shake of the head affirmed a negative answer. “Alright, well if you’re sure… I’ll see you later, then,” he said with a smile, knowing he’d have to cross him again on his way out from work. The baker didn’t see the other’s slow grin after he’d turned around to jog back up the street.

 

***

 

Wednesday was the warmest day of the week yet, and the bakery was bustling with activity, many couples and families being out on strolls and enjoying the sun. It was a shame for those who were stuck working indoors today, Hoseok thought, whenever the door would open and bring a fresh gust of air into the shop. Like himself. He hadn’t been able to find time to sneak out and bring Lilac, as Taehyung had so creatively named him, any food today. If the man persisted to hang underneath the bridge, he thought he might try to make it a routine. It was the least of service he could be to the guy. Hoseok was just trying to be a decent human being.

 

Customer after customer was served, a few orders being placed for events occurring on a later date, and Hoseok would have to occasionally dab at the sweat on his brow with the end of his sleeve. Hovering around the ovens most of the day didn’t help. 

 

He’d just pulled out a warm loaf of bread from the oven when Taehyung appeared in the doorway, looking genuinely concerned. “Hoseok? You might want to go check on your guy.”

 

He bypassed the implication that Lilac was his property, instead feeling panic begin to rise in his chest. “What—why? Did he pass out? Did his ropes give out?” Already he was imagining the worst, which really was a nasty habit by now and wasn’t usually his immediate reaction to things, but there wasn’t exactly anything usual about these circumstances either. This whole week so far felt like it was happening in some far, distant reality, and he’d wake up one morning to find himself back in the regular reality, where nothing interesting ever really happened to the baker other than what antics Taehyung regularly got up to. 

 

“No. Well, I don’t think so, anyway. A group of customers came in a few minutes ago saying they were going to get him down from there and call the cops. I haven’t heard any sirens yet, which I guess is a good thing—“

 

Before Taehyung could finish his sentence, Hoseok, still floured up to the elbows, darted out of the store. Sure enough, a small crowd had amassed beneath the bridge. Lilac was impossible to see at this distance, hidden by the row of figures. He really had no desire for the police to be coming around this corner of town, even if some of them were very good at cleaning out the shop’s donut supply. 

 

“Hey! Step away from him!” he yelled as he approached. Heads turned to look at him in surprise, one female in particular holding a phone up to her ear. “Put the phone down; there’s no need to call the police.” The woman frowned before lowering the phone and begrudgingly tucking it into her pocket. 

 

Pushing his way past the others, he could take reassurance in the fact that Lilac looked fine. He hadn’t moved from his position this morning other than having rotated slightly, and otherwise only looked distressed. “I came around here yesterday, and here he was just hanging, and now he’s still here today. What the hell does he think he’s doing?” The deep voice had Hoseok turning to face a man with two chins who barely stood taller than the baker. A woman at his side, probably his wife, then chimed in a, “He’s obstructing the way. It’s a safety hazard.”

 

“Look,” Hoseok started, stalling for a moment to gather his thoughts. What was it again that Taehyung supposed the man was doing? “This is an art installation. He isn’t doing anyone any harm. This is all just an art piece, and it’s going to be here for a while, so I suggest you accustom yourself to walking around him. He barely moves, and he doesn’t even talk—ignore him if that’s what you prefer, but he’s really just here to be looked at. To be seen. Nothing more than that. He’s not engaging in any illegal activities.” Hoseok didn’t know that for a fact; he didn’t know the specifics on laws concerning hanging from pedestrian overpasses, but he might be able to convince the others that this was fine. 

 

Many of them didn’t look very impressed. “Art,” one of them scoffed. “More like a loon trying to get attention. Did you commission this, then?” he asked, looking at Hoseok critically. 

 

There was a brief pause before an “I did, yes,” slipped out of his mouth. “I thought it would make for something interesting to look at for those who visited my shop or regularly have to walk through here. It’s not permanent, I promise.” He was met with several judging looks, but it seemed to have successfully silenced them. Hoseok tried not to cringe externally, hating having to lie so much, but he felt it was for a decent cause. But what cause exactly? Looking at Lilac, he realized he was defending him rather fiercely despite not knowing exactly what he was doing either. I mean, he seemed like a nice guy, at least. And he’d looked so terrified; how could he not help him out?

 

“Alright. We won’t call the cops, but you should put a sign or something to warn people about…this–whatever this is. My father nearly had a heart attack when we rounded the corner.” Hoseok found himself vaguely relating to that feeling as the woman patted the older gentleman at her side’s shoulder. 

 

Hoseok quickly nodded. “Yes. Terribly sorry about that.” Running a hand through his hair, he dropped his head and lightly shook it. “I’m glad we’ve cleared this up, and I hope you all have a nice day.” The cluster deemed this an adequate cue to disperse, and Hoseok could still hear them whispering among themselves as they left. 

 

Once they’d all vanished from sight, the baker allowed himself to exhale for what felt like the first time since he’d arrived, and now realizing his hair was likely a powdery white, quickly extracted his hand from his hair. “Man, that was close. Note to self; we are never doing that again, Hoseok. Okay?” He froze, remembering that Lilac was still there just chilling out. “I…I swear I don’t refer to myself in the third person often.” Looking over, he could see that the man’s eyes had vanished into half circles, his mouth soundlessly open. “Are you laughing at me?”

 

The man opened his eyes and quickly shook his head, schooling his features into the neutral look the baker had become accustomed to seeing most of the time. 

 

“A ‘thank you’ might be nice, you know. I kind of saved your .” Hoseok pointed out. Lilac’s free hand reached out and wrapped around the baker’s white-dusted wrist, giving it a light squeeze. The baker supposed this was about as much gratitude as he was going to receive in this situation. After heaving a sigh, he said, “I’ll try to keep customers calm; I just hope none of them come around looking for trouble again. You really are bold if you decide to stay here after today. Do I admire that? I don’t know—my employee might prefer to replace the word ‘bold’ with ‘stupid’ in that statement. Just…try to keep out of trouble, okay?” Retrieving his wrist, Hoseok jogged back up the street, thinking he was going to be really fit if this kept up for any longer from repeatedly rushing up and down the stretch of pavement every day. 

 

***

 

Thursday, Hoseok could tell the moment he stepped out his front door that it was going to be a slow day. It was pouring rain out, prompting the man to carry an umbrella. Puddles already littered the ground, water seeping into the baker’s sneakers and making him wish he’d gotten that pair of yellow flowered rubber boots when he’d gone to the mall two weeks prior. Not many would dare brave the pelting droplets just to get a croissant. It might give him and Taehyung time to finish decorating a 5-tier wedding cake that had been in the works for a few days now. 

 

The baker was used to seeing the man dangling there by now, but found himself astonished all the same when he spotted the horizontal silhouette against the grey backing of the sheets of rain. After yesterday, Hoseok thought he might have chosen to end it there. Clearly, whatever this was meant a lot to him. Remembering his words from yesterday, he decided he did indeed admire the man. It was that same sort of conviction and stubbornness that had gotten Hoseok to open his bakery all those years ago despite his parents’ insistent wishes of him becoming a lawyer. 

 

“Good morning. Goodness; aren’t you cold?” he asked, plucking at Lilac’s loose white shirt. Under the bridge, the man was sheltered from the rain, at least. However, he noticed the wet patches on the other’s shirt revealing some skin beneath, and registered the fact that his lilac hair clung to his temples, damp. “So you do leave during the night… And here I was, worried you’d taken permanent residence under here. Stupid of me, really.” That made him wonder at exactly what time he came over here to string himself up, and what time he took himself down, because the baker had only ever seen him in his hanging state. 

 

He looked out at the rain. “Hopefully the rain lets out at some point. How does an éclair sound today?” Lilac gave an enthusiastic nod. “I’ll make it a chocolate one too.” There were those dimples again. Hoseok enjoyed the smaller things in life, like the smell of fresh bread and the sound of rain on his tin roof, but he didn’t think he’d find so much enjoyment from the appearance of two little indentations in one’s skin. Still the man did not speak a word, but as long as those dimples were present, the baker could rest assured that the man was content. 

 

Hoseok was about to carry on his way to go open shop, but paused, reconsidering. “If you do get down from here one of these days, you should come to the shop sometime. I’ll give you a free pastry of your choice to compensate for yesterday. I’d…also like to chat, if that’s possible” he added, smiling a little shyly. Looking over his shoulder, he saw Lilac lightly nodding, meeting his gaze momentarily. “Alright, well I’ll see you in a few hours.”

 

Taehyung had just finished tending change back over to a customer when Hoseok re-entered the shop, wearing one less item of clothing than he’d left with. The younger’s eyebrows crawled up his forehead, intrigued. “You seriously gave him your coat?”

 

Hoseok closed his umbrella with some difficulty before propping it in the corner. “He was shivering, Tae. I couldn’t just leave him like that, pouring rain and all.”

 

The other bid the customer goodbye before turning to face his boss. “Four days, and you’re already more whipped than the cream on our strawberry cupcakes.”

 

“Am not.” Hoseok frowned. “There’s nothing wrong with being a decent human being.”

 

“Is it the hair?” Taehyung continued, unbothered. “I mean, I know it looks totally edible, but…”

 

“It’s not the hair, Tae. He’s not doing anything wrong, and I’m just helping him out.”

 

“Mhm.”

 

“Oh stop looking at me like that.”

 

Taehyung shrugged. “I’d just better be invited to the wedding. I’ll make you the best purple cake you’ve ever seen.”

 

Hoseok groaned, rubbing a hand over his face. “I’m ignoring you for the rest of the afternoon, just so you know.” After the baker had vanished to the back to go wash his hands, Taehyung allowed a wide grin to spread on his face, cackling to himself. 

 

Walking back home, Hoseok was disenchanted to find out that the rain had not let up even a little bit. His umbrella was his only lifeline at the moment, and there was no way he’d make it home with dry socks. He needed to go retrieve his coat too. Making it to the bridge, he could see not much had changed over the span of a few hours. His coat was still strategically draped over Lilac between the ropes, too short to fully cover his torso, but it was tucked right up beneath his chin. “Hey,” he said softly. The man’s eyes were closed. “I’ll just take my coat back, alright?” No reaction from the other. “Hello?” After staring at Lilac for a few seconds, it hit him that he was sleeping. His chest rose in slow and steady motions beneath the coat, his free hand firmly clutching the collar to his neck. 

 

Hoseok reached out to gently shake him awake, a simple and harmless gesture, but one he found himself unable to do. His hand was nearly there, almost able to feel the coarse fabric of his jacket, but his fingers curled into his palm like a shrivelling plant. There was something terribly peaceful and serene about the suspended man asleep in his ropes, lightly twisting and swinging while the rain droned on in the background, unable to affect the lilac-haired individual. 

 

Hoseok looked up at his umbrella, which dripped fat drops off its points onto the mostly dry pavement below. “To hell with it. To hell with it all. He can keep the coat,” he mumbled to himself. Gripping the umbrella handle with both hands in his firm resolve, he left the shelter of the bridge, figure vanishing down the grey street. Lilac would likely be there again by morning. 

 

***

 

Hoseok was not proven wrong as he jogged around the corner on Friday morning. Surely Lilac had to be in absolute pain by now, being on his fifth day of dangling like this. Things got numb, and he could imagine the man’s back was on a whole other level of stiffness. Something that would take a few visits at the chiropractor to rectify for sure. And he still had no idea why he was doing it, what was possibly worth all of that. Taehyung remained convinced that it was art, but Hoseok held his doubts. If this was art, then this was pure dedication. 

 

Despite being turned away from him, Lilac could sense him approaching. The man’s free hand stretched out from between the ropes, a long, heavy cloth cascading down from his hand. Hoseok’s jacket. The baker took it from his hold, coming to a halt beside the other. 

 

“I see you took good care of it,” he said, draping the jacket lazily over his shoulders. It was warmer today, and he didn’t really need to wear it, even though the air still smelled of rain. “Thank you. You could have kept it, you know, but I’m glad I don’t have to drop by the store now. I hope it served its purpose. You seemed awfully cozy when I was passing yesterday.” Lilac smiled a little bashfully at that before lightly bowing his head. 

 

Running a bit late already, he knew he could not linger. “See you around lunch time. You like blueberries? We make some pretty great blueberry muffins.” After receiving a nod from Lilac, Hoseok smiled brightly and set off towards the shop. 

 

It was as he was removing the jacket in the back room that Hoseok realized it had a scent to it. It smelled damp, of course, having been outside most of the day yesterday, but there was something else. Burrowing his nose in the fabric, he detected more beneath it. Chamomile… But not just that. It was the most prominent, but the baker couldn’t put his finger on the second scent it mingled with. It was very subdued, but smelled like something and nothing at the same time. Lilac, he realized. It smelled like Lilac. Not the plant, but the person. The chamomile’s origin was a mystery, given how the man didn’t give off that scent in all his encounters with him, however, the rest was all Lilac. Impossible to describe in words, other than simply ‘human’. 

 

“You look really weird sniffing your coat like that,” Taehyung pointed out as he strode past, tossing his baseball cap onto a hook. 

 

Hoseok abruptly lowered the fabric bunched up in his hands, smoothing it out before hooking it onto the rack. “It had a strange smell; I was trying to figure out what it was.”

 

“Can’t have been a bad smell if you were inhaling that deeply. Did you solve the mystery?”

 

“I think so.”

 

Taehyung lifted his brows in mild interest before sweeping out of the room. Hoseok looked back at his jacket before following suit. It didn’t matter what his clothing smelled like, because his nostrils were about to be overwhelmed by the scent of yeast. 

 

Some time after returning from feeding Lilac his muffin, Hoseok caught a stray whiff of chamomile while serving an elderly woman with impeccable white curls, and that’s when he made up his mind. After work he was going to stick around and see just how long Lilac stayed out before untangling himself and going home for the night. A total waste of a Friday night for most people his age, but the baker couldn’t think of anything he’d rather be doing. 

 

After locking up, rather than head straight to the bridge, Hoseok made a detour to the neighbouring streets, getting some Chinese takeout. On his trek back, plastic bag swinging in hand, his jacket was tightly wound around himself despite the perfectly mild temperature. The chamomile had faded since this morning, and he knew it wouldn’t be long until the scents had vanished altogether from the fabric. He was making the most of it while he could, he supposed, and repeatedly tried telling himself he wasn’t being creepy for doing so. The flowery scent was just a nice change from the sweets and coffee he was accustomed to inhaling day in and day out. 

 

Lilac, set sideways, saw Hoseok coming from a distance. The baker could see him eyeing his bag curiously, which made him all the more eager to reveal its contents. He could already see the other’s dimples appearing at the prospect of receiving more food in his mind’s eye. 

 

“Hey,” he greeted softly as he arrived beneath the bridge. Lilac’s hand wrapped around his wrist, squeezing in greeting as he ran his thumb along the skin of Hoseok’s forearm. The latter would be lying if he said it wasn’t a welcome gesture. Over the week, Lilac had become more comfortable with touching him, realizing there were no objections, and it remained his most reliable means of communicating with the baker when voice was not an option. Hoseok still did not know why the man remained silent, but at this point he didn’t really care anymore. 

 

“I’ve got dinner, and I thought you might want company.”

 

Lilac continued absently Hoseok’s arm as his lips stretched into a delighted smile, teeth slightly visible between the parting of his lips. The baker set the bag down on the ground and bent over to rummage in it. He pulled one foam container out, and set it on the dangling man’s stomach. “Chinese takeout,” he explained. “Do you want chopsticks or a fork?” He held both up in each hand. The other let go of Hoseok to extend his hand towards the chopsticks. “Alright. Here you go. Just let me know if you need help, okay?” Feeding the man was not unfamiliar to Hoseok now, and he just wanted the him to be able to enjoy his meal without a struggle. 

 

Hoseok plopped down into a sitting position on the pavement, and pulled out his own container. It smelled heavenly to the hungry baker, and he didn’t hesitate to dig right in with his set of chopsticks positioned in hand. As he slurped up some gooey noodles, he glanced at Lilac to see him happily munching on a piece of chicken he’d impaled on his chopsticks. He may not need to help the other out, but he would need to come by with a napkin for cleanup later, judging by the sauce already spread across Lilac’s lips. 

 

They ate like that in silence for a while, both preoccupied with wolfing down their food. Only the sound of the odd car passing nearby and their hungry slurps filled the air. It was a silence Hoseok wasn’t terribly accustomed to having. At the bakery, things were always moving with customers coming in and out, ovens dinging, the drone of the TV, and Taehyung making his case on why macarons should be banned for inducing unnecessary stress. When he got home, he usually his stereo, letting his favourite tunes ease him into his evening, and eventually to sleep. This kind of silence may not be common in his life, but it was comfortable.

 

Hoseok nearly choked on the cabbage he’d just swallowed when a chopstick narrowly missed his head, hollowly sounding against the ground somewhere behind him. His head snapped up to Lilac, his bewilderment morphing into amusement when he noticed the man looking like he was regretting his life choices, the hand holding his remaining chopstick hovering above his food. 

 

“Trying to kill me, are you? Nice try.” Hoseok set his container aside and got up, bringing over a fork. “Here; I don’t think this one will be so keen on running away from you,” he giggled. Lilac’s features softened then. The way the man was looking at him made Hoseok feel very self-conscious, and his hand came up to smooth over his bangs. The fork had yet to be taken from him, so he cleared his throat. “You can…you can take the fork.” There was a moment of stillness, but the other slowly lowered his gaze to the plastic object. Instead of grabbing it, the man latched onto Hoseok’s wrist and tugged. “You want me to…?” After receiving a nod from Lilac, the baker took the container of food in off the other and scooped up some rice. Hoseok did this a few times before huffing out a breath from deep within his chest. “You know, this reminds me of when I’d feed my nephew. He could barely hold a spoon without sending something flying across the room. But I’m not likening you to a 3 year old. That’s–that’s not what I’m saying” he added quickly. Lilac was merely smiling fondly as he chewed on his latest bite. “If it weren’t for your hand being tied up, I know you could eat this just fine yourself. But anyways, my nephew really hated vegetables—shocking, I know—and so the only way I could get him to eat them was if I did the airplane first. I’d sort of just–” Hoseok halted himself, realizing he’d lifted his hand to demonstrate. “Well, I’m sure you know what I mean.”

 

Hoseok fed Lilac a bite of chicken, but frowned as the fork refused to come out of the man’s mouth. His lips pursed at the mirth in Lilac’s eyes and he realized the other was purposefully biting onto it. “I might have to take back what I said about you being like a 3 year old,” he said, successfully prying out the utensil. Doing so unleashed a deep chortle, like uncorking a bottle to pour out its contents. At first Hoseok was puzzled by the sound, but then it dawned on him with the force of a tank. Lilac had laughed. “What happened to being silent?” He tried to sound teasing, but it came out sounding much more astonished and breathless than he’d have liked. This was the first proper noise he’d heard the other make, and suddenly he wondered what else he was missing out on. It had been brief and fleeting, but the baker found himself instantly devising other comedic lines that might elicit it again. 

 

It was Lilac’s hand prodding his shoulder that made him realize he’d zoned out. “Sorry. You just caught me off guard. It’s nice knowing you aren’t mute, even though it doesn’t really matter to me,” he admitted, feeling his cheeks warm. “Alright, so hang in there; I’ll just wipe you off.” The man ran his hand over his face, just registering what he’d said. “I didn’t mean for that to be…punny. That’s usually Taehyung’s field of expertise. He’s been cracking ‘hanging’ and ‘dangling’ jokes all week since you appeared. This morning he even upgraded to a ‘suspension’ one, actually.” Shaking his head, Hoseok reached for a napkin and gave a few swipes across Lilac’s mouth, making sure to get all the sauce and sesame seeds. 

 

It had occurred to him that he’d touched this stranger’s mouth a crazy amount of times. Should that be weird, or was he overthinking it? He liked looking at Lilac’s lips. That was a bit weird. Didn’t mind touching them either, soft and plump as they were. That was definitely a bit more than weird. Did it make his chest clench to acknowledge the fact that he could just hunch over a few inches and touch those lips to his own? A little, but he preferred to suppress that thought because it was awfully distracting when he was just trying to be a friendly, helpful presence. He took a deep breath as he looked at Lilac. “Good? You want more food?”

 

Before Lilac could make up his mind, Hoseok jolted, feeling a vibration against his hip. He fished his phone out of his coat pocket, answering the incoming call. An elderly woman spoke only a few words on the other end, and Hoseok blanched. “Yes. Yes of course. Thank you.” He hung up, feeling a lump in his throat. Lilac had his brows raised, intrigued, but the baker simply set the container on his stomach again, planting the fork in the noodles. “I…I…I need to go. Enjoy the rest of your food.” Whirling on his feet, he ran off down the street, his own food forgotten on the pavement and Lilac blankly blinking, confused. 

 

***

 

Hoseok was emotionally and physically drained. He’d barely gotten any sleep last night, awkwardly positioned in a small chair with not enough padding, and it showed. His hair sat flat and dull on his head, and he’d gained deep purple bags beneath his eyes. He rubbed at his eye with his knuckle as he trudged towards the door of his shop. The sun had yet to fully come up, faint pink light beginning to overtake the skies. Hoseok might have appreciated the sight more if it wasn’t for the fact that he’d just gotten back from the hospital. 

 

Unlocking the door, the baker stepped inside, even though his business here would be short and quick. He altered the dry-erase board in the window, removing the Saturday hours, and instead writing a note. The shop would not open today. Not only was it entirely too hectic without his employee, but Hoseok didn’t have it in him to touch any of the ovens today. His love of creating delicious masterpieces couldn’t spare him the pain and exhaustion. He didn’t know what he was going to do with the rest of his day, but curling up on his couch and mindlessly binge-watching a TV series seemed like a good candidate. Sleep would definitely occur somewhere in there. His knees felt like they could barely support his weight, just one more step away from failing him. 

 

Locking the door again, Hoseok inhaled deeply as he leaned against the glass. There was too much weight on his shoulders at the moment, too much on his mind, and it felt like it would crush him. Just flatten him to the pavement right here in an insignificant splat. 

 

Hoseok didn’t deal with these things, normally. He did not take them well. He could smile, laugh, whip up an amazing batch of mint chocolate chip cookies, and even do a killer shimmy on the dance floor. He loved fiercely, having always been very protective of Taehyung like an older brother. Despite the ongoing news reports every day announcing terrible happenings, Hoseok could still do all of these things. He paid it all very little mind, choosing to focus on the positive.

 

But the positive didn’t exist for him this morning. It would return to him, colour seeping back into his life like the gentle pink bleeding across the skies, but right now the skies only looked grey. When a customer was particularly rude, he could just contently pop a sugar cookie into his mouth and forget about it within a few minutes. But what was he to do now other than wait? This was not like waiting for a loaf to bake just right until it was nice and golden. There were no guarantees the loaf would bake at all in this scenario. It might turn out fine, or it might instantly shrivel and burn, the oven not cooperating in that instant. 

 

After lifting his head, the man glanced despairingly down the road, observing the horizontal silhouette blocking out the light trying to creep beneath the bridge. His feet decided before his mind did, carrying him clumsily to the familiar figure. He barely made it, dropping to the ground beside Lilac, hurting his coccyx, but past the point of caring. He couldn’t look at the other man in that moment, gaze trained on the pavement as he took a few difficult breaths. 

 

“I don’t know what’s going to happen,” he whispered hoarsely, mainly to himself, although he knew Lilac could hear. “The call last night, I didn’t think– Oh, Tae. Tae….Tae Tae Tae…” he babbled on, rigorously shaking his head and making himself dizzy. Here he was, sitting under a bridge, venting his woes to a dangling, practically mute, stranger. Some might think it a new low for him. 

 

Lilac was undoubtedly confused by now, but explaining meant Hoseok would need to say aloud was had transpired. It meant accepting it, that it was his reality at the moment, and not some nightmare he’d wake up from in a few minutes. 

 

“Tae… He got into a crash last night going to the pub with some friends. They were going to head out to eat and then go drinking. But before they could get there they…he– I don’t even know what happened really. But the car had to be pried off a phone pole.” His chest clenched uncomfortably at his words, making him wince. “Tae’s pretty banged up; he was all black and purple when I got there, scraped up with some cuts on his arms. Physically, he’s going to recover, his skin just needs to heal. His leg’s broken, but the doctor said it would be fine cause he’s young.” He could still see the younger behind his lids lying there, the image perfectly burned to memory. He hoped to never have to see Taehyung like that again. 

 

“He’s going to be okay b-but he hasn’t woken up yet as of this morning. His body will recover, but what does that matter if….if…” Hoseok could feel himself getting worked up, tongue heavy in his mouth as his hands struggled to figure out what to do with themselves. They wound up settling on his knees, digits trembling against his jeans. At the hospital, he’d kept it together for Taehyung’s grandmother, who was looking distressed enough as it was. He’d been there to comfort her and tell her everything was going to be fine, even if Hoseok had his own doubts plaguing his mind.

 

Now he could think. He could feel. Lilac could judge him all he wanted, but Hoseok couldn’t stop himself anymore from doing the one thing he hadn’t been allowed to do at the hospital. 

 

Cry. 

 

The first sob wracked his body with force, hunching him over his knees. It left him gasping for breath as he registered the warm tears rolling down his cheeks. It felt like just the release he needed after his night, horribly overblown from having suppressed it for so long. 

 

Hoseok didn’t really know how to be sad. Things got rough between members of his family, and he sometimes found himself missing his sister dearly. In his early days of starting the shop, he often ran into financial problems, having to sacrifice basic comforts to keep the business afloat. Those things put a right lump in his throat, plaguing his every activity at the time. But Hoseok carried on, walking into his shop every morning and letting himself be blissfully distracted by the smell of fresh pastries and the repetitive ding of the cash register. In this case, the feeling overtook him, overpowering absolutely everything else within his being. It kept him on his knees, prevented him from standing, and he didn’t know what to do about it. He was supposed to be the happy one.

 

He tilted his head back to stare up at the steel beams above without actually seeing anything as he made another ugly sound. Several times he cursed, although he wasn’t sure exactly what he was cursing at. Himself for giving in? For unloading this upon an undeserving Lilac? At the doctors for not being able to give him better news? 

 

As he righted his head, sniffling to keep his nose from adding to the mess happening on his face, he saw a hand extended towards him, palm open to the sky. Hoseok lifted his eyes to Lilac, who regarded him calmly. Clumsily, he deposited his hand onto the awaiting palm, and Lilac enveloped it with his own. It was warm and a little rough where he was calloused. Hoseok liked to think this was the man’s way of telling him it was okay. That being like this was okay, and that things would be okay. 

 

Hoseok’s head flopped forward, forehead thunking against their interlocked hands. He inhaled deeply as another sob threatened to rattle its way through. He felt Lilac’s hand gently untangle itself from the heap, fingers moving to card through his hair in slow, repetitive motions. It reminded him of when his mother would his hair and various other expanses of his body to lull him to sleep as a child. Indeed he probably could fall asleep right here, too worn out to properly function. 

 

The baker lifted his head after a while, Lilac’s fingers dragging down his temple before inserting themselves beneath his jaw. This was a bit of a stretch for him from his hanging position, but if his arm was getting tired, he gave no hints of it.

 

“I’m sorry,” murmured the lilac-haired man. 

 

A red and puffy Hoseok eyed him with what energy he had left. “I thought you didn’t talk.”

 

Lilac nodded and smiled a little sadly. “It is the point of being up here like this, but this warrants an exception. It feels inappropriate to hide behind it while you’re clearly suffering.”

 

Hoseok’s gaze held nothing but gratefulness, meaningfully conveying on the outside how his chest felt on the inside. “I know words can’t change the way things are. But thank you. I’m sorry for abruptly dumping this on you.” He sniffled again, drawing up his sleeve to wipe at his nose. 

 

“Don’t be. You look like you need it. This. You’ve been nothing but kind and helpful, and so I ought to return the favour, at the very least.” Lilac’s fingertips ghosted across his cheek, and Hoseok’s head followed, chasing the warmth. Chasing the comfort he so desperately needed and that he couldn’t receive anywhere else right now, as unlikely of a source as it may be. “I thought I wouldn’t be seeing you today,” the other man continued. “I wasn’t sure if the shop was open on weekends, and after you rushed off last night, well…I’m glad you came. I just wish you weren’t hurting.” Sighing, he stilled his hand on Hoseok’s face. 

 

“I just want Taehyung to be okay. He’s probably going to come to eventually, but my mind just keeps throwing these what ifs at me. What if he doesn’t wake up?” He worried his bottom lip between his teeth, feeling nauseous just thinking about it. His face slowly started to screw up again.

 

“Hey,” Lilac interjected, using his fingers to lift Hoseok’s chin. “Hey, hey, hey. I’m sure he’ll wake up. I may not know him, but he seems like he’s got a lot of fight in him, judging off of that time he rammed into me. He’s an energetic one.”

 

Hoseok looked up and gave the other man a feeble, teary smile. “That’s a bit of an understatement,” he chuckled. “He thinks your setup is pretty cool, by the way. He likes seeing you here every day—calls it ‘artsy’ even though we’re not entirely sure what you’re actually doing.” 

 

This elicited a soft laugh from Lilac. “He’s not mistaken; I am indeed an artist, albeit one that usually paints. My apartment is a mess because it also doubles as my studio. I’m kind of new to the whole endurance art thing,” he said, looking up at his red-stained ropes. “And I’m thinking I’m just going to stick to painting after this. It’s not the most pleasant experience, even though it definitely makes a statement.” Hoseok had never once assumed that it was very pleasant at all. “But thank you for making it a bit more bearable,” Lilac ended, smiling fondly. 

 

Hoseok was thankful his blush likely didn’t show at the moment because of how red his face already happened to be. He covered his bashfulness by bringing up both his hands to wipe his eyes. He felt a bit better now, having expelled all those tears from his body; having gotten the ugliest part over with. “I… It was a pleasure. I meant what I said about coming to the bakery. You should one day. I know Taehyung, if he…when he recovers,” he quickly corrected himself to avoid falling into another pit of despair. “would love to meet you. He has a lot of questions.” 

 

Lilac’s eyebrows rose ever so slightly. “And you?”

 

“I, well I… Obviously I… I have my curiosities too. And would love to, you know, get to know you as well. It’s not every day that I encounter someone dangling under a bridge looking like…” he trailed off, suddenly feeling a bit shy.

 

“Like I just murdered someone?” Lilac supplied.

 

“No…Those aren’t quite the words I’d have used,” Hoseok admitted, and thankfully, Lilac left it at that.

 

Lilac dropped his hand from the baker to let his arm hang limply, and Hoseok was a bit disappointed at the loss of contact, but didn’t protest it. “Could we… Could we talk? About anything, really. I just feel like I need to get my mind off of things for now.”

 

“Of course,” Lilac immediately agreed, and Hoseok smile mid-hiccup. 

 

It was difficult to say how much time elapsed as the two casually conversed; Lilac explaining that he’d been inspired to do endurance art after seeing the protests resulting from the corruption scandal. Each knot in his ropes was meant to represent each unnecessary casualty this misuse of power had brought on, and Hoseok found that to be kind of profound. It was starting to make more sense in his mind, even if he thought hanging from a bridge for a week was still pretty crazy. Lilac went on about these paintings he was working on, and some projects he hoped to take on in the future. He really wanted to travel around Europe for a while to gain inspiration, and Hoseok gladly listened on as the passion practically oozed off the lilac-haired man. 

 

Hoseok in turn found it soothing to talk about his childhood, and how he’d first known he wanted to be a baker. He even got a few chuckles from the other as he described some catastrophic kitchen incidents he’d caused with his determination as a young one, and the scoldings that followed from his mother. 

 

Hoseok learned that Lilac’s favourite colour was not in fact any shade of purple, but actually green because it reminded him of the lush landscape of the countryside where he’d grown up. His hair was a result of losing a bet with a fellow artist named Yoongi, which had kind of backfired because the colour really suited him. Yoongi, as it turned out, was also the one who came and helped him set up and dismantle this roped arrangement every day. A passing pedestrian had given them a weird look when Lilac mentioned Yoongi’s habit of meditating on a pile of CDs when things weren’t going his way.

 

Lilac let Hoseok in on a part of his world, and Hoseok let Lilac in on a part of his, all while Hoseok absently played with the other’s dangling fingers. A few food containers and several anecdotes later, the baker rose to his feet, figuring he ought to head back home and tend to his responsibilities. He felt lighter somehow, more at ease, and Lilac was now that much less of a mystery to him. 

 

He nearly dropped his phone when it started to vibrate, rushing it to his ear. “He’s awake? Oh, thank you for letting me know; I’ll be there in a few minutes.” He was a little breathless when he hung up, a grin stretching across his face as relief flooded his body. “He’s awake” he repeated, and Lilac replied with a smile of his own. 

 

“I’m glad. Don’t let me keep you from him now.”

 

Before he could form a coherent thought, Hoseok had sandwiched Lilac’s head between his hands. “Thank you,” he breathed before ducking down and planting a fat kiss on the other’s cheek. The one not crusted with dried red paint. He didn’t give himself time to process his action before sweeping his jacket about him and setting off on a run for his car parked on the next adjacent street. 

 

***

 

Taehyung was to stay in the hospital until at least Sunday morning so that the doctors could make sure he was stable. When Hoseok had gotten there, the boy had been lively as ever, insulting his appearance by calling him a raccoon before giggling. That was all the baker needed to know things were going to be okay. On Sunday morning, after helping Taehyung’s grandmother bring him back home, Hoseok returned to his apartment feeling considerably lighter. The moment of panic was over, and now it was just a matter of waiting for the other’s body to fully recover. 

 

No longer needed at the hospital, Hoseok could simply breathe on this last day of the weekend before the busy week started anew tomorrow. He was going to have to open shop and manage on his own, because staying closed for an extended period of time would hurt him financially. Customers would complain too, if they couldn’t get their bagel on their way to work. He expelled all of this from mind, however, as he melted into his recliner and the television to see what sitcom reruns were playing. He’d settled on a variety show instead, chuckling as the guests set about embarrassing themselves in a screaming match. 

 

A buzzing noise took him out of it, gaze slowly shifting over to the coffee table where his phone shimmied around. Hoseok leaned over to pick it up, fully expecting it to be Taehyung asking to bring him some skewers because it was a ‘food emergency’. But the baker didn’t recognize the number displayed on the caller ID. Not an unusual occurrence, given how his cellphone also functioned as the bakery’s phone. He got calls on the weekend sometimes from customers asking if he was open. 

 

Answering, it was a gruff voice that greeted him. “Hello, is this Mr. Jung?”

 

“Yes, that’s me.”

 

“I’m just calling to inform you that we’ve gotten numerous calls about a disturbance near your shop. We’ll be shutting off part of the pathway to apprehend the man and get him down from the bridge. I’m not sure yet if we’ll need to block off as far as your shop entrance, but if we do, it will be brief. It should be a quick endeavour, and we apologize for the inconvenience.”

 

Hoseok blanched. “Ah, thanks letting me know.” The officer on the other end offered a last word before hanging up, and Hoseok dropped his phone in his lap. He wasn’t open today, so it didn’t matter if they blocked his entrance. What did matter, however, was Lilac. 

 

He was up and out the door within a minute, having elected to quickly slide on his loafers, sprinting as fast as he could manage. The officer had spoken in future tense, so surely they had yet to arrive, right? Right? He just needed to get there before they did. 

 

Lilac was obliviously swinging in his usual spot, driven by his swaying leg while he stared dully up at the underside of the bridge. 

 

“Li– Hey!” Hoseok called.

 

The man perked up, smiling at the sight of the other. 

 

“Don’t move; I’ll be right back. We need to get you out of here.” 

 

Lilac looked confused, but Hoseok didn’t have time to explain right now as he ran right past. He fumbled with his keys before managing to get his store door open. Shears, shears, where had he put the shears? He hadn’t been lying when he said he had some, leftover from the days when he had shrubbery decorating the front of the shop before it had become too time-consuming to maintain. 

 

He ran back to Lilac with the shears, having located them at the bottom of the storage closet. The hanging man looked alarmed at the sight of the big, sharp object. “Look, I’ll explain once I get you to safety, but all you need to know is that cops are coming. Legs first,” he warned briefly before severing the ropes that held up his feet. And then his knees. And thighs. Lilac could now angle his legs downward as Hoseok moved along. He snipped the ropes up his torso one by one until Lilac was standing, and then he reached up to sever the last one curling around his hand. 

 

“Come on.” Grabbing the man’s hand, Hoseok ran towards his shop, pulling Lilac inside and locking the door. He peeked out the window, but could see no police officers yet. “I’d take you back to my place, but I wasn’t sure how much time we’d have. This is closer.” He turned around to find Lilac trying to work the knot around his wrist loose with one hand, face scrunched up in focus. “Here, lemme help.” He came forward and untied the knot, tossing the bit of red rope into the trash bin. 

 

The lights were off in the shop, but Hoseok figured they should get out of sight in case the cops came looking. He ushered Lilac into the back room, and only now as they both stood here did he realize how tall the other really was. He’d looked long horizontally, and that definitely translated vertically too. “Are you okay?”

 

“Yeah, I’m fine. How do you know police are on their way?” Lilac asked, looking down at the baker. 

 

Hoseok gestured for Lilac to sit on the nearby table, which he took him up on. “They called me to warn me they’d be blocking off the street. I know what you’re doing isn’t quite legal and a bit of a hazard, but I didn’t really want them arresting you or anything. I don’t think you deserve that.”

 

“Thank you,” said Lilac softly. His seated position brought them a little closer to seeing eye to eye. The man looked down into his lap. “I thought about stopping after those people yelled at me, but I thought maybe I could manage to finish the week. I guess not.” He looked a bit disappointed about that, twisting his mouth. “I suppose it’s a good thing too. I can give my neck and back a break.” Lilac rubbed the back of his neck to emphasize that point. 

 

Hoseok smiled a little sadly before hunching over to work at the knot around the man’s knee. A few rope ends still dangled from his body, the knots being tied fairly close to the body especially around the leg area. “I mean, you were only a few hours shy of a whole week. That’s impressive. I know I couldn’t have even lasted a whole day up in those ropes.” Looking up, he felt satisfied at seeing Lilac smiling. One knot came undone, rope dropping to the floor, so he moved onto the next one, crouching down to spare his back. “You really tied these tight.”

 

“I think Yoongi did that one, actually,” Lilac noted, peering over the edge of the table. 

 

Hoseok chuckled to himself before finally managing to yank this rope free too. He straightened into a standing position once more. “We’ll have to stay here for a while, at least until I’m sure the police have left.”

 

“That’s fine. I’d rather be in here with you than out there where they can find me.” He paused, eyes combing across Hoseok’s face. “How’s Taehyung, by the way? He’s better, I hope?”

 

The baker nodded. “He’s back home now. His leg needs to mend, so he’ll be off work for a while, but he’ll live.” His grandmother was going to have a heck of a time catering to his every whim, though, poor woman. 

 

“I’m relieved. I could tell he means a lot to you; that you care for him a lot more than an employer typically cares for his employee.” Lilac’s fingers found Hoseok’s hand a short distance away, loosely holding onto the end of his digits. 

 

“I do,” Hoseok agreed with a nod. “But it’s not…it’s not anything like that,” he assured him, and he wasn’t entirely sure why he felt the need to do so. “I’ve known him for a long time, and so I can’t help being a little protective.”

 

Lilac hummed in acknowledgement. “I’d do the same for Yoongi. I know he’d do it for me too, even though he insists he’d shove me in front of a bus if he could. I know he’s lying. I could see myself doing it for you too.”

 

“O-oh?” he stammered, caught off-guard by the last statement and unsure what to make of it. Before he could ponder it further, Hoseok was distracted by the sound of sirens in the distance.

 

“Here they come.”

 

Hoseok bit his lip in thought before moving towards the adjacent kitchen. “Come here, just in case.” The kitchen had no windows and was the furthest from the front entrance. 

 

Lilac slid off the table and strode into the other room, taking in all the stoves and shelves loaded with supplies and ingredients. “So this is where the magic happens, huh? I could never tell you this at the time, but you make amazing pastries. I highly anticipated when you’d come to feed me.”

 

That gave a bit of a boost to Hoseok’s pride, and overall made him feel warm. “Thanks. I’d like to think that’s why our customers keep coming back.”

 

Both turned at the faint, muffled sound of voices, conversing about goodness knows what. “Myself included,” he heard Lilac whisper behind him. 

 

“What?” Hoseok swivelled his head over.

 

Lilac flushed a deep pink. “Nothing.” 

 

The voices quieted, and Hoseok felt his heart rate going back down, but then suddenly not because oh wow–oh wow Lilac was close. The baker swallowed hard, but didn’t move to back up. He dared a glance up at Lilac’s face and instantly regretted it. All he could see was lips, breath gently fanning across his face. And just like that, Lilac retreated, seemingly losing his nerve. Hoseok was left reeling, taking in a much needed gulp of air. What was that?!

 

The next while was spent mostly in silence with Lilac milling around the kitchen, observing the equipment and Hoseok awkwardly finding sudden interest in smoothing out his hanging apron. Neither made any move to break the silence, just biding their time while they waited in here. 

 

It was Hoseok who eventually spoke. “I’ll go check if they’re still here.” Lilac nodded just as the other disappeared out the door. He carefully crept towards the front door, gluing his face to the window to peer down the street. It was empty, and he noticed there weren’t any ropes hanging from the bridge anymore. “I think the coast is clear,” he called back over his shoulder, loud enough so Lilac could hear. 

 

The latter made his appearance a moment later, looking relieved. “I guess that’s my cue to head home and wash up. I look pretty suspicious, walking around looking like this,” he said, looking down at himself. 

 

Hoseok immediately started walking to the sink. “Do you want a cloth and some soap? You could probably wash off what’s on your skin, at least.”

 

“Ah, thank you, but I really should be heading back. Once again, I…I can’t thank you enough for everything you’ve done this week.” As the taller walked towards the door, it became clear that he was about to leave.

 

On impulse, Hoseok quickly stepped forward. “Wait!” 

 

Lilac turned, question mildly written on his face. 

 

“It was nice meeting you, as unconventional as it was. Get home safe, okay?” With a hopeful smile, Hoseok reached past the other to unlock the door, and watched as Lilac walked out onto the street. With a comb of a hand through lilac-coloured hair, he was offered a wave accompanied by a dimply smile, and Hoseok couldn’t help but return it. And like that, Lilac was gone, the baker watching until he’d rounded the corner and vanished. As happy as he was that the man’s ordeal was over, he was still plagued by this odd sinking sensation in the pit of his stomach. It sat heavy in his abdomen and wasn’t very pleasant, so Hoseok grabbed a stale chocolate chip cookie for the road, ignoring how it failed to assuage the sensation as he made his way back home. It hit him that he didn’t even know the man’s actual name.

 

***

 

Monday was chaotic. He had a few cupcake orders to work on, but hadn’t even the slightest second to step out back amid the steady stream of customers. Once he’d closed up, he decided he’d hang back to catch up on what needed to get done. He just hoped he didn’t run out of pastries before the end of the day, because he wasn’t in a position to go make more right now. He was also running on the slight disappointment of not seeing Lilac under the bridge this morning, even though he’d been expecting as much. After yesterday’s incident, there was no way the man could choose to keep doing this.

 

Relief only reached him mid-afternoon, after finishing serving a group of seven. Hoseok leaned against the counter, huffing out a breath, but straightening immediately when the bell jingled, announcing the arrival of another customer. The breath was nearly knocked out of him when he saw who exactly this customer was. 

 

The lilac-haired man was very casually dressed in some slacks and a white blouse of sorts which was half tucked into his waistband. Over that he wore a long black coat, hanging open as there wasn’t really much of a need for a jacket today. Not a single speck of red paint was to be found on him, and it was bizarre to see his face looking this pristinely clean. The glasses perched on his nose were strangely endearing to the baker. The man broke into a bright grin when he made eye contact with Hoseok, smoothly striding over to the counter. “Hey.”

 

“Hey.”

 

“I was hoping to take you up on those free cream puffs?” Lilac’s eyes hungrily raked the display glass.

 

Hoseok was more than glad to oblige to the request, opening the glass from behind to plop three puffs onto a plate. 

 

“Are you doing okay? I just saw a bunch of people leaving; you must be a little overwhelmed without Taehyung.”

 

Hoseok smiled down at the counter. “A little,” he admitted. “But I’ve done this kind of thing before,” he added, not wanting the man to worry. What he was about to say next would indeed surprise the baker, though.

 

“Do you want some help? I can’t bake for the life of me, but I could maybe run the register?” He looked so sincere and hopeful then, that Hoseok wasn’t immediately able to shut that idea down with a reaffirmation that he was fine.

 

“This isn’t a plot to rob me silly, is it?” he asked, although he was just teasing. 

 

Lilac quickly shook his head, raising both his hands in defence. “I wouldn’t dream of it. That’d be a really nasty move after everything you’ve done for me.”

 

“Yet some still do it.”

 

“You’re right. But I promise that’s not…that’s not my intention. I’m sorry if it came off that way.” 

 

Hoseok shook his head, motioning for Lilac to come around the counter. “I’ll be working out here anyway after I stick a few things in the oven, so I’ll get to keep an eye on you. But I need one thing from you first.”

 

Lilac, who now stood beside Hoseok, frowned. “And what might that be?”

 

“Your name.”

 

A laugh rang out across the shop. “You don’t ask for much. Namjoon. My name is Namjoon.”

 

“Namjoon,” Hoseok repeated, letting it sit on his tongue for a bit. “Alright, Namjoon, go wash your hands, and if we’re lucky I might manage to squeeze in a quick crash course before another customer comes in.” 

 

Namjoon peeled off his jacket and nodded before eagerly scurrying off to the back room.

 

When Taehyung hobbled into the bakery on his crutches, he was surprised to see someone other than Hoseok at the register. “Oh hey, you’re that dude from the bridge!” he exclaimed his recognition, pointing a finger. 

 

Hoseok emerged from the back, a dash of flour across his cheek (definitely not because of Namjoon), face lighting up at the sight of the younger. 

 

“I see I’ve been replaced,” Taehyung said pointedly, feigning offence as he pressed a hand to his chest. “What about loyalty, huh?”

 

Hoseok tutted. “He’s the one that offered. As soon as that leg of yours gets better, you can come back to eating your burnt cookie batches.”

 

Taehyung made a face down at his cast, shifting in his crutches. Upon lifting his head back up, he took interest in Namjoon, coming closer to the counter. “So, what was the whole bridge thing about? It looked super cool.”

 

Namjoon jabbed his finger up towards the TV screen, where reporters were still going on about the corruption scandal. “I thought I’d give endurance art a try as my form of protest.”

 

The younger, whose head was tilted back to watch the male reporter on screen, nodded in acknowledgement. “Edgy.” As he looked back down, he fixed Namjoon with a serious look, cocking his head to the side. “But what I really want to know… What we all want to know… Were you wearing a diaper?”

 

Hoseok was about to step in, but Namjoon answered. “Yeah, I was. It wasn’t great. Definitely a low point in my life.” He cringed.

 

“I KNEW IT!” yelled Taehyung, which startled a man in the corner who’d spaced out while chomping on his croissant. The younger’s fist came up victoriously, simultaneously allowing his crutch to flop to the floor. “Aghhhh.” He stared down at the thing in despair.

 

Hoseok came around the counter to help him out, bending down to retrieve the crutch. As he straightened, Taehyung leaned over and lowered his voice. “So the guy who wears diapers; this is who you’re bringing into the family?”

 

The baker withheld the crutch. “Do you want me to toss this crutch to the other side of the shop?”

 

Taehyung merely smiled innocently as he accepted the object and tucked it underneath his arm. He watched as Hoseok went to rejoin Namjoon, making a point of picking up a cream puff and feeding it to the other. Taehyung pretended to gag.

 

Meanwhile, Namjoon could only flush a deep shade of red.