A light ‘whoosh’ could be heard as Chanyeol finally emailed the remix to his manager to send to the client. He had raced against the deadline because what was supposed to be a two-month project was tragically cut down to a month when Chanyeol notified his manager that he was to return to Seoul on the first week on February. ‘I really don’t give a rat’s where you’re going and when you’re going as long as you submit all the tasks at hand,’ his manager had mumbled without even looking up from his work.

It was half an hour before boarding and Chanyeol finally rose up from his seat in the airport lounge. The lounge was drunken on faint shades of pink and orange from the sunset. Chanyeol glanced around and was unsurprised to notice that he was the youngest in the room. Just slightly over 30 and he had earned his way into the first-class lounge, his net worth probably far exceeding all the other middle-aged business persons he shared the space with. Trudging out of the sliding doors, Chanyeol adjusted his baseball cap and threw on an oversized hoodie before making his way to the duty-free store. The wedding was to take place the very next day and Chanyeol would have to go directly to the hotel. Minseok’s family had always treated the other eight as if they were their own sons, so Chanyeol knew he couldn’t arrive at the venue empty-handed. Two rounds around the store and Chanyeol picked the newest fragrance that apparently was a London limited edition. Just as he was about to pay, he spotted a small tin can, on it were the words: ‘Waterproof plasters. Strawberry-scented.’ and next to the lettering, a drawing of a field of strawberries. Intuitively, he picked up the can and placed it on the counter together with the perfume. ‘That will be £200.90.’ Chanyeol paid up, dropped the purchases into his duffel bag and made his way toward the boarding gate.

The Hallyu wave had died down quite a bit ever since some of the major idol groups had disbanded over the years. Together with the idols who were approaching 30 and had one by one enlisted, starting with Minseok then Kyungsoo, their fanbase had shrunk considerably. Truth be told, Chanyeol was, to a certain extent, glad about the change and for the first time in over a decade, he could safely saunter out of the arrivals gate without being escorted by bodyguards to his left and right. If his fans had known Chanyeol would be returning to Seoul, no doubt there would still have been a commotion, but he had turned up unannounced, so apart from the odd passerby, there were few that noticed the return of the superstar.

Chanyeol flagged a cab and arrived at the hotel an hour before the ceremony. He could already spot a huddle of fans from afar, crowding at the entrance of the hotel, hoping to catch a glimpse of their ‘oppas’. It was an interesting sight. Chanyeol had left the Korean music scene for so long he had almost forgotten how boyband fans behaved, so endearing and frightening at the same time. It was also funny to see their fans age along with them: from young high school teens to the groomed women they were now, but nonetheless, still reserving a special place in their hearts for EXO, disbanded or otherwise, supporting their individual endeavours but dreaming about a day, much like this one, when they would all come together again.

Chanyeol hopped off the cab and snuck into the hotel via the back door. The second floor of the hotel was enclosed from the public and it was decorated with peonies, roses and hydrangeas. It was a truly glorious sight. The path that led to the banquet hall was sprinkled with flower petals, a cream-coloured carpet lining the length of the corridor. Peering into the banquet hall, Chanyeol could already spot Minseok darting around making final adjustments and the rest of EXO sitting on the steps of a choir-stand on the stage. The stand was to be used for the obligatory photo-taking session as well as their performance of ‘Beautiful’. Jongdae was busy tuning the guitar on stage while the other members seemed to be having fun on their own. Chanyeol walked in and quickly bowed in courtesy to Minseok’s parents, just to be met with a suffocating hug. ‘Chanyeol! You’re back! Look at you, you’ve shrunk by a whole size! Poor boy, what has London done to you!’ Minseok’s mom cooed.

Before long, Chanyeol could hear s hollering from the stage as Minseok half hugged, half dragged him toward the band of hooligans. ‘Park Chanyeol!’, ‘Hyung!’, ‘Broooooo!’ Chanyeol had never known he bore so many titles as each of the members flung themselves onto him.

Junmyeon, the usual sentimental one, was seen suppressing tears as he enveloped Chanyeol in a wholehearted embrace, ‘We’ve all missed you. A lot.’

‘Well, well, well, look who we have here?’ Kyungsoo emerged from the crowd, ‘Finally back are we?’

Chanyeol turned to face the members and all of a sudden, was lost for words. All of them had aged visibly, not that they weren’t a sight to behold all the same, but time never spared a soul, not even the kings of Hallyu as they were once known. He didn’t know what to say and unsurprisingly, the first words that rolled out were, ‘I’m sorry.’ ‘

Huh?’ Sehun was the first to answer, ‘Sorry for what?’

Kyungsoo got the message in an instant and playfully hit him on the shoulder, ‘It’s been three years, Chanyeol. Even if you haven’t gotten past it, everyone else surely has so stop being a party pooper and… AND HAVE YOU MEMORISED YOUR LINES????’ Kyungsoo cut the sentimental monologue short.

Chanyeol was rooted to the ground in shock as the other members laughed from the stands.

‘If we’re to keep up our reputation, we’d better get this rehearsal started,’ Minseok clapped. ‘

We’re still missing our lead,’ Jongin remarked, tying the leash of his puppy onto a nearby chair. Of course Chanyeol had noticed. In fact, the very first thing that struck him was that Baekhyun was not in the hall.

If Chanyeol had imagined it, it sure was a momentary notion because just when he thought Kyungsoo and Minseok had suddenly tensed up at the mention of Baekhyun, the pair had jogged offstage in a bid to bring Baekhyun back and get the rehearsal rolling.

The remaining members sat around Chanyeol, probing him to tell them about his life in London.

‘Did you manage to go to a Chelsea match?’ Jongin piped.

‘Bro, ignore him, I swear Manu’s doing better this season,’ Jongdae countered.

‘I heard Paris is just an hour’s train ride from London! Have you ever just been for tea or something?’ Sehun asked.

‘Idiot. It’s at least 3 hours away even by Eurostar, get your facts straight,’ Suho whacked the back of Sehun’s head.

Chanyeol chuckled and his attention was soon diverted toward a small figure waddling towards him, flanked by Kyungsoo on the right and Minseok on the left. Kyungsoo had his arm around the smaller man’s waist and Chanyeol couldn’t help but wince because his last memory of the figure in the middle was quite different from what it was now.

As if the stage had suddenly been muted, a wave of silence swept over the members as their pupils darted toward the approaching figure and then back to Chanyeol.

There he was, Byun Baekhyun, the one whose every action and every word used to mean the world for Chanyeol. But he was also the one who broke Baekhyun’s heart into smithereens.

Baekhyun’s glance was fixated on the ground, eerily cautious of each and every step. Chanyeol could only gape at Baekhyun. If he was lost for words just now, he was doubly, if not triply anxious now. This was a sight that had appeared in Chanyeol’s dreams time and again. It started as a nightmare, pangs of guilt that rendered him sweating and breathless every time Baekhyun’s tear-soaked face appeared. Months later it was longing, a sense of regret for having left Seoul, wanting to hold him and touch him one last time. Then in recent years, all that was left was a sore aching that resurrected whenever Chanyeol so much as heard Baekhyun’s name from s’ anecdotes or worse still, merely smelt the fruity scent of strawberries.
Chanyeol wanted to tangibly capture the image in front of him. It was so beautiful, so divine and elegant, and so unlike the rowdy little boy he had shared a room with for most of his idol career.

The crescents of Baekhyun’s eyes were still curved in an inverted half-moon shape, his cheeks way less plump than before but still rosy pink, those lips of his thin and pursed, but as with his previous observations, Chanyeol knew time had taken its toll. Baekhyun’s jawline was more defined and the wallows of his cheeks more apparent.

After what seemed like centuries, Kyungsoo finally cleared his throat. ‘Great, now that we’re all here, let’s get started!’ He nodded toward the live band perched just under the stage and the intro resounded gently.

‘안녕 내게 다가와, 수줍은 향기를 안겨 주던 (Hello, you came to me, Giving me your shy scent in my hazy dream)’ Kyungsoo began. Chanyeol was taken by surprise because he had expected to hear Baekhyun’s voice. Kyungsoo continued for the rest of the verse.

When the chorus arrived, it was Jongdae’s turn, ‘너의 곁에 남아너의 미소에 내마음이 녹아내려 (I'll stay with you and smile in your smile),’ he sang and Chanyeol remembered how he used to be lowkey jealous of how effortless it was for Jongdae to hit the high notes.

It wasn’t until the line, ‘You’re beautiful’, that Chanyeol finally heard Baekhyun’s voice but he stopped just as quickly as he started, just that one line: ‘You’re beautiful’.

The rest of the song went by with few hiccups until it was Chanyeol’s turn. ‘알 수 없는 강한 이끌림, 너를 향한 나의 두날개, 펼쳐주고 싶어 (With this mysterious and strong attraction, I want to spread my wings toward you)’. To any of the vocals, the mid-range tone in this line would have been as easy as singing the ‘A-B-C’s, but to a rapper like Chanyeol who took pride in his rumbling bass and raspy voice, it was nearing on impossible. Four tries later and even Chanyeol himself was growing impatient.

‘I see it’s been a while since you last sang, eh?’ Suho joked, patting Chanyeol on the back.

‘I never could reach those notes!’ Chanyeol answered defensively.

Sehun nodded in sympathy, being a rapper himself.

Minseok chuckled, ‘How about we swap lines? I can do yours and you do mine.’

Chanyeol hesitated and located Minseok’s lines on the lyric sheet. ‘Aren’t yours pretty much the same range as mine though…’ Chanyeol sighed.

The ones who could reach those notes already consumed over two-thirds of the song and based on the fact that Minseok’s sister was such a huge fan of Chanyeol’s they didn’t want to disappoint and leave Chanyeol merely appearing in the chorus.

‘I think I just need a little support, to be honest,’ Chanyeol examined his lines once more. ‘I just need some help over here and here. The others I can handle.’

‘I can help with that,’ a voice piped up in front of him. It belonged to none other than Baekhyun.

‘No, Baekhyun, you stick with your own lines. I can help this ,’ Kyungsoo volunteered, smacking Chanyeol’s shoulder with a folder.

‘Ow! Screw you, I agree with Baekhyun. Let him sing with me, he’s so line-deprived anyway. You guys practically looted all of his lines…’ Chanyeol said in protest, largely fighting against the injustice of being made Kyungsoo’s personal punching bag.

Kyungsoo glanced over at Baekhyun in concern, ‘Are you sure about this?’

Baekhyun grinned the widest grin Chanyeol had seen so far. ‘What’s not to be sure about? I haven’t sung a duet with Chanyeol all these years!’

Chanyeol looked at Baekhyun who finally rose up from his spot at the edge of the stand and walked toward himself. Goodness, was he beautiful, Chanyeol thought. The audiovisual and lighting crew were fumbling with the stage effects and a beam of light hit Baekhyun midway. At that very moment, Chanyeol could swear he had seen an angel. Baekhyun’s pale complexion glistened under the artificial halo and his hair, which Chanyeol was used to seeing in an unkempt, messy clump, was now sleek and gelled back. To make matters worse, they were all suited up and Baekhyun stood out in particular as he was the only one who was lucky enough to be wearing a velvet suit. What a glorious and bewitching sight.

Chanyeol could hardly tear his gaze off Baekhyun if not for the live band that cued his entrance. ‘알 수 없는 강한 이끌림, 너를 향한 나의 두날개, 펼쳐주고 싶어 (With this mysterious and strong attraction, I want to spread my wings toward you)’. It was way easier this time as Baekhyun provided the support Chanyeol needed for those higher notes.

Baekhyun had shifted to stand next to Chanyeol for the purpose of allowing Chanyeol to grasp those notes but he was standing so fearfully close that it was driving Chanyeol mad. The smell he had grown so accustomed to over the years was wafting toward him. The sweet smell of strawberries that Baekhyun used to claim ‘smelt of home’ and not just that, but the cologne Baekhyun used to apply hadn’t changed.

The sudden attack on his senses, together with the angelic voice that slid beneath his own raspy tone, and Chanyeol knew that all the anticipation and longing these years were worth the wait.

To be honest, I'm just hoping that this fic will turn out into a simple post-EXO story with melancholic anecdotes on the side... I've been trying to cut the drama and just focus a lot more on the relationship (pre and post disbandment) between ChanBaek and now I miss them ;-; Who's a thirsty hoe for ChanBaek content like myself D':

Anyway, thanks for reading as usual! Subscribe and comment xx 

P.S. 'Beautiful' is one of my favourites and I'll later cue 'Don't Go' which is my actual number one Kpop song <3
P.P.S. Baekhyun's new youtube channel gives me life - I spent 30mins watching his 6min44sec new vid last night because I kept replaying the cute bits omg