"Yah, Chen. I'm off."

 

Chanyeol grabs his guitar and walks out of their classroom, tiredness gnawing at his bones. Days like this - all-day studying for the National tests, papers due here and there, teachers eating you alive by reprimanding you of petty mistakes - makes Chanyeol want to runaway in a faraway place and hide. Well, that's what he does. Picking up his guitar, he strolls towards the end of the hallway. Turning right, he climbs the stairs that leads to the rooftop.

 

He finds his spot; A sturdy metal, placed on the corner of the rooftop, keeping the school's water tank in place. It has the feel of a 2nd floor terrace to it. The wind blows on Chanyeol's face. He feels a little bit relieved from all the stresses of his sad, student life.

 

Placing himself on the flooring, letting his feet dangle into the empty space below, he pulls out his guitar. He tunes it and the notes that rung through the empty air are soothing his veins. He plays a chain of melody by plucking on the metal strings, creating a warm vibe around him despite the cool weather of spring.

 

"Kyungsoo," he muses. His inspiration.  Chanyeol smiles brightly at the mention of the name.

 

He strum the strings, his fingers carefully placed on the G-chord, letting a slow, lovely rhythm reverberate in his surroundings.  G, Em, C, D. He repeats the same chords again and again, gently bobbing his head along with the music he's creating.

 

He hums a tune, fitting it with the chords he's playing.

 

Then he starts adding the words.

 

"If you hear this, wherever you are."

 

 

"Just know I need you here, I need you with me now."

 

He smiles.

 

"You were brighter than the pale white moon, reflected in your eyes"

 

"So I guess it's no surprise I can't forget you, no matter what I do"

 

The words comes out a bit cheesy, making Chanyeol cringe. He tries to find the next lyrics but the words seem avoid him.

 

He's been wanting to write Kyungsoo a song for a long time but then it had to wait because of the upcoming exams and the projects he needs to finish. Now that he's got the time, he can't seem to think. All of his ideas seems to have faded away, replaced by tests and stupid projects.

 

"Ugh. Park Chanyeol. Just get on with it." He scolds himself.

 

He's been planning on his confession for a long time now and he thinks the day after the exams would be great, leaving him two weeks of time to finish the song.

 

Chanyeol starts humming again, but it is really hard to think. All he sees inside his head are fluffy clouds and orange sunsets.

 

A few moments passes by, he is frustrated.  He stands up, placing his guitar back inside its case.  "Tomorrow is another day." He tries to say brightly, patting the water tank as if it was his friend.

 

-----

 

Baekhyun wakes up to the sound of guitar strumming. A beautiful melody is carried by the wind into Baekhyun's ears. He closes his eyes and listens carefully to the rhythm of the chords being put together.

 

Then, a deep voice starts to hum, making Baekhyun's heart beats faster. It is perfect, wonderful, and all other nice words he could think of.

 

The deep voice sings, making Baekhyun want to peek at who the owner is, but it'll be really awkward if the other person discovers somebody on the other side of the water tank, listening to him, so Baekhyun stays in place.

 

The melody of the song becomes familiar to him, as the stranger hums the melody again and again.

 

"If you hear this, wherever you are. Just know I need you here I need you near me now. You were brighter than the pale white moon reflected in you eyes, so i guess it's no surprise I can't forget you no matter what i do."

 

Wow, beautiful words.

 

Hmm. Is he making a song for a confession? Baekhyun asks himself.

 

He can't help but smile at Chanyeol's words, even if they didn't see each other. He finds it sweet that the boy is taking time to write the love of his life a song. He feels a little sad inside though, because whoever it is, the guy or girl is really lucky.

 

"Ugh. Park Chanyeol. Just get on with it." Baekhyun hears the deep voice mutter.

 

So, Park Chanyeol huh? Baekhyun doesn't know why he's smiling wide.

 

It isn't after a few minutes of silence that the stranger speaks again, "Tomorrow is another day."

 

Baekhyun figures that the boy has some difficulties in finishing the song, so he tries to add some lyrics to it. He doesn't plan to give it to Chanyeol, though. Turning to his backpack, Baekhyun grabs his music sheet.

 

 

"I will always carry you

In my heart you'll always be my shooting star,

Autumn days will fade away, but memories will always stay the same

I'm hoping you will never change, Don't ever change." Baekhyun scribbles the lyrics in his music sheet, placing musical notes above each words.

 

---

 

The next day, Chanyeol finds himself on the rooftop again, staring at the sunset from afar. He claims his usual spot. Pulling his guitar, Chanyeol picks up from where he left off.

 

He hums the tune, again. And again. And again, but the words that comes out of him are empty and lifeless.

 

There is something lacking. And Chanyeol doesn't have any idea what it is. He groans and scratches his head in annoyance, gently placing his guitar beside him.

 

Chanyeol can't seem to find inspiration in the serenity of the place. Not even when he thinks of Kyungsoo.

 

-----

 

On the other side of the tank, Baekhyun smiles.

 

So he's still not finished. He tells himself.

 

The way Chanyeol groans and talks to himself is too adorable for Baekhyun to handle.

 

He finds himself imagining what Chanyeol looks like. He drifts into a daydream, Chanyeol singing him the song, playing the guitar.

 

Baekhyun is alarmed by his thoughts. Why on earth is he thinking about Chanyeol, when he doesn't even know how the guy looks like? And to top that, It's only the second day of their not-really-seeing-each-other meeting.

 

He wants to go out, and help the stranger but he ignores the thought.

 

No, Baekhyun. It's none of your business. He takes his earphones and plugs them into his ears, drowning himself in SNSD songs.

 

----

 

On  the fourth day, Chanyeol finds a note inside his locker. Written on a plain white paper, the note seems to be a letter. He unfolds it. It's actually a sheet music, a few words scribbled on it, with the notes written above for the melody.

 

"I will always carry you, in my heart, you'll always be my shooting star. Autumn days will fade away but memories will always stay the same. I'm hoping you will never change, don't ever change"

 

-B

 

Chanyeol is confused. Why would someone write him this kind of letter? It's so weird.

 

Being dumb as he is, Chanyeol doesn't realize that somebody might be listening to all of his rooftop dramas.

 

----

 

It almost becomes a routine for the two of them.

 

A routine they both created for themselves, without really seeing each other, with only Baekhyun lurking around Chanyeol. It has almost been 4 days since Chanyeol first came to the rooftop. 4 days, and Baekhyun feels that he likes Chanyeol a little bit too much, even if they haven't seen each other yet. 4 days, and Baekhyun is falling at a very alarming speed.

 

Then, there's Park Chanyeol.

 

Park Chanyeol has no idea somebody's been listening to his rants and frustrations on the other side. Park Chanyeol has no idea somebody's been secretly helping him with his lyrics, and Park Chanyeol has no idea, somebody's been slowly falling for his voice.

 

He takes out the paper from his pockets, as he lowered himself to the floor. 

 

He inserts the words into the song. It fits perfectly.

 

"Thank you, whoever you are." He mutters, letting the wind blow his gratitude.

 

Still, because Chanyeol is dumb, he doesn't question where the lyrics came from and how somebody knew the melody.

 

---

 

Baekhyun feels his heart race.

 

Chanyeol thanked him.

 

----

 

The next day, a sunny Saturday morning, Chanyeol agrees to meet Jongdae (also known as Chen), his bestfriend, on their favorite cafe. He pulls his guitar along with him of course. He needs to let Jongdae to hear the song.

 

He sits on the far end of the bistro, back to back with a small stranger. He takes his guitar out of the case and tunes it while he waits for Chen.

 

He practices the song, having memorized it word for word last night, with the addition of the new lyrics from B.

 

Deep voice resounds through the cafe, making girls giddy, as if they're listening to a gig.

 

He thinks he hears someone humming along with him but he ignores it. That's impossible. How can someone know this song?

 

But then, he hears it again. The voice comes from somewhere near him. He looks around, playing continuously, looking for the voice, afraid that if he stops, the voice will stop singing too.

 

He feels goosebumps along his nape when he realizes it comes from behind him. The stranger is wearing a knitted white jacket; his hair a shade of magenta; and his skin was milky-white. Just looking at the boy's nape makes Chanyeol feel all fuzzy and warm inside.

 

He clears his throat, gaining the guy's attention.

 

When the boy turns to Chanyeol, their gazes lock. Time stops.

 

Everything around them is blurry and slow.

The hustle and bustle of the cafe pauses, as Chanyeol looks at the boy, eye-to-eye, unblinking. They were the most beautiful eyes he's ever seen, not even Kyungsoo could compare to it.

 

"Wow." Chanyeol mutters, ending the spell.

 

Baekhyun's lips are slightly parted like he's got something to say.

 

"Wow. Uhm. Hi." Chanyeol lowers his gaze, smiling, cheeks tainted a bright shade of pink. He is flustered without any reason.

 

"Hi."

 

"So, uhm. What's your name?" Chanyeol cranes his neck to look at Baekhyun.

 

"Uh... Byun. Byun Baekhyun."

 

"Oh. Hi. I'm Park Chanyeol."

 

"I know." Baekhyun murmured.

 

"Oh you do?" Chanyeol flushed, this is really embarassing.

 

"Ughhh.. Yeah.." Should i lie? Baekhyun inquires. "Well, uhmm.. it's.. uhmmm. Complicated?"

 

Chanyeol laughs. Baekhyun is too cute. He stands up and transfers to Baekhyun's table. The boy looks so much more beautiful up front. His thin lips are a pale shade of pink; his long eyelashes batting against his soft-looking cheeks whenever he blinks.

 

"I, uh.. I think I Uhmm.. heard you singing my song..?" Chanyeol stutters, the statement comes out as a question. It's funny how they both stutter with their words.

 

"Well, I kind of... Uhhhh.." Baekhyun feels like it'll be the worst idea if he discloses his secret about being the one to write Chanyeol's lyrics. But he feels like it's time to let Chanyeol know. "Ikindofwrotesomeofthelyricsforyou," Baekhyun says rapidly in one take of breath. He isn't sure if Chanyeol understands but, he needs to get it out now.

 

Suddenly, Chanyeol remembers the music sheet. "Oh! my! God! So! that was you! That's why you know my song!" He declared a bit loudly, earning looks from the other patrons of the shop. "Sorry."

 

Baekhyun's gaze falls to the floor. He purses his lips and nods slowly.

 

"Thank you." Chanyeol adds sincerely.

 

"You're welcome. But, hey are you done with it?"

 

"No. Not yet."

 

"Do you still need help?"

 

Chanyeol's ears are perked up, "Yes please." he answers shyly, rubbing his hands on his nape.

 

They settled to meet on the rooftop on Monday to finish the song. Baekhyun bids Chanyeol good bye, making the giant feel a little bit empty on the inside as he watches the brunet retreat a little bit farther with each step.

 

-----

Monday comes.

 

They spend the whole afternoon trying to come up with lyrics to fit the music of the song.

 

"So, you really like this Kyungsoo huh?" Baekhyun asks.

 

Before, yes. Now, I'm not sure anymore, Chanyeol wants to say, but he stops himself, only humming a short, monotonous, noncommittal note as a reply.

 

Baekhyun doesn't want to pry, but he finds himself asking again, "So, is that a yes?" He wants to sound happy, so he chuckles.

 

He sees Chanyeol blush and it makes his heart ache; Wanting to hug his newfound friend (and secret crush), but he stops himself.

 

The whole afternoon passes by, filled with giggles and jokes; music and lyrics; and silent confessions of I like you, which they both are unable to notice.

 

Chanyeol goes home, agreeing to meet Baekhyun again the next day. He feels like he's known Baekhyun for years.

 

The boy sings really well, he sings the words of Chanyeol's song, and the younger feels like there's something inside his stomach, tickling him from the inside.

 

He discovers that Baekhyun is older than him by 5 months, and is under the music program of the school.

It's a program designed for musically-gifted students, like Baekhyun, to further improve their musical abilities. No wonder Baekhyun writes music so easily, like he's just doodling on his notebook. Chanyeol discovers that Baekhyun likes poetry, too. 

Chanyeol is a part of the program back then. But he finds it hard to balance academics and extra-curricular activities so he walks away from it. Now, he regrets it because he could've been classmates with Baekhyun.

 

--

Every day, after school, they agree to see each other.

 

On Tuesday, Baekhyun comes to their meeting place, a pint of strawberry ice cream in hand. They sit and talk and discuss the lyrics and the music, but they avoid talking about Kyungsoo and the confession.  

 

As selfish as it may seem, Baekhyun wants to be happy for now, even it means running away from the truth; The truth that after a couple of days, Chanyeol will be confessing to somebody, not him.

 

They sat in silence, plunging their plastic spoons into the stone-hard ice cream.  Chanyeol pushes his spoon way to hard that it breaks. They laugh at the pitiful sight of the spoon, broken in half, while the ice cream stays untouched.

 

Baekhyun realizes how funny Chanyeol gets. They've only known each other for 3 days but it feels like they've been together for years, teasing one another with stuff that aren't really actually that funny.

 

Wednesday.

 

Chanyeol comes around, a paper bag swaying in his grasp. He climbs up the stairs of the tank, not cutting eye-connection with Baekhyun.

He seems to be in a movie. A princess awaits him on top of their castle. The wind blowing the mop of magenta-colored hair, as the beautiful princess smiles at him. Chanyeol fights the urge to kiss Baekhyun. No. You can't scare him away Chanyeol.

“Hey, Baek!” He calls out, handing the petite boy the paper bag. “This reminded me of you so I bought it.”

“Oh! I’m flattered. Thank you.” Baekhyun accepts the gift, immediately peeking inside, he pouts when he pulls out the content of the bag.

Chanyeol laughs.

It’s a lollipop with a baby wolf puppy doing an eye smile, with cute little ears poking at each side of its head. It’s really cute. Yeah. That’s what Chanyeol thinks of Baekhyun. Cute.

“I’m not sure if I should be happy about this.” He lets his cheek puff, pouting like an elementary kid.

“Awww. I’m sorry. Don’t be upset.” Chanyeol pulls Baekhyun into his chest, nuzzling his nose in the boy’s hair. “It was really cute and it made me think about you.” There is nothing to apologize for but Chanyeol sees it as an opportunity to hug Baekhyun. He realizes how Baekhyun perfectly fits in his arms. His heart is racing so he pushes the small guy back, afraid that he would hear the wild beating in Chanyeol’s chest.

Baekhyun, on the other hand, feels like his knees are going to buckle. Good thing, they are sitting down or else, he is sure he will fall. His cheeks are flushed red. “I’m kidding, Chanyeol.”

Chanyeol chuckles. “I know.”

Baekhyun’s heart goes into overdrive. Chanyeol hugged me for no reason.

It is enough for Baekhyun. At least he has the opportunity to hug Chanyeol.

 

Thursday.

 

Dread starts to gnaw at Baekhyun's emotions. Tomorrow is the day of the exams and also the day of Chanyeol's confession.

 

They haven't talked about it and Baekhyun wants to cry, thinking about tomorrow, the sweet smile of Chanyeol being directed to Kyungsoo.

 

They are silent, watching the clouds go by.

 

They are sitting on the floor, as usual, and Chanyeol lets Baekhyun sing the song. The song is done now and it comes out beautiful. 

 

The sound of the guitar's rhythym filled the air.

 

"I will always carry you in my heart you'll always be my shooting star," Baekhyun sings the words with sincere emotions, his eyes directed to Chanyeol's tall frame.

 

"Autumn days will fade away, but memories will always stay the same, I'm hoping you will never change, Don't ever change."

 

Chanyeol is too preoccupied by his guitar-playing that he doesn't see Baekhyun look at him, directing every word of the song to him; feeling like his heart is going to burst any minute now.

 

He's singing a love song meant for somebody else. He's singing a love song for Park Chanyeol's love.

 

He pities himself, but what's that use of that?

 

Singing the song heartily, Baekhyun finishes it up to the part where last ended.

Feeling a little bit out of breath after singing, Baekhyun rests his head against Chanyeol's shoulder, staring at the beautiful, orange setting sun.

 

"Hey, Chan?"

 

"Yes?" Chanyeol doesn't seem to mind the sudden skin ship with Baekhyun.

 

If he does, Baekhyun doesn't care anymore. This'll probably be the last time he'll ever get this close to Chanyeol.

 

"Are you ready for tomorrow?" He doesn't know if he's asking about the exams or the confession.

 

"I guess." Chanyeol shrugs.

 

"You have to do well alright? Don't embarrass yourself." The words still has double-meaning.

 

Chanyeol only hums.

Baekhyun feels the world crash down on him as the sun slips below the horizon, signaling the end of the day; signaling the last day to be together with Park Chanyeol.

 

Baekhyun stands up, dusting himself. "Well, it's nice working with you Chanyeol. I'll see you around. Don't call anyone else when you need music help alright?! You have me." he laughs, trying to hide the weariness in his voice, before he turns around and walks away, his heart breaking with every step.

 

-----

Friday. D-day.

 

Baekhyun's eyebrows are knitted together; sweat trickling down the sides of his face, soaking the collars of his shirt, as he answers the questionnaire. They've been there for 2 hours and they are only halfway through it.

 

Baekhyun needs to pass this so he could go to SNU and further study his music. Other schools are out of the question because they're not as good as SNU.

 

When at last the exams were done, Baekhyun heaves out a heavy sigh, like a bunch of thorns are pulled out of his heart. He can finally breathe freely. For a moment. His classmates scram out of the classroom. Hurrying to get home and relax; maybe celebrate the end of super long nights.

 

Baekhyun is left behind to think about things. He's sad and the pressure of the exam has taken its toll on him, making him frustrated by everything around him. He wants to cry actually, tears are now welling in. He sits there, staring at the ceiling.

 

Suddenly somebody barges in.

 

"Byun Baekhyun!"

 

He is startled. A bunch of colorful balloons are being held in Sehun's skinny hands.

 

"Yah! You scared me. What are you doing here?" Baekhyun reprimands.

 

"YOU. Why are you here? You aren't supposed to be here. Someone's going to do a confession here. Please go out."

 

"Oh. I'm sorry." Baekhyun picks up his bag, he feels like the world is conspiring against him. He starts to walk out of the room; just as Sehun lets the balloons go out of his grasp and make it flow up to the ceiling.

 

Just as Baekhyun is about to step out of the room, Chen meets him halfway out the door, grasping his shoulders and pushing him inside the classroom again, smiling meaningfully.

 

Chen makes him sit on the chair in the middle.

 

He is confused. Just what exactly is this? Is this part of the show?

 

Chen blindfolds him.

 

"Ch- Chen, what is this?"

 

"Shhh. You can't ask any questions."

 

Baekhyun goes along with the play, thinking if he's part of this, he can help Chanyeol. So, it's okay.

 

When the sound of guitar starts, Baekhyun's heart is filled with longing.

 

♫ If you hear this, wherever you are.

Just know I need you here

I need you with me now.

 

You are brighter than the pale white moon,

Reflected in your eyes

So I guess it's no surprise I can't forget you, no matter what I do.

 

I will always carry you, in my heart you'll always be my shooting star

Autumn days will fade away but memories will always stay this way I'm hoping you will never change

Don't ever change. ♫

 

Baekhyun's heart is racing, his lips quivering. Chanyeol is singing. Is Kyungsoo in here, too? Why is he blindfolded?

 

He knows that's the end of the song so he's astonished when Chanyeol continued to sing.

 

♫ I just need to slow down for a while

I'm missing your warm smile and the way you used to say

Stay with me until the daylight breaks

No matter what it takes just say you'll stay

Just say you’ll stay

 

I will always carry you

In my heart you'll always be my shooting star

Autumn days will fade away but memories will always stay the same

 I'm hoping you will never change, don't ever change. ♫

 

So, he really did add some more to it, Baekhyun muses.

 

Baekhyun's eyes are hurting because of the blindfold. He moves his hand to remove it but suddenly, Chanyeol spoke,

 

"Byun Baekhyun… That was for you."

 

He freezes.

 

Did Park Chanyeol just say the song was for him?

 

"I know, originally it wasn't planned to be like this. And I know you know that I made the song for somebody else. Baekhyun, the few days I spent with you was enough for me to realize that love changes people; for a very short period of time, I was changed. Being with you has made me realize that love is not measured by the time you spent getting to know each other, but rather, love is all about how you’re planning  to spend together, forever."

 

Baekhyun feels something warm falling from his eyes, getting caught in the handkerchief.

 

"Baekhyun, I know this is sudden. And I wouldn't mind if you don't answer me today. But, I think I’m falling in love with you. I think about you all day. When I sleep, you come into my dreams. When I wake up, I think about calling you. Ask you if you've eaten or if you've slept well. So, if you ask me, I would never want to let you go away from me."

 

Baekhyun pulls the blindfold off of his eyes. Chanyeol is sitting on the desk in front of him, looking dashing with his white button up and red tie. In his hands, Chanyeol is holding a piece of paper. Probably a copy of some sorts.

 

Tears stream down his face, he is too happy with everything he's hearing.

 

He grabs Chanyeol's hands. "Oh Park Chanyeol."

 

"I love you, Baek. Will you be my boyfriend?"

 

Baekhyun is silent.

 

His heart is racing too hard.

 

1...

 

2...

 

3...

 

Slowly, he nods. Of course he wants to be Chanyeol's boyfriend.

 

The both smile like fools.

 

Chanyeol pulls Baekhyun out of the chair and crushes him in a tight hug.

 

"I love you too, Chanyeol."

 

-----

 

-fin-