I arrived to a quiet house. Mom was as usual in the hospital. On the way home I bought meat and vegetables for dinner. After changing clothes, I went directly to the kitchen to cook and for the next hour I was drowned in what I was doing. I love singing and I love cooking as much. Mom thought me how when I was around eleven years old. The divorce was still fresh. Mom knew I would be alone most of the time and she didn’t trust strangers to come and take care of me. I learned quickly and soon enough I was able to feed myself decent food.

 

The meat was boiling in the pot when my phone rang. I picked it up and saw it was a text from Chanyeol:

 

 wanna hang out later? grandma’s not home you can sleepover :)

 

A sleepover? Something stirred from deep inside me. The last thing I wanted was to end up on the same bed with him again. I replied:

 

                                can’t. I told you mom wanted me to do a thing

 

The pot looked angry spouting out steam. I lowered the heat and added the vegetables in. Chanyeol’s reply was quick:

 

 

                                quit the bullcrap baek. i may not be as smart as you but I know something’s wrong

 

I was going to tell him nothing’s up and that I was just busy when I received another text message:

 

                                i’m in front of your house. open the door :)

 

And as if on cue the doorbell rang. “Jesus Chanyeol!” my heart wasn’t able to register my panic and anger. Now I won’t be able to dodge him. I left the kitchen and went for the front door. I took a deep breath before twisting the knob.

 

There he was, towering in front of me with that silly grin on his face.

 

“Hello Baekhyunnie,” he said. I fought back the urge to hug him. I almost forgot I was a bit angry at him for coming unannounced. I sighed and let him in. He took his shoes off and made his way to the nearest sofa.

 

“Next time please give me time to breathe,” I said running back to the kitchen.

 

“Is your mom home?” he asked from the living room.

 

“What do you think?” I yelled back. I could hear his footsteps from behind.

 

“Hey no need to be grumpy,” he said putting an arm around my shoulders. “You’re cooking dinner.”

 

“A dinner I was supposed to enjoy alone,”

 

“Aww my friend’s a loner,” he proceeded on resting his head on my shoulder. I gulped.

 

“And a serial killer. Now if you may untangle yourself from me else you want to be burnt alive,” I announced removing the pot from the heat and placing it on the sink. He laughed. Without me asking, he took two bowls from the cupboard and placed them on the table.

 

“What are you doing?” I asked him.

               

“Well I’m staying here tonight you might as well feed me, mister,” he said, one eyebrow raised. I scoffed.

 

“You have a habit of making yourself comfortable in other people’s houses,” I replied. He smirked. He helped on preparing the food. We ended up eating all the rice I cooked. That’s what happens when you let a six foot giant with a big appetite eat dinner with you.  After a hearty meal, he also offered to wash the dishes.

               

“The great Park Chanyeol doing the dishes,” I said clapping my hands. ‘’I wish I had a camera right now.” I chuckled. He stuck his tongue out at me. I found myself sitting on a chair.

               

He eventually focused on the dishes and looked away from me.

 

“It’s the least I can do,” he was silent for a few moments. When he continued talking, I wanted to bury myself in the ground.

 

“It’s the least thing I can do for my best friend to forgive me,”

 

I was speechless. Here we go again. I locked my eyes on his back with my arms crossed in front of me. I realized his coming here was to actually fish for what was bothering me. It seemed that, just like me, he couldn’t shake off the revelation in the classroom earlier. I didn’t know what to say and it’s made me feel guilty.

 

“So are you gonna tell me what I’m sorry for?” he asked looking back at me.

 

This is too much. I have to tell him soon enough. But no words came out of my mouth. I just looked at him and I was sure he could see my struggle. I shook my head.

 

He groaned.

 

 

 

 

 

Ten minutes later we found ourselves in the living room. I was passive but he made sure to give me space. I was lying down on the floor spread-eagled, the carpet soft beneath me, when I noticed he was going through his things. His forehead was creased and it was adorable to see the concentration in his eyes. I chuckled. He looked at me, forehead still crinkled.

 

“What are you doing?” I asked. I could see on his face that he was glad I was talking again.

 

“I think I forgot my shirt,” he surrendered from the rummage. He scratched the back of his head, the usual thing he does when he’s shy or uneasy. “Would you mind if I go around your house half ?”

 

I wondered how many times Chanyeol’s gonna drive me crazy before the day ended.

 

“Go ahead. It’s not as if there are other people in this house aside from us,” I stood up and headed for my room. He gave me one of his brightest smiles to date. But I was quick to burst his bubble.

 

“You’re sleeping on the floor tonight.”

 

“WHAT?” he yelled. “Just because I’m ?”

 

You have no idea how much I love to sleep beside you tonight, I said to myself as I opened my bedroom door. But “I don’t want to fall out of the bed like the last time,” was what came out. He followed me to my room and sat on my bed.

 

 

“I’m sure we can make adjustments,” he pleaded.

 

“I’m sure you can fit on the floor,” I said, smiling. I opened my cabinet and took out my unused comforter and threw it at him. “No more appeals, Yeol.” He frowned. I never saw him that annoyed in my life. I laughed.

 

“And please go take a bath. You stink.”

 

 

 

 

 

I turned the lights off while Chanyeol was in the bathroom. I wasn’t tired at all and the fact that he was with me in my bedroom made it worse. Even so, I struggled to sleep. I was on the brink of losing it to slumber when I heard the bathroom door open and steam came out. Chanyeol’s steam. Oh god. My wits came back to me.

 

I kept my blanket tucked around my arm. With eyes closed, I made sense of what’s happening outside my cocoon. I could hear the rustle of clothing and Chanyeol’s sneeze. A few moments later of total silence, I decided he was already asleep. That’s when I felt a shift of weight on my bed. He was fitting himself around me in order to house both of us on the bed. I could feel his warm flesh brushing on my back sending shivers down my spine. I still pretended to be sleeping.

 

Just then, he held my head and slipped his arm under. Now I was resting on his arms rather on my pillow. The heat of our bodies made me nervous and all I could do was move my body to fit his. I could feel his warm breath on the back of my neck. Part of me wanted to let go while the other half urged me to face him and bury my head on his chest. The scent of my soap mingling with his scent was intoxicating and I wanted to breathe it all in.

 

“Baek” he called out to me softly. “Baek are you still awake?”

 

I adjusted my head on his arm. “What are you doing on my bed?” I managed in the quietest voice I could make.

 

He laughed softly. “Can you tell me now why you’ve been avoiding me?”

 

I didn’t answer for like five minutes. If Chanyeol joins a stubbornness contest, he’d definitely be the champion.

 

“Baek did you doze off?” he lifted his head to look at me. Okay it’s now or never.

 

“You told me you love me.”

 

“What?” he asked bewildered.

 

“The last time we were in your house. You got drunk and you told me you love me.”

 

So there, I dropped the bomb right at him. Obviously there was tension around us and it grew every second as we drowned ourselves in quiet. I could feel his breath deepen behind me.

 

“So that’s why you got awkward with me suddenly?” he asked finally.

 

“Perhaps, yes.”

 

He was silent. My anticipation killed the sleep in my eyes. Then on that moment, I had a thought. That Chanyeol would now leave me alone because it would feel weird around me. It freaked me out and all I could do was tighten my fist around my blanket.

 

“What will you do if I tell you I really love you?” he shot at me again.

 

I blushed. I just felt a hot iron on my face. His voice was deep and sounded needy making it worse. Inside, I felt a glimmer of hope grow.

 

“You do?” I tried to hide the excitement in my voice. He slipped his free arm around my waist. My heart was about to burst at any moment. A raging river of sweat ran down my forehead. He then buried his face on the hollow between my shoulders and my neck before answering.

 
               

 

 

“Of course, you’re my bestest bud remember?”

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“Baek?”

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: Quick (and short) update coz I've already done the first three chapters. I have one subscriber aww thank you very much ;A; I hope you enjoy reading. I'm sorry if the pace of the story is a bit slow coz I'm building up Baekhyun and Chanyeol's relationship here.