Baekhyun had trouble breathing evenly. His chest heaved up and down uncontrollably. He could hear his blood rush through his ears, blocking the other exist sounds around him. His head spun. His steps were wobbly and unstable.

It took him lots to walk back to his house. Baekhyun had come home earlier due to the sudden fatigue he felt. His eyes turned really heavy and hot because of the crying he did in the school. And his throat really hurt since he had held his tears throughout the journey to his home.

Now Baekhyun just wanted to sleep all of his exhaustion off and forgot about everything had happened today, and hoped that it was all just a dream.

His mother was still at work, and Baekhyun was grateful so he didn’t have to face his mother in this condition. He didn’t bother to change his clothes, and just crashed his body to his bed which now felt like a board of steel instead of mattress.

Everything hurt, and in that moment, Baekhyun wished that someone could tear his heart out from his chest so he wouldn’t feel the unbearable pain.

Baekhyun closed his hurting eyes, and took a deep sigh, forcefully holding his tears to spill out again. But when he closed his eyes, only the painful memories came to his mind.

He cursed under his breath when the image of Mr.Heechul was calling him back there at the school, saying ‘Byun Baekhyun, there’s someone who wants to meet you. I didn’t know that you’re close with a celebrity.’

At that time, Baekhyun was confused at first. Celebrity? Celebrity who? But when he entered the student council room, the place where the said celebrity was waiting for him, Baekhyun came to acknowledge that, oh of course Chanyeol’s dad was considered as a celebrity. He was once a singer and now a popular music producer and CEO for a big music company.

“Mr.Park? Oh, I’m sorry, good afternoon, Mr.Park,” Baekhyun took a bow to the elder man.

The latter was like the last time Baekhyun met one week ago. His face was still stiff as ever, and his eyes looked blank but there was a glint of...hatred, or was that disgust?

The elder man didn’t return Baekhyun’s greeting, and just stood up from a big chair, Baekhyun’s chair as the student council president. Mr.Park walked towards him, towering him. His high was the same as Chanyeol, and the only difference was that Baekhyun never felt intimidated when Chanyeol was towering him.

“I’ll straight to the point of why I came here to meet you, Baekhyun,” the elder Park spoke up, voice was just slightly less deeper than his son. There wasn’t anyone in the room, so Baekhyun could clearly hear what Chanyeol’s father said a second later, “You have to break up with Chanyeol.”

Baekhyun couldn’t say that he didn’t see it coming. He had prepared for the worst for the other day they met. But Chanyeol’s parents seemed really calm at their last meeting, and with one week had passed without any problem, Baekhyun though that they were okay.

Everything was just too good to be true, and Baekhyun should’ve known from the start.

But even though he somehow had predicted it, he couldn’t deny that, yes, he felt like his heart was slammed right to the floor when he heard the ultimatum came out from the elder’s mouth.

Baekhyun swallowed the lump on his throat, trying to find his voice, “may I know why, Sir?”

“Chanyeol can’t date a guy,” Mr.Park deadpanned.

“But we love each other,” Baekhyun countered, somehow found his courage and strength, “a lot.”

Mr.Park snorted, “you guys are still in high school. What do you know about love, young man?”

Baekhyun gulped, “I know it enough that I want to spend my life with your son, Sir.”

“Bull,” Chanyeol’s dad snapped, and Baekhyun flinched because their faces were so close. “You still have a long way to go. I know that you’re smart, and you’re also a council president. Your future is bright, Baekhyun. You’ll meet someone else, either a boy or a girl. You’ll meet your soul mate later. You’re still so young.”

“I’ve found mine already, Sir,” Baekhyun replied.

Baekhyun tried his best to keep his composure, not breaking down into a disgusting sob in front of the elder man. He wanted to defend his relationship with Chanyeol. He wanted to prove to Chanyeol’s dad that what he had for his son was real. But now Baekhyun knew where Chanyeol got his stubborn personality.

“Have you thought about Chanyeol’s future, Baekhyun?” Mr.Park turned down his tone, but his eyes still stared hard to Baekhyun’s. “Chanyeol wanted to become a musician, a well-known person in the future. What do you think the public would react if they know that he’s dating a boy?”

Baekhyun opened his mouth to argue but he closed it immediately, slowly letting the words sink in. Baekhyun knew that Chanyeol always wanted to become a musician. The latter had mentioned it a hundred of time. And it just came down to him that Mr.Park was probably right.

But after all this time, all his friends in the school always supported them, right? Maybe some of them against it because they were homophobic, but the majority were behind his and Chanyeol’s back, saying that they were the cutest couple in school or anything. But then, what if it was true, that the public in general still didn’t approve. What if their relationship would become the barricade of Chanyeol’s dream?

Seeing that Baekhyun was silent, Mr.Park kept going, “think about it again, Baekhyun. You want the best for Chanyeol, right? I guess you’re too blind because of love that you forget that Chanyeol’s future is important. We’re in the same side here. I want the best for my son, too. And for you too, I know that you want to be a singer later.”

Baekhyun turned his palms into fists, pressing them hard until he could feel his nails were digging into his skin. Trying to hold his tears, Baekhyun also bit his lips as hard as possible that he could feel the metallic taste in his mouth.

He hated to admit it but, Mr.Park had a point. A very true point in fact. Chanyeol’s future was important. Baekhyun never thought about it before this, and the fact hit him really hard that he didn’t had it in him again to keep his tears inside.

As if Baekhyun’s head wasn’t in chaos enough, the next thing Mr.Park uttered succeeded to destroy every bit of Baekhyun into pieces.

“Besides, I already matched Chanyeol to marry Namjoo.”

~

“Chanyeol, calm down.”

Yura tried to grab Chanyeol’s hand in order to hold him back from barging into their parents house. But Chanyeol was mad, beyond furious, that he blocked all of his senses. His blood boiled, and he can’t even think straight anymore. Yura wouldn’t be able to hold her brother even if she did catch Chanyeol’s arm anyway, so Yura just silently prayed that there would be no blood shred in this upcoming argument which 100% would happen in a spare of one minute from now.

As soon as Chanyeol arrived at the front door of his parents’ house, he immediately pounded loud on the door that Yura grimaced at the hard contact between Chanyeol’s hands and the wood door.

“Open the door,” Chanyeol growled. He didn’t care anymore if he was being impolite to his parents. “It’s me. Chanyeol.”

“Chanyeol-ah, please come down. You can’t yell like that to mom and dad,” Yura pleaded. She knew that her parents, or maybe she should say, her dad was crossing the line. Their dad had no right to do that to Chanyeol and Baekhyun.

Yura clearly remembered how enraged Chanyeol was when the latter called her when she was still at work, finishing her broadcast. Her brother told her that Baekhyun broke up with him without any reason, and he was told by Jongin that the latter saw his father came out from student council room, and a puffy-eyed Baekhyun followed after. Her brother knew right away that his dad indeed was the reason Baekhyun cut off their relationship.

Chanyeol told her to pick him up at the school to go to their parents’s house. Yura knew that Chanyeol could go by himself, but she assumed that he needed Yura so in case he lost control, Yura would be the one who will calm him down.

And now here they were, Chanyeol aggressively still pounded on the door with his palm curled into fist. He once again ignored Yura’s words, and kept going until the door was finally opened, revealing their confused mother behind the door.

“Chanyeol? Yura? What are you-” Mrs.Park’s sentence was cut off immediately as Chanyeol barged in the house without his mother permission.

Chanyeol looked frantic when he came in. He didn’t need to search for his dad since Mr.Park was already in the living room.

“Dad,” Chanyeol breathed out heavily, and Yura could only look worriedly, hoping this wouldn’t turn out into a fists battle. Their mother looked clueless at first, but then she finally registered what happened.

Mr.Park looked up from the daily newspaper he read, and only spared Chanyeol a glance before turning back to his newspaper again, not uttering a single word.

It only made Chanyeol more upset. He stomped his feet toward his father, standing firmly in front of his sitting father. “What did you say to Baekhyun?” Chanyeol asked with a low voice.

Yura flinched at the sound, because she never heard Chanyeol like this, and it just scared the hell out of her more.

“What do you mean?” Mr.Park finally responded, now putting down his newspaper and focusing on his red-faced son.

Chanyeol was trying his best to keep himself together. As much as he wanted to spit out all of his anger, he knew it would be totally disrespectful. This was his parent after all.

“Baekhyun broke up with me,” Chanyeol said with layers of pain in his voice.

“What does it have to do with me, son?”

Chanyeol took a deep breath, trying to suppress his anger. “I know you came to school today, Dad. Jongin saw you came out from the same room with Baekhyun.”

“It didn’t mean anything,” Mr.Park stated.

“He ing broke up with me, Dad,” Chanyeol groaned as he took a bold step toward his father.

“Chanyeol, your language,” his mother stepped up, too.

The situation started to heat up, and Yura really didn’t know what to do. She just took unconscious steps toward her brother, keeping their distance close in case Chanyeol lost his fist.

Chanyeol ran both of his hands through his hair, making his hair stick out here and there. He desprately heaved a breath before he talked again. “What did you say to Baekhyun, Dad? Did you ask him to break up with me?”

Chanyeol knew that his father did it. He just needed confirmation and wanted his father to tell the reason. But his father shut his mouth up.

“Why, Dad?” Chanyeol whimpered. His anger had subsided, and only pain left. “Why did you do that? You know Baekhyun is my life.”

Yura swore that she saw her father was flashing an emotion in his face, but she can’t pinpoint what it was. Without her realizing, she already stood beside Chanyeol, tugging him at his wrist, so Chanyeol could have the strength to talk and stand.

“Son,” Mr.Park started. “What you have with Baekhyun was just a fling. Puppy love. You were just still in your way to search your identity. I see you were bored with girls so you want to try with boy. But I think it’s time to stop, and I did that so it would be easy on your side. You don’t have to sweat yourself to break up with him.”

Yura’s grip on Chanyeol’s wrist tightened. She gulped nervously because dammit, their father was ing messed up. She prayed to all the Gods above to give Chanyeol all the patience in the world.

“Who says that?” Chanyeol responded with a dangerously calm voice. “Who says that it’s just puppy love? Who says that I’m searching for my identity, and I was only bored with girls? That’s really ridiculous, Dad. Where did you even get those ideas?”

“I’m your father, Chanyeol. I know everything about-”

“You know nothing about me, Dad,” Chanyeol snapped, his body leaned forward, as if he wanted to strangle his dad. And at that exact moment, Yura realized that Chanyeol had lost all of his strings. “If you said or think of me like that, then you know nothing about me. Nothing at all.”

“Chanyeol-ah,” Yura murmured as she held Chanyeol.

Mr.Park finally stood up, and his eyes met Chanyeol in a straight line. “I may know nothing about you. But I know about life.”

Yura seriously wanted to push his father away because he seriously had crossed the line. But she silently praised Chanyeol’s endurance on this. Baekhyun’s patience seriously had rubbed on her brother’s , too.

Chanyeol shook his head in amazement, and scoffed a little. “Fine. Just so you know, Dad, I’m going to get him back. I would never let him go.”

Just when Chanyeol was willingly to step out from the house without throwing any physical fight, his father grab his shoulder, and forced him to turn around to face him again.

“You’re not getting back with him, Chanyeol. Not a chance,” Mr.Park stated. “You’ll date and marry Namjoo.”

Chanyeol’s jaws fell to the floor, and his eye balls looked like they could go out from their sockets. And Yura unwittingly drop her hand, letting Chanyeol’s arm go.

“What did you say?” Chanyeol asked soullessly.

Mr.Park folded both of his arms in front of his chest. This time, he was sure that he won the argument. “I said you’re going to marry Namjoo. I already told my plan to her parents, and they agreed.”

Chanyeol lost his ability to speak. All of his senses turned numb, and the anger which had subsided before crept in just a matter of second before Chanyeol finally lost it. He grabbed the collar of his father’s shirt, and pulled their body close until they could feel each other’s breath.

“Hell no. I would never marry Namjoo. Or any other girls and boys in the world, except Baekhyun,” Chanyeol yelled right to his father’s face. Behind him, Yura and his mother were trying to pry them off. “Baekhyun is the only person I will marry. He’s my future husband. End game.”

“Chanyeol-ah, let go,” Yura screamed, trying to overcome the Chanyeol’s loud voice so the latter could hear.

Mr.Park kept his composure. He said nothing at all and just stared at his son’s eyes mockingly.

Chanyeol eventually let go, and Yura stood in front of him while putting her hands on Chanyeol’s chest in order to ease his rage. “Chanyeol-ah, let’s get out of here. Let’s go home,” Yura assured.

Chanyeol’s chest heaved up and down, and he breathed so fast like he just finished miles of marathon. His dark eyes shot straight to his dad. “Keep my words, Dad. I’ll get Baekhyun back.”

Chanyeol took his leave, abruptly getting out of the house which he immediately hated without sparing his parents a greeting or even a bow. But Yura understood, so she just sighed before she turned to her father, and said, “You’re really too much, Dad.” Then she bowed, and followed Chanyeol out.

~

Baekhyun didn’t come to school for three days straight. Got sick, they said. And Chanyeol can’t get crazier than this. All of his best friends tried his best to keep the broken-hearted man living. Even Namjoo, the said girl who his father said was gonna marry him; she took care of Chanyeol, too. Not in a flirty way, but in a honest caring way, because Chanyeol was practically her older brother. She wanted him to be happy, not adding the burden he already had.

Chanyeol tried to see Baekhyun at his house. However, he never got through the front door. Mrs.Byun can only give him a pity look, saying that Baekhyun was still having his cold, and the sick boy didn’t want to see him, yet. Chanyeol didn’t know if Mrs.Byun had known about their problem or not. But judging from how gentle she was treating him, he guessed Baekhyun had told his mother.

As if the burden he had right now was not enough to make him having a constant fatigue, the thought about Baekhyun being sick right now was adding his stress to the point he hadn’t slept for more than 24 hours.

Chanyeol was sad, and he worried sick.

At the fourth day after their argument (Chanyeol refused that they had broken up), Baekhyun finally presented at school. And Chanyeol took no time to bring his boyfriend (Yes, Chanyeol still acknowledge Baekhyun as his boyfriend) to the rooftop.

Baekhyun did look pale, and Chanyeol was slightly grateful that Baekhyun did really sick. It meant Baekhyun didn’t only try to avoid him.

“Baek,” Chanyeol tried to call him. Baekhyun was standing in front of him, looking frail, small, and awkward, and Chanyeol didn’t like it one bit because that wasn’t how Baekhyun supposed to act around him. “Baek, look at me.”

Baekhyun looked up at last, after only staring at his shoes all along. Chanyeol saw Baekhyun’s condition wasn’t any better than him. Worse, probably, since the elder boy had colds for three days. And Chanyeol just wanted to hold him really close and whispered him that everything’s gonna be okay and he wouldn’t let him go.

 “You can’t call me with ‘Baek’ again, Chanyeol. I’m not your boyfriend anymore,” Baekhyun tried not to meet Chanyeol’s eyes.

“Don’t say that,” Chanyeol hissed. “You’ll always be my boyfriend, Baek. What are you even talking about?”

“Chanyeol, please,” Baekhyun rubbed his forehead. He was so tired.

Seeing Baekhyun’s weary expression, Chanyeol’s face turned soft, “hey, Baek, you’re okay? Should I take you to the nurse?”

“No, I’m okay,” Baekhyun shook his head. His attempt to put on an expressionless face had failed. It turned out into a sour one instead; pretty similar with his heart, and his life surrounded him in general. “Why are you taking me here, Chanyeol?”

“Call me Yeol,” Chanyeol looked deep down into his eyes. “Call me like you usually call me, Baek. I swear I-”

“Don’t you understand?” Baekhyun almost screamed. His eyes were pooled with the salty liquid which he can’t stop from spilling out. “We’re not boyfriends anymore, Chanyeol. What you are doing right now would only hurt the both of us.”

“I told you I don’t care, right? I told you I wouldn’t care about my parents decision. You’re the one who didn’t understand, Byun Baekhyun.”

“Which part that I don’t understand?” Baekhyun shouted, one roll of tear streamed down his cheek. “What I know is that breaking up is the best decision for us.”

“Us? You said us, so shouldn’t I get to say something in this? I say we stick together, Baek.”

“I thought about your future, okay?” Baekhyun hated it when his voice wavered. It meant that he scared and he wasn’t sure about what he said. Both of them were true. Those are what he felt right now, but he didn’t want Chanyeol to know it. “I want you to be happy, successful musician, and be popular. And you can’t get all of them if you stayed with me.”

Chanyeol looked at him as if Baekhyun was some kind of a rare creature. He was silent for a while before he said, “Was that what my father told you? That I’ll be happy without you? And you believe it?” Chanyeol asked in disbelief. He took a deep breath, and ran his hand through his hair in distress. Slowly he cupped Baekhyun’s face with his hand, forcing the smaller boy to look up at him. “Look at my face, Baek. Is this what you call a happy face? Have you seen your face in the mirror? Is that a happy face? I’m not happy at all, and so are you. Your argument is truly invalid.”

Baekhyun swore he had tried his best to hold his tears back. No one said it would be this hard, and he hated that fact. “You’re marrying Namjoo,” Baekhyun’s voice cracked for the first time. “The fortune-teller was wrong, Chanyeol. I’m not your future husband. And you’re not my future husband. I’m really really sorry that after all this time you thought that I’m your future husband, turned out I-”

“Stop it,” Chanyeol begged. “Stop it, Baek. I’m not marrying Namjoo. You are the one who I will marry. You’re the one that I love. I’m in love with you.”

Baekhyun suddenly threw Chanyeol’s hands from his face harshly. His expression was unreadable as he put distance between him and Chanyeol whom looked bewildered by his action. “You’re not in love with me, Chanyeol,” Baekhyun tiredly said. “You’re in love with the idea that I was your future husband.”

“What? No. Baek, what the hell are you thinking?”

“Can’t you stop talking and listen to me?” Baekhyun cried, and Chanyeol reluctantly pressed his lips. “You asked me out because the fortune-teller told you that I’m your future husband. You told me that you didn’t even know that I existed before that, for crying out loud. You don’t love me, Chanyeol. You only love the idea you pictured in your head that I’m going to be your husband.”

“Baek, you’re wrong. I-”

“If you didn’t meet the fortune-teller that day, would you still believe that I’m your soul mate? Would you date me? Would you even know that I exist and notice me? Would you see me standing on the stage at the school hall and think that oh that guy is cute, I’m going to approach him and ask him to date me with a normal reason which is because I like him, not because a certain fortune-teller told me so. Would you? Would you, Chanyeol?”

The silence ensued. Only the sound of Baekhyun’s sobs and heavy breathing, and the breeze of cool spring wind were audible.

Chanyeol can’t move a single muscle on his body. Not even his eyelids because he didn’t even blink as he listened to Baekhyun’s explosion of emotion, and he still didn’t move until Baekhyun finished.

Watching the static Chanyeol, Baekhyun heaved a heavy breath before he rubbed his tears away from his face. “I’m not blaming you, Chanyeol. Your feeling for me probably isn’t love, but I hope what we had for the past six months were real. I want you to be happy. And don’t worry about me, I’ll be happy If I see you happy. Thank you for all your love, or...whatever you felt toward me all this time. Good bye, and,” Baekhyun looked up to a deadpanned Chanyeol. “I...I love you,” Baekhyun mouthed the word in an inaudible voice before he turned around, and left Chanyeol behind.

Chanyeol. His ex-boyfriend.

Chanyeol. His ex-future husband.

A/N:

I was only playing Rihanna-Stay and Unfaithful throughout the writing of this chapter. goodness God I'm so depressed right now.

and oh, this story is ending soon~