When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you,
till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer,
never give up then,
for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn.

- Harriet Beecher Stowe

_

__________________


 

Baekhyun looked at the man in front of him who was wearing nothing but Baekhyun's spare towel.

"Why aren't you wearing anything?"

Chanyeol gave him that 'obviously dude' look and said

"Because my clothes got wet. And I didn't carry spare clothes with me for this sleepover at my best friend's place."

Baekhyun crossed his arms on his chest, shifted his body weight from left leg to right then pushed the bridge of his glasses closer to his skin and said,

"You don't talk like that to your elders."

Chanyeol made a mocking face and said,

"I am not a sixth grader. Are you in high school or what?"

"No, I am not a high schooler."

Baekhyun said, smiling to himself his cunning smile, knowing he's going to win the conversation anyway. He's expert at this by now.

"Just, how old are you kid?"

Chanyeol asked confidently.

"26."

Baekhyun sighed pushing his hands inside his pajama pockets.

The expression on Chanyeol's face was worth a million dollar. Mouth hanging low and eyes popped out.

"Don't lie."

"Ain't lying. I am the head psychologist in the city hospital."

Baekhyun shrugged proudly. Chanyeol tried to blink away his embarrassment but it's not that easy, is it?

"There's hot chocolate for you in the living room. Have it while I get you some clothes."

"No need f-"

"Shut the up and do as I say."

Chanyeol blinked again while staying at a loss of words, then nodded slightly to answer.

Baekhyun quietly tiptoed into Kai's room to draw a shirt and pajamas. There's no way on earth Baekhyun's clothes would fit that giant Yoda.

He came out of the room and smiled on seeing Kai sleeping peacefully on his bed. Then closed the door and moved to the living room. He casually threw the clothes on Chanyeol and sat on the sofa.

"Just wear them for tonight, we'll go shopping tomorrow to buy you some clothes. And that is after you explain to me why you were doing bungee jumping on the bridge."

"I don't feel like it right now Baekhyun."

"That's fine. Take your time."

"Thanks."

"That's fine, also, call me hyung."

It was quiet for a minute or two.

Chanyeol sipped on the hot chocolate and suddenly out of blue said,

"I don't know what to do with my life anymore. It's like, nothing's left anymore. Why am I even here? Why did you even save me?"

Baekhyun, on realizing that Chanyeol is becoming bleak again, got up from his sofa and went closer to Chanyeol and sat next to him. He took a deep breath and took both of Chanyeol's hands in his own and looked into his vulnerable glassy eyes and said,

"Chanyeol, I don't know what has happened to you but I know one thing and that is- Nothing, Nothing I say, is worth giving up on life."

A tear fell from Chanyeol's eye and Baekhyun immediately used both his hands to cup Chanyeol's face in them. His thumbs resting on his cheeks, wiping away the tears. Chanyeol was moved by Baekhyun's sincerity and more tears started falling.

Baekhyun kept wiping his tears and then very gently he went closer to Chanyeol's forehead and kissed it. Chanyeol gulped at this and his tears stopped falling any further.

"Chanyeol, sometimes what we think is the end is only the interval. We give up in the bad times unknowing the good times are so close to us. Life isn't always about winning, sometimes it's just surviving the night."

Chanyeol nodded at this and Baekhyun got up slowly.

"Chanyeol, let's go sleep."

"Yeah."

As soon as Chanyeol started walking towards the guest room Baekhyun called for him,

"Hey kid, where do you think you're going?"

"To the room."

Chanyeol said hesitantly.

"You're sleeping with me, come on."

Chanyeol's eyes popped out on hearing this.

"What? No!"

"Hahaha. Not like that idiot. Haha."

Chanyeol looked confused.

"It's just to make sure you don't go bungee jumping from my windows."

Chanyeol though embarrassed, agreed to it knowing that there's no way he could convince Baekhyun otherwise.

______________

"Look somewhere else. I need to change."

Chanyeol said standing in Baekhyun's room.

"Not like I am interested in seeing you ."

"What if you are?"

"In your dreams."

Baekhyun teased the younger before throwing the bed sheet on himself and going to sleep. After all, Baekhyun was never interested in seeing men .

______________________

It was 2 am when Chanyeol screamed out waking himself up. He opened his eyes to find Baekhyun's arm wrapped around his torso.

Baekhyun looked beautiful this way. No bossy aura, no cursing tongue, no attitude issues, no 'call me hyung' just calm and asleep. Chanyeol smiled to himself at his thoughts and tried to get out of bed slowly by Baekhyun's grip only tightened.

Giving up on his idea of getting out of bed, he lied down on the bed again and wrapped the blanket around himself and the elder and went back to sleep.

Little did he know that Baekhyun woke up at his scream and was doing this purposely only to see Chanyeol's reactions. He wanted to see that if Chanyeol would attempt to kill himself again or not. However, the results seemed positive. His case seemed easier than Sehun's or Kai's.

Baekhyun smiled and hugged the Yoda tighter and embraced sleep.

Tomorrow he was going to have a long day. He needed a good night's sleep.