The next morning Chanyeol work up feeling terrible. He blamed the poison of the margaritas, the dinner of nachos, even the cold dampness of the sand. But when he emerged from his cocoon of warm blankets he found a quietly angry Tiffany waiting for him on the deck with eyes ablaze. She was holding something in her hand and as Chanyeol approached her she threw it at him in anger. "Your friend left his necklace behind last night." Chanyeol took a deep breath and sighed.

This was not going to go well.

The choker crashed into the glass behind him and Chanyeol's world crashed down around him. Tiffany was vacillating between angry and distraught as she threw the offensive item from her hands. "A year! You're throwing away a whole year with me on that man. That messy, cheap, untidy man?" She stormed around his house, collecting the few items that belonged to her. It wasn't much. Chanyeol realised her presence in his life was minimal.

He was only worried about minimising any hurt on Baekhyun. "He's not untidy. Or any of the other things your friend told you." He hated hearing it when Baekhyun wasn't here to defend himself. "He's wonderful." Chanyeol broke down as he faced the reality of what was happening. She had to know the truth.

"He makes my heart beat. I'm so sorry Tiffany, I took him to the clinic with me, and Dr Yoo doesn't know why." He sank into the couch in tears. The last few weeks had been so overwhelming. Tiffany just stared at him. "Really?" Her voice was small and unconvinced. She didn't know what to believe. She was used to his unusual condition, she had laid her head on his silent chest many times in the last year, and a sudden wave of jealousy bubbled inside her. Why him? She had been with Chanyeol for a year and he was choosing this small, messy looking man who wore too much makeup over her? A man?

She got up and grabbed the last of her things and threw them into a large tote. She turned to Chanyeol and threw one last cut. "Now I have to go explain to Jessica that her boyfriend dumped her so he can your . You make me sick."

She was gone.

The house was silent.

Chanyeol's chest was silent.

He couldn't think of anything but running down the stairs to the waves. So he did. He dived head first into the cold salt and felt it envelope his body. It washed over his head, icy and more cutting than Tiffany's parting words, but it was refreshing and he felt so free.

He was free.

He still wasn't feeling well so he dragged his huge body out of the waves and up the stairs again. His legs felt like they were made of lead. No more tequila. Ever.

He poured coffee and looked at his phone with expectation but there was no message. He really had his hopes up but then he remembered Baekhyun's words.

"You can text me when you're single. I won't be the third wheel."

The ball was in Chanyeol's court. His hands shook as he began to type out the text.

Baekhyun woke up feeling slightly hungover, slightly cheap, but also giddy with happiness. It hurt him to leave Chanyeol hanging last night. The more the man kissed him