Part 6

“i became hypnotized by freckles and bright eyes, tongue-tied”

______

As if the universe wants to balance things out, work is particularly exhausting today, like making up for the miracle of a fact that Seri had offered to teach him how to bake. The head makeup artist is out of it, because they spend extra long until Baekhyun feels like he’s nothing but a specimen being prodded and dusted and carved.

Finally, finally, when his shoot has wrapped up (it’s already seven), his manager pulls him aside and tells him that they’ll be flying out for a fashion show in Paris in a week. His agency had apparently made the decision without thinking of running it through him first.

It takes Baekhyun all of his self-control not to groan, because he really does not want another overseas trip.

“It’s a good opportunity,” his manager says blandly. “It’ll be good for exposure as well. And besides, the trip is only for a week.”

There’s not much he can do but say he understands. Understanding isn’t the issue; never had been. Liking the decision, Baekhyun just can’t do.

Driving back to his apartment, Baekhyun nearly runs a stoplight because he’s so exhausted. He parks his car rather crookedly—the parking spot next to his is perpetually empty, so he pointedly ignores the fact that he’s much too close to the white line. When he finally unlocks his apartment door and hauls himself in, Baekhyun wants to do nothing but sleep.

… which he really should do, because he’s waking up at five to help Seri bake. Or maybe help isn't the right word—he's learning from Seri how to bake. 

That prospect cheers him up a bit. He’s run it through a couple of times: he can’t think of any reason for Seri to agree if she didn’t really want to. Besides, Sehun had mentioned that she would teach her friends, so if she's willing to teach Baekhyun, that means they’re friends. Nothing to stress about. He’s not invading her privacy or forcing her to do something she doesn’t want to do, if Sehun’s to be trusted.

Half an hour later, Baekhyun is crunching on an apple with a bowl of organic yogurt next to him. He wants to drizzle it with honey so it doesn’t taste like absolutely nothing at all, but his pantry doesn’t even house the barest essentials, much less a luxury like honey. He scrolls through the documents and instructions his manager had forwarded to him until his eyes feel like they’re going to melt into his skull.

His other phone lets out a buzz.

Readily swapping his main phone for his second, Baekhyun sets aside his half-eaten apple to squint at the screen.

[8:41pm] glucose
cat_room_8:18_PM
i designed a bit last night but its like really really rough and just a quick sketch

When he opens their messages, he realizes the picture is exactly as it’s file name reads. He can tell it’s a rough draft, like she said, with only the base color applied, but she’s sent him a sketch of a room themed around—well, cats. The bed frame. Curtains. Chair. Desk. The lamp, wall stickers; there’s even an actual cat curled up on the paw-shaped carpet.

Baekhyun gapes at the image for a long couple of seconds before belatedly realizing that he ought to save it and treasure it forever. Then after he saves it, he stares at the sketch for a couple minutes longer—even if it’s ‘really rough’ and a ‘quick sketch’, the room looks impossibly cozy and cute and warm. A grin splits his face, and does not go away.

[8:44pm] baekhyun
THIS IS SO CUTE
i don’t know how to give feedback on art but it looks like you nailed the perspective pretty well even tho it looks complex asf
and also the cats you can’t see me but my i have stars in my eyes *:･ﾟ✧(=✪ ᆺ ✪=)*:･ﾟ✧

[8:45pm] glucose
no more cat emojis :/ this is an unhealthy addiction
and im glad you like it LOL time to let my tablet rot for another 8 months

[8:45pm] baekhyun
wait did you design that room for me???????

[8:46pm] glucose
your cat emojis yesterday were just plaguing the back of my mind and i accidentally incorporated them when i was sketching

[8:46pm] baekhyun
what im hearing is you designed a cat bedroom for me

[8:47pm] glucose
take it as u want

[8:48pm] baekhyun
ok but seriously, that is insanely good for just a quick rough sketch
did you ever even just consider transferring to interior design or smtg? idk because you’re actually good at it and im pretty sure they’d accept you if you just applied
like was it your parents who tried to stop u or smtg???

[8:50pm] glucose
no, i just thought it wasn’t realistic and never bothered trying
actually

The typing bubble appears, then disappears, then reappears. Baekhyun begins to eat his yogurt apprehensively, waiting for her to finally send the text. He has finished his bowl of yogurt when she responds at last. 

[8:54pm] glucose
i haven’t really told anyone this and i feel like it’s really stupid. but when i was in second year, back when i first started dating my ex, i brought it up to him and he told me in the nicest way possible that it was unrealistic and unsustainable and stuff
and after that it was just kinda too late
so yeah i guess that still stuck with me for all those years

[8:55pm] baekhyun
yknow if i ever meet that man i’m knocking his teeth out
that’s AWFUL

[8:56pm] glucose
honestly, he was just being pragmatic

[8:56pm] baekhyun
no, not pragmatic, just awful
he literally ahd no right

[8:56pm] glucose
tbf i was the one who asked him
but anyway i’m over it
at the time i was upset that he wasn’t supporting me but in hindsight him aside it was still a good choice

Baekhyun blinks. He thinks of all the times, modeling shoots, walking down the runway, flying country to country until he’s run ragged with exhaustion. Wincing when he sees his face on a bus stop, on an ad. Pulling his cap low and mask high so no one can recognize his face. It's a sustainable and realistic choice, really, to keep modeling. He gets paid well. He’s used to it. But he hates it.

[8:58pm] baekhyun
the pragmatic choice isn’t always the right one yknow?

He knows he’s being a hypocrite for saying that. He doesn’t even have a piano to collect dust with in his new apartment like he had in his old. And somewhere, buried like common trash in one of his unpacked boxes lies piano pieces he’d composed but couldn’t find it himself to finish. Bits and pieces of an impossible hope that he has set down for more—well, for more pragmatic choices.

[9:00pm] baekhyun
for what it’s worth? i know i’m super cynical about this stuff but maybe you’ll take the shot and realise it was worth it all along
i have an early day tmrw so im heading off to bed
goodnight C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁

***

Waking up at 5am is a different type of hell, even though Baekhyun had gone to bed at ten. His entire body protests. His eyelids feel glued shut. There is no natural light coming in from the windows, which is disconcerting to say the least.

Even then, it’s excitement that has Baekhyun shrugging off his covers and heading to the bathroom to wash up. By the time he’s showered and changed and refreshed, he’s completely awake, courtesy of the same excitement that now threatens to brim over.

Pulling on a cap, he heads downstairs to find Seri.

The walk to the bakery is enveloped in a crisp morning coldness that bites a bit sharper than it does at seven in the morning. Baekhyun pulls his hoodie tighter. The streets are usually quiet but not empty when he heads to the bakery; right now, there’s no other person in sight. The streetlamps are the only source of light.

When he finally arrives at the entrance of the bakery, Baekhyun can see that though the shop itself is dark, there’s warm light spilling o