The next Wednesday, Chanyeol made sure that his bedroom looked at least presentable, as he tossed the last of his dirty clothes on the hamper, when he was so used to just leaving them on the floor as soon as he’d changed out of them. While his family had an ample number of household staff to care for the family and clean up after them, Chanyeol had requested for his room to be off-limits as he thought too much systemization would obstruct his creative flow.

Plus, he knew where to find his stuff when he needed them—just like he knew where his Rolex Submariner would exactly be, just buried under the pile of his massive One Piece manga collection that he hadn’t been troubled to place into bookshelves yet.

He pretty much lived that way back in his apartment in L.A., which was bought for him by his parents, of course, just a 5-minute drive away from campus. The organized chaos was something he was very comfortable with, because the mess was his creation.

But then, he had a guest coming over.  Since he had been in Kyungsoo’s home and the Do family had been so welcoming, Chanyeol thought to exert some effort and cleaned up enough that Kyungsoo had sufficient space to walk in.

As soon as he was finished rearranging his keyboards, other musical instruments, monitors and microphones on the corner by the windows, Chanyeol then realized how big his bedroom actually was...

Practically as big as the dining hall in the soup kitchen...

The one thing that his father did indulge him in as a teenager was music lessons, as long as he didn’t bring home failing grades from school. Mr. Park had allowed Chanyeol to have soundproofed walls, since 14-year-old Chanyeol had become obsessed with playing the drums and would be banging away even at 3 a.m., with his oversized headphones pounding the sounds of Green Day and other grunge band at that time.

Suddenly, there was a knock on his door.

“De?” He called out, running a microfiber wipe across his main keyboard before running to the door.

“Chanyeolllie,” Bok Hee, the nanny who had taken care of him and Yoora since they were very young children, said with a smile. “Your guest has arrived.”

“Jinjjayo?” Chanyeol’s face broke into a bright smile. “I’ll be right down. Kamsa-hamnida, ahjumonie.”

Bok Hee was shaking her head in amusement as she walked away, while Chanyeol ran a hand through his hair, and put on a cap to hide his rowdy hair, and then followed the nanny downstairs where Kyungsoo looked so tiny by their front door, staring at the high ceilings of the Park’s very nice house in Gangnam.

“Kyungsoo-ssi!” Chanyeol greeted excitedly from the stairs, to which Kyungsoo turned to him in surprise, those big eyes lighting up at seeing a familiar figure in such an intimidating place.

“A-Annyeong-haseayo, Chanyeol-ssi,” the smaller guy greeted the chairwoman’s son and the nanny, wearing a gray hoodie and jeans, bowing 90-degrees. “Annyeong-hashimnikkah, eomeonim.”

“Would you two boys want something to eat?” Bok Hee asked, after returning Chanyeol’s guest’s greeting. “I’ll just take the food up to Chanyeol-rah’s room.”

“Maybe later, ahjumonie,” Chanyeol said, already eager to show Kyungsoo his room, until he looked at him in curiosity. “Are you hungry?”

Kyungsoo shyly shook his head, as Chanyeol grinned widely, summoning him to come up the stairs.

“Uh... glad you found my house,” Chanyeol said awkwardly, as Kyungsoo trailed after him. He had offered to pick up Kyungsoo from his home but the smaller guy only said that his brother would be driving him there instead.

“Hyung is pretty good with directions, so I guess it’s okay,” Kyungsoo replied, shrugging, carefully following the chairwoman’s son and making sure he didn’t knock down any expensive vase or whatever that probably cost more than his entire house.

“What time did he say he would pick you up?” Chanyeol asked, opening his bedroom door wide and entering.

“Um... not sure. Maybe after work, around 6 p.m.?”

That was great. They had about 3 hours.

It took a few moments before Chanyeol realized that Kyungsoo had stopped just outside the door.

Was he bothered by the mess?  Chanyeol could see most of the floor, so he thought the room was decent enough, cleanliness-wise.

The smaller guy’s jaw had dropped an inch, marveling at the interior, but mostly those big eyes blinked on the dedicated section where his music equipment and a couple of computers were situated. “This is your bedroom?”

Chanyeol bit his lip before a snicker escaped. “Yeah. Come on in!”

Kyungsoo let out a “Whoa...” under his breath and tentatively stepped in. So this was how a chaebol heir’s bedroom would look like. Even the carpet felt luxurious underneath his socked feet.

Chanyeol patted on the swivel chair somewhere in the middle of the room for Kyungsoo to sit on, which was in front of a microphone. He then sat on the main chair with a keyboard facing him, excitedly turning it on and his computers. “Um... are you okay if we do a sound check first?”

Kyungsoo nodded. He had been listening to the “Promise” nonstop, determined to learn the lyrics and the melody by heart, so that he wouldn’t disappoint Park Chanyeol-ssi. Seungsoo hyung had even heard him singing it the other day in the kitchen after dinner and cajoled him about maybe auditioning for SM Entertainment.

“Do you need to warm up?” Chanyeol inquired suddenly, just before he handed Kyungsoo a pair of headphones. “Like, do you need warm water...? Tea...?”

“Uh...” Kyungsoo usually would do vocalization exercises during choir practice in his younger years, but it felt embarrassing to do it in front of Chanyeol-ssi, so he simply shook his head. His throat felt a little dry, though, which he cleared subtly, as he accepted the headphones...

Which he almost dropped when he realized that they were Ultrasone ED5’s... retailing for more than 7 million KRW!

“Gwaenchanha?” Chanyeol asked in concern, as Kyungsoo shakily caught the headphones before they fell on the carpet...

Kyungsoo gulped nervously, praying to heaven he wouldn’t break them... “De, de...”

Chanyeol gave him a small grin and encouraged Kyungsoo to put them on as he wore another pair himself, just as expensive-looking. “Whenever you’re ready.” The taller one then flipped some buttons from his dashboard, which impressed Kyungsoo a lot because the chairwoman’s son seemed to know what he was doing.

Chanyeol nodded at him, whispering, “Na, deul, sed...”

Kyungsoo took a deep breath and sang the first line a capella. He almost jumped out of his skin at the sound of his voice through the headphones.

And then he heard Chanyeol’s deep laugh, which caused Kyungsoo’s cheeks to turn red.

“Don’t worry, Kyungsoo-ssi, you sound great.” The chairwoman’s son adjusted something, perhaps the microphone’s volume. “Maybe lean back a little.”

Yeah, perhaps Kyungsoo should do that. His lips were almost touching the microphone pop filter, which he knew was used to diffuse the air from being recorded.

Then he realized... Chanyeol-ssi had recorded the original version of this just days ago... had he used the same pop filter?

And Kyungsoo blushed even more, at the though of him sharing an indirect kiss with the chairwoman’s son...?

He cleared his throat again, somewhat grossly this time, and he could hear Chanyeol chuckling. “I have some bottled water here, but they’re chilled? Hope that’s okay.”

Chanyeol opened a mini-fridge and stood up to give him the water.

Dear God, the taller one even had a small refrigerator in his room!

Kyungsoo thanked Chanyeol softly and gratefully took a gulp. His throat did feel better afterwards.

“Would singing be more comfortable for you standing up?” Chanyeol suggested, as he often heard singers preferring to be upright when they did sing.

“Uh, aniyo, I’m fine,” Kyungsoo answered truthfully. He never had any problem reaching high notes, even when lying down. He sometimes sang when he had spent all those nights in the hospital, mostly singing with his mother, whom always found joy hearing her sons’ melodic voices.

“Let’s start again.”

And with that, Chanyeol resumed his seat in front of the keyboards and the controls, signaling to Kyungsoo, who became slightly more relaxed this time.

He sang the vocal part first, with Chanyeol harmonizing with him by the second verse. Kyungsoo almost couldn’t help the smile forming on his face, as he observed the taller one singing, and playing his keyboards with his eyes closed, and not missing a note at all...

And, Kyungsoo wasn’t sure if it was the high-quality headphones on his ears... but he and Chanyeol singing together sounded incredible.

Chanyeol just stopped before the rap part, to which his handsome face cracked into a full grin. He paused the recording, and played it for Kyungsoo to listen.

Kyungsoo’s round eyes grew even rounder in awe, hearing himself on the playback, and then hearing them both... “WOW!”

Chanyeol chuckled, shaking his head a bit. “It is good... but the sound is still a bit rough. Not you, but me,” he amended quickly, because Kyungsoo-ssi’s raw singing voice was flawless, for a lack of a better description. “Can we try with just you singing?”

Kyungsoo appeared as if he was a deer caught in headlights, which caused Chanyeol’s lips to tug upwards into an amused smile.

“A-Araseo...”

Chanyeol had to bite back his lower lip to restrain his smile, as his eyes now fell on his keyboards.

Damn... why did Kyungsoo-ssi look so cute to him, all of a sudden?

He played the piano accompaniment he had prerecorded the week before, so Kyungsoo could sing along with it. He closed his eyes then, relishing on the smaller one’s angelic voice blessing his ears, effortlessly serenading anyone who heard it...

What a privilege to listen to Kyungsoo singing the song he had composed...

Chanyeol’s eyes drifted open when he realized Kyungsoo had stopped singing as the melody continued playing on. He gazed at the smaller guy in bewilderment, and a shy smile formed on those lips.

There it was... Chanyeol was seeing a heart again...

“It’s the rap part, Chanyeol-ssi,” Kyungsoo gently reminded, the heart-shaped smile growing bigger.

Cute... too cute... Chanyeol couldn’t help thinking, swallowing. Maybe he was the one who needed a bottle of water.

“Uh, de,” the taller one said, a bit bashful, as he paused the recording. He his suddenly chapped lips and rewound the recording for playback, as Kyungsoo readjusted his headphones to listen in concentration.

Chanyeol’s gaze flickered over to the smaller one, watching for any reaction, no matter how subtle it might be. His own heart was beaming at the perfection that was Kyungsoo’s voice his recording software had captured. The smaller one should be nothing less than proud over what they were both listening to.

Yet, Kyungsoo’s expression