A few days passed. Minji could tell that Baëkhyun wasn’t mad at her anymore, but he was tentative around her and didn’t get too close to her. He still accompanied her when she went to work, still ate dinner with her, still watched movies with her in the evenings, but something between them had changed.

When they sat on the sofa, she didn’t snuggle up to him anymore, sitting a good meter away from him and he never moved closer. It made her feel awkward and also somewhat guilty because she thought that this was her fault. She missed their playful bickering and his cheeky comments.

Minji asked herself why men had to be so complicated all the time. Even before their argument, Baëkhyun’s behavior often hadn’t made any sense to her. He would kiss her one second and call her annoying the next, tell her he hated humans, and then spend the evening playing videogames with her. He was a walking contradiction and she constantly wondered what was going on in his handsome head. The prideful demon never told her and that likely wouldn’t change, especially not since he had become distant after their argument.

She wanted things to go back to normal between them and opted to ask Yixing for help. He knew both of them well and therefore he was the best choice for this. After she called him, he agreed to pick her up later in the evening to drive into town with her so they could talk without Baëkhyun listening in.

When the doorbell rang, she was ready to leave, having changed her clothes and applied make-up. She left her bedroom the same second Baëkhyun left the living room and they nearly collided with each other. He shot her a weird look when he saw that she was dressed up and opened his mouth to ask a question, but she was in a hurry and never noticed his intention, running to the front door and ripping it open.

“Yixing!” she said and hugged him briefly, hearing him chuckle in response.

“Are you ready?” the demon asked. He was in a good mood and happy to spend some time with his human friend.

“Yes, I just got dressed. You arrived at the perfect time,” she answered, holding her purse in her hand.

“What’s going on?” Baëkhyun’s irritated voice sounded from behind her and she turned to see him stand at the door to the living room, glaring in their direction.

Yixing smirked knowingly. “We’re going on a date,” he said, prompting Minji to gawk at him.

“I’m coming with you,” Baëkhyun answered and narrowed his eyes at the other demon.

“No!” Yixing and Minji said at the exact same time, not exactly serving to lift Baëkhyun’s bad mood.

“We want to spend the evening by ourselves. I’m sorry Baëkhyun. We‘ll go together next time, okay?” she said apologetically, knowing that she really needed Yixing’s help and it wouldn’t work if Baëkhyun listened in… However, she did feel guilty seeing his bitter frown after she told him she didn’t want him to accompany them. Biting her lip to hold in a sigh, she walked out the door with Yixing.

“If you don’t bring her back in one piece, you’re getting hell, Läy,” Baëkhyun growled lowly before they left. Yixing looked at him over his shoulder, sending him a reassuring smile.

“Noted. Don’t be so angry though, this really isn’t what you think it is,” he replied and waved as he walked down the stairs with Minji.

They ended up visiting a restaurant not too far from the Han River, being lucky enough to get the last window table before someone else snatched it away. Many people were here since it was a Friday evening and Minji spotted some couples among them who were obviously on a date. Feeling a pang in her heart, she concentrated on the menu and picked a random dish, not caring about what she would eat. She had more important things to think about after all.

Yixing studied her calmly, knowing what was going through her mind even though she hadn’t voiced it. They had already talked about what had happened with Dongmin and Minji was grateful she could confide in him. He had proven again and again what a great friend he was, always supporting her.

“I noticed that you two seem distant from each other,” Yixing finally addressed the issue and she nodded.

“It’s been all weird between us since the disaster with my ex. We both overreacted in our own way and I wish I could take back some of the things I said to him, but it has happened and I can’t undo it,” Minji sighed, fidgeting with her napkin on the table. “Baëkhyun is good at hiding his true emotions and since I can’t be sure what’s on his mind, I don’t know what to do to reverse the damage… I was hoping you could help.”

Yixing’s lips quirked up and formed an optimistic smile, the sole sight of it already reassuring her. “I can easily see that this is weighing on you, and I can assure you that it’s the same for him. He is good at hiding his feelings, but I’ve known him for centuries and it’s not that hard anymore to read him.”

“And what do you think I should do? I’m at a loss right now. I’ve apologized and we’ve been spending time together, but nothing ever changes,” she whispered desperately, already feeling the tears coming.

“You need to make him understand that you appreciate him and that he means a lot to you. How about you gift him something special? That’s what I would do in your stead,” he suggested.

“Gift him… something,” she mumbled as her thoughts began to run wild. She had gifted him a new silver chain before, but he didn’t need another one so that wasn’t an option. What else could he need? Maybe a new game for his PS4? Then again, he already had so many and she didn’t know which games he liked to play anyway. Minji put a finger to her chin, her eyes roaming through the restaurant, over tables and people, until they came to rest on a waiter who carried desserts. Her eyes lit up when she got an idea.

“I… I think I know!” she sputtered, almost knocking her chair over when she leaned forward excitedly. “Baëkhyun loves strawberry shortcake! I could make one for him.”

Yixing smiled to himself, amused at how happy she was all of a sudden. He found her eagerness to get along with Baëkhyun very endearing and wanted to support them both every way he could. Of course, he’d never tell his grumpy demon friend, but Yixing found them very cute as a couple. He was one hundred percent sure that they weren’t even official yet, but that could change…

“I’m sure he’d be happy about that,” Yixing replied lightly. “He’s going to shower you with kisses.”

The teasing tone of his voice had her blush bright red in a second and she hid her face behind her hands in embarrassment. “Y-Yixing, what are you talking about?!”

“Huh, I thought you missed kissing him,” he answered confusedly.

“How did you know that?” she asked, her eyes wide and filled with surprise. The demon smirked cheekily.

“I didn’t know—you just told me, Minji.”

“I… I can’t believe you!” she said but couldn’t hold back a laugh. “That was a smart move, I have to give you that.”

“Well, you learn a lot about humans when you spend a few decades on earth,” he grinned.

“That’s a long time,” she mumbled, pondering over it in her head. “You are incredibly good at blending in with humans. I would have never expected you to be a demon. There was not a single thing off with you, nothing at all. Baëkhyun on the other hand tells everyone that he’s a demon. He opens his mouth and shouts it in everybody’s face,” she said with a giggle, remembering his encounter with Chaeyoung. “One time he met my friend and told her that he is a demon. She thought he was doing a roleplay or something.”

“That must have been an interesting conversation,” Yixing laughed.

“It was… I was sweating so hard, fearing she would actually believe him,” she sighed and shook her head. “Thankfully she didn’t.”

“Would that have been so bad, though?”

“I want to keep her away from all this supernatural stuff. It would do no good to introduce her to demons, ghosts, and…. uh… fairies.”

Yixing chuckled. “Have you ever seen a fairy?”

“No, never. I heard they are very shy.”

“True, they rarely show themselves. Maybe you’ll get to see one… someday,” Yixing said and shrugged. “But they also like to play pranks, so you better not go looking for them. It gets annoying.”

Now he had piqued her interest, her eyes gleaming in fascination. “Really?!”

“Huh, why are you so happy about that?” Yixing laughed and shook his head in disbelief. “Fairies are cheeky; they do stuff like misplace your car keys or switch out your shampoo with dish detergent. As I said, it gets annoying to have them around.”

“Sounds like it happened to you before.”

The disgusted curl of his lips was very telling and Minji just knew that he must have been the poor victim of a bored fairy once. The idea was so funny to her that she almost cried tears laughing, prompting him to roll his eyes, but he couldn’t hold back a grin seeing her so happy.

Time passed by quickly while they were talking, and after they finished their food, they left the restaurant. It wasn’t that late yet, but the first stars and the moon in the sky were already visible.

“You know what? We should go grocery shopping before we head back… I need to get some ingredients for the cake,” Minji said.

“Good idea. That way he won’t notice what you’re planning. Do you have a recipe?”

“Yes, it’s saved on my phone,” she smiled as they walked to his car.

When she returned home, she hugged Yixing goodbye, thanking him for the beautiful evening.

“Good luck with your plan, I’m rooting for you,” the demon grinned before he left and Minji closed the front door, intending to hide the bag with the groceries as soon as possible, but of course a certain someone was faster.

“What plan?”

She flinched violently, turning around to see Baëkhyun standing in the doorway. He crossed his arms and scrutinized her from head to toe, gaze briefly darting over the bag in her hands.

“Oh… um… nothing important,” she smiled nervously. Minji had never been good at hiding things, but now she really had to do all it took because she wanted to surprise him—and surprises had the most impact when the person didn’t see them coming!

“Where did you go?” he asked, not coming closer and watching her from afar. There was a suspicious red hue in his iris.

“We went to a restaurant in the city center,” she said sheepishly and played with a strand of her long hair, curling it around her finger to distract herself from her nervousness.

“So it