A/N: Sorry guys, this is a short update! But since I have no school tomorrow (snow day, whoo), I'll definitely try to crank out chapters in my free time! I hope this chapter isn't too sudden or anything, there's still a lot more plot left until the end of the story! (▰˘◡˘▰)

Jongdae sits at his couch, aimlessly playing with the plushies stacked on his couch as an episode of Heirs plays. He was expecting Baekhyun to come over at any minute, his xbox setup and games scattered across the floor. Then, as expected, a knock came at the door. But the knocking seemed more frantic, different than the light knocks that he had become so used to. Jongdae shot up and swiftly made his way to the door, grasping the knob, and opening the door. The sight before him made his eyes widen and his jaw drop.

Baekhyun stood there, as promised, but his eyes were puffy and red, and he was still sniffling, evidence of him crying was scattered all across his petite body. He shivered and he looked as if he was going to cry again. Baekhyun just throws himself at his friend.

“Baekhyun?!” Jongdae asks, obviously startled. When he hears his friend sobbing into his chest, he does what he always does to calm the other one down; he runs his hands through Baekhyun’s hair, eventually calming the other one down. “Baek,” Jongdae says tentatively, “what happened?” He guides the smaller one to his couch and Baekhyun immediately leans into him.

Baekhyun hesitates. “It… it’s Chanyeol,” he whispers, before tears burst from his eyes. When Jongdae leans closer in confusion, Baekhyun suddenly explodes.

“It’s Chanyeol!” He hears Baekhyun yell. Jongdae flinches at the sudden outburst but decides against saying anything. “Chanyeol broke up with me,” Baekhyun says, and Jongdae stares at Baekhyun in disbelief. To be honest, Jongdae is kind of glad they broke up. He feels horrible for it, so he doesn’t let his friend know that. Instead, he’s about to open his mouth to say something when Baekhyun interrupts him. “Shush, let me finish.” he says. He retells the story of their breakup, with a few sobs in between. Jongdae saw it coming, but the effect it had on his friend was absolutely heartbreaking. When Baekhyun finally finishes, he slumps down on the couch, completely exhausted from spending his afternoon crying.

“Come here,” Jongdae says, and he lets Baekhyun snuggle with him. Jongdae runs his hands through Baekhyun’s hair once again, and eventually the heartbroken boy is reduced  to only sniffles.

“I don’t understand, Dae,” Baekhyun says all of a sudden. A drama was playing on the TV, but both didn’t pay it much attention.

“Don’t understand what, Baek?” Jongdae says into Baekhyun’s soft hair. It’s comfortable like this, Jongdae thinks.

If only the circumstances were different.

“That dumb watch,” Baekhyun replies. When Jongdae doesn’t say anything, he continues. “I don’t understand why it has influenced our society so easily. Has it really come to a point where we’ll believe a piece of technology to tell us something that we feel? What happened to ‘love is unpredictable’? What’s the point of avoiding heartbreak or avoiding someone that you could possibly share the rest of your life with? What about the memories or the people you’ll meet because of them? Why are we so eager to throw away all of this just to avoid the feeling of heartbreak? Isn’t that what makes us human?” Baekhyun growls angrily, obviously absorbed in his rant. He calms down after the last few words, sniffling into Jongdae’s shirt.

“Baek,” Jongdae says, but internally, he has no idea what to say to his friend. He can feel his stomach churning with mixed emotions. Not that it matters at the moment. “I’m sorry Baek,” he says, pulling Baekhyun closer to him. “He didn’t deserve you anyways,” and Baekhyun gives a small laugh.

“Thanks Dae.” Baekhyun murmurs, slowly closing his eyes. “You really are the best friend a guy could ask for.”

“Yeah…” Jongdae whispers, feeling the boy’s body relax in his arms. “Best friends,” he says, before closing his eyes and falling asleep.

--

When Jongdae wakes up, he groans at the pain in his neck. Remembering yesterday’s events, he realizes that his neck had been in an uncomfortable position before he fell asleep. He lets out a small groan, before feeling something stir next to him. He immediately quiets when he sees Baekhyun sleeping soundly next to him. Quietly, Jongdae slips out between the couch and Baekhyun and makes his way to the bathroom.

After freshening up and making breakfast, Jongdae sees a sleepy Baekhyun make his way to the table. “Thanks for letting me stay over,” Baekhyun murmurs, and Jongdae finds it endearing to see his friend this way. His hair is mussed and sticking up all over the place, and his t shirt is too big on him, revealing a very soft and nice looking neckline that makes Jongdae feel tingly inside.

“No problem, you’re welcome to stay over anytime.” Jongdae muses, absent-mindedly picking at the threads of his sweater. “In fact, you could stay here the whole week, I don’t care.”

“Can I really?” Baekhyun immediately asks, perking up at Jongdae’s offer.

“What-” Jongdae starts. It was all an exaggeration, but seeing as how his best friend is still trying to get over his break up, Jongdae reluctantly nods. “Of course, as long as you help with all the household chores!”

“Thank you so much Jongdae!” Baekhyun leaps up, giving his friend a tight hug.

“Okay okay,” Jongdae laughs, giving Baekhyun a light push. “You can start with today’s dishes,” he teases as he walks out of the kitchen, leaving Baekhyun staring at him with his mouth wide open.

And so the duo begin their week together, shutting themselves inside Jongdae’s apartment, playing video games, watching movies, and occasionally studying for their music theory exams. They walk to class together each morning, but Jongdae still sees hurt flash in Baekhyun’s eyes when he sees Chanyeol. On the other hand, the latter barely spares a glance at him. Jongdae knows it’s because he doesn’t want to cause any awkwardness in their group, but soon enough, everyone knows. Jongdae tries his best to keep the mood light, and thankfully, most people follow along, and eventually Baekhyun isn’t as depressed when he’s around Chanyeol.

“This week with you has really helped me,” Baekhyun says one night, when they’re both lying on the couch. Baekhyun has a hot chocolate in his hand and Jongdae brewed a cup of Americano for himself (Xiumin taught him; Jongdae ended up burning half of the coffee beans before he actually got it down), and To the Beautiful You is playing on the TV.

Jongdae smiles affectionately at his friend. “Me too,” he replies, lifting his fingers and pinching Baekhyun’s cheeks. Jongdae laughs when Baekhyun pouts and swats his hand away in response.

“Focus on the show, dummy. Why can’t Jae-hee just realize that Eun-gyeol is in love with her and just marry him? They’d be sooo perfect together.” Baekhyun drawls. “I mean, Tae-joon is such a jerk to her! Plus, Eun-gyeol is way cuter.”

Next to Baekhyun, Jongdae holds in his laughter, and he trains his eyes on the television. Unfortunately, his stomach is too busy churning to focus on the show. He has spent a week with his best friend.

He has spent a whole entire week. With his best friend. That he is coincidentally in love with.

His eyes advert to Baekhyun, who’s currently absorbed in the drama on screen. At first, he doesn’t notice Jongdae’s stare, but after a few seconds, Baekhyun turns around and meets his stare.

“Jongdae?” He asks. “Is everything okay?” Baekhyun bites his lips nervously.

, Jongdae thinks. Baekhyun really doesn’t know how much he affects him.

“Dae, are you okay?” Baekhyun asks again, concern reflecting in his eyes. “You’re not mad at me, are you? Cause I’ve been staying here for so long? I mean, I -- I really didn’t mean to impose on you, I can leave right now if you want-” Baekhyun starts sputtering, totally misinterpreting Jongdae’s gaze.

“No, no, that’s not it Baek,” Jongdae replies. “Quite the opposite, actually. It really isn’t you,” and he lets out a laugh, and eventually Baekhyun joins him. The two laugh it out, and eventually Jongdae feels the unease in his gut relax.

But when Jongdae’s eyes meet Baekhyun’s, and the latter stops laughing, there’s nothing Jongdae can do to stop himself from swooping down and placing his lips gently on Baekhyun’s.

There’s nothing Jongdae can do when Baekhyun immediately freezes.

And there’s nothing Jongdae can do when Baekhyun stares at him, his beautiful eyes filled with confusion and unease.

There’s nothing Jongdae can do to take back the mistake that could potentially destroy his friendship with his soul mate.

I hope this chapter was okay! As always, there's more development to be seen next update! Please anticipate it~ 

Another note: I've started my Suchen fic! Thanks to all who voted~ The foreword is already done, and chapter one should be completed by tomorrow!