Second Chances

Idol training is hell. It is pure hell. Combined with his pre-existing schedules, Baekhyun wakes up at 5 and practically goes to sleep at 5 as well. It seems like CEO Do's plan isn't to ruin Chanyeol's company anymore but to ruin his sleeping schedule. "Finally, sleep," he muttered and let himself fall onto his bed only to have to get up no less than 45 minutes later. 

Thankfully they were quick to notice he doesn't have the stamina to debut as an idol on top of a model and decided to focus on his vocal practice and turn him into a soloist instead. But still, the hours of vocal practice he puts in can't be healthy. 

"You have quite dark undereye circles," his make-up artist of his shoot, Haseul, commented while she was applying concealer on them. 
"I don't get a minute of sleep nowadays. They're debuting me as a soloist soon and they're combining it with my already busy schedule. I feel like I'm about to crumble away from sleep-deprivation," he complained tiredly.

He was afraid to close his eyes to allow Haseul to apply his eyeshadow because he'd fall asleep in no time. "Ah, I see. I already had a feeling that was a case. It happens often here. Idols turn into models or actors, or the other way around. Their schedules get piled up and they get overworked. The company expects them to work harder than the human body can handle, but what can you do? You're chained by an A4 sized paper," she said in a calm and soft voice while continuing to do Baekhyun's make-up. 

"Not to scare you, it gets better after a while. They find their balance point and manage to plan in some naps to gain some sleep throughout the day. Plus, the passion and love you have for the job is a motivation as well," she reassured. "I hope you find that balance point before your debut so you won't get overworked quickly. I'll be rooting for you," she said with a kind smile and put down the make-up brush. "Off to hair and clothes you go!"

A shoot and a two hour vocal practice session later and Baekhyun found himself finally taking a rest in his own apartment. His vocal instructor said they could cut down the amount of sessions by half which gave Baekhyun a five hour gap before he had to go to an event. 

Sleep. That's what he would do for the next five hours. He landed onto his mattress and closed his eyes for less than half a minute before being disrupted again by his ringing phone. "Come on! Not even 30 seconds of sleep?" he shouted and angrily answered the call. 
"What?!" he snarled into the phone. "Woah, woah, it's just me. I wanted to ask you if you'd like to catch up but I assume you're busy," the caller answered. Baekhyun sighed and massaged his temple with his thumb. "Sorry, Jongdae. I've been overloaded with work recently and switched agencies and I'm really, really tired," he said. He was so cranky and easily pissed off due to the lack of sleep that he accidentally snapped at Jongdae. "It's fine, I get where you're coming from. Do you want me to just come over instead? It'll save you the effort," Jongdae proposed and Baekhyun hummed in response. "Sounds good, I'll see you in a few then."

Baekhyun had a quick cup of coffee and tidied up his apartment before he heard the doorbell ring. "Come in," he said once he opened the door and let Jongdae enter his home. "Thanks for having me eventhough you're tight on schedule," he said while hanging up his coat and taking off his shoes. "It's fine, I could deal with some company. It gets pretty lonely lately, especially after transferring companies," Baekhyun said and pressed the button of his coffee machine. "Do you still drink it black?" he asked. "Actually, no," Jongdae responded and shook his head. "The doctor said to cut down on caffeine so I started drinking it with cream and sugar," he continued. Baekhyun had a content smile on his face and took the pot of sugar out of his cupboard.

"Look at you, being all responsible and taking care of your health for once," he joked and added one teaspoon of sugar along with a splash of cream in Jongdae's cup before handing it over to him. "Thanks. I've been meaning to ask you something, by the way," Jongdae said. Baekhyun looked at him with curious eyes, wondering what was on his mind. 

He had wanted to ask Baekhyun if he had thought about what he had said, a few weeks ago, after he had come to him for advice after his 'divorce'. He wanted to know if he had even considered going back to him, but when he saw how tired Baekhyun was after this stressful week, he decided not to. "Why did you transfer companies?" was what he said instead.

Baekhyun let out a heavy sigh and put his coffee cup on the table. "I'm not even sure if I'm allowed to say this, but I trust you enough. My old company almost got sold to another one, which would put the employees at risk. Not the models or anything, they'd be fine. But the make-up artists and stylists could risk getting cut. And it turns out the man behind it had a personal grudge against..