They all ran inside the hospital and when they arrived, they saw Kris sitting out alone with Jongin. 

"What had happened?" Baekhyun hurriedly asked when they got closer. 

"He's in surgery right now. You guys came a bit late."

Surgery? It was that serious? Baekhyun felt something pricking at his heart. , he wasn't able to see him because they were too late. The hospital was far and it took them about 30 minutes to get there.  

"How did the accident happen?" Baekhyun was worried as and was slightly panicking. How can he not? It was the first time Chanyeol has been seriously injured. 

"Someone crashed into him while he was driving to Seoul. We don't know the full story but like Chanyeol could have died. Jongin was on the phone with him when it happened."

"No kidding. Like was he drunk or something?" Baekhyun knew it impossible for Chanyeol to be drunk. Chanyeol never even drinks anymore.

Kris shook his head. "He left practice saying that he was going to see someone. I don't know who, but he just left."

"Why is he in surgery? Did he break something? Who hit him?" Baekhyun had so many questions.

"Chanyeol was bleeding from his head and his chest area was half ripped open. I don't know the full story but right now the neurosurgeons are working on him."

"An old man hit him, Baek," Jongin patted his shoulder. "There's nothing we can do right now but wait until he recovers."

Oh . . "He's so stupid." 

Kyungsoo rubbed his shoulder. "I'll go ask the doctors about more information on him. He'll make it through." 

"Does his family know yet?"

Kri shook his head. "Not yet. We'll let them know once he's in better condition."

Baekhyun nodded, pacing around. If this was karma doing the work for him, this was not what he wanted. This whole thing just ruined all his plans, but he needed to be strong about this. he didn't know how to feel about all of this. 

They had to wait for hours to be able to see Chanyeol. It was almost midnight and they might not even be able to see Chanyeol until morning. It turned out that Chanyeol was scheduled for two surgeries and a broken arm treatment. Kyungsoo told him that Chanyeol's injuries were alot worse and he might need some more time to recover. Baekhyun tried not to think too much about anything. After a while, Xiumin was the first to leave because he had a curfew. 

"Baek, don't be too hard on yourself. It was the man's fault," Xiumin said.

"I'm not being hard on myself, okay?"

Xiumin just raised his brows at him before hugging him. "Forget about the bet. It was stupid."

Baekhyun nodded. "Yeah. See you." And then Xiumin left. 

"Are you okay Baekhyun?" Kris asked soon after Xiumin left. They were all pretty tired. Kyungsoo was already asleep on Kris' lap. 

"Yeah. I can manage it. It was just sudden you know." And ing overwhelming. 

"I know, but Chanyeol will be fine." 

Baekhyun sighed and smiled at him. He didn't want to think about Chanyeol dying in a middle of an operation. He needed to see Chanyeol to know that he will be okay.

Baekhyun focused on Kris texting on his phone. He was never really close with Kris but he wondered how Tao and he have been doing. But it really wasn't for him to ask. Kris was always the one that made the assumption that he and Chanyeol were boyfriends, when he knew that they weren't. After awhile, he turned to Jongin. "Jongin, I need to talk to you."

Jongin suddenly looked up from his phone and nodded. "Sure."

Baekhyun led them to a small empty hallway. "Hey, I want you to drive Kyungsoo home." Both Kyungsoo and Jongin barely talked or looked at each other the whole time they were there. "He's really tired of waiting for hours."

Jongin was quiet for a second. "Baek, we can see that you are tired too. You need to go home and rest."

"I know. I'll leave after I see him. Please just take Kyungsoo home."

Jongin took a while to make his decision. "Okay, I'll take Kyungsoo home."

"Thank you Jongin. I don't really know what's up with you guys, but it'd be nice to see you guys talk again."

Jongin nodded. "You know we broke up."

"But still. I know you Jongin. You just need to say the right things and make him listen to you because he's very stubborn."

Jongin sighed. Like he hasn't tried that before. "I'll see what I can do." 

They walked back to Kris and Kyungsoo and Baekhyun gently woke Kyungsoo up by patting his shoulder. 

Kyungsoo woke up in a second. "Jongin is taking you home. I'm going to stay back to see Chanyeol once he wakes up."

"Are you serious? It's like midnight right now, Baek. How long are you going to stay? You need to get some rest too."

Baekhyun shook his head. "No, I have to see Chanyeol."

"It's okay, Kyung. I'll take Baekhyun home," Kris said.

Kyungsoo finally gave in because of his tiredness and hugged Baekhyun. He then looked up at Jongin. They finally locked eyes for the first time that night. 

Jongin squeezed Baekhyun's shoulder. "Bye Baek."

Once they left, Baekhyun sat there just thinking about his relationship with Chanyeol. God, it seemed they both went through so much. But Baekhyun, for some reason, was still very much attached to Chanyeol. And with Chanyeol being hurt like this, it just breaks his heart. He didn't know just how much he still cares for the taller, even if the taller had screwed him over several times. He hated that and it was hard to get over it. 

Kris and Baekhyun slept on the bench until it was 4 in the morning. They were both draining of energy so sleeping was the best decision at this point. When they found out Chanyeol was in stable-like condition, they both felt relieved. Kris had left earlier to a nearby convenience store to buy some food so Baekhyun was by himself to see Chanyeol first. Once he walked in the room, he saw Chanyeol's head bandaged up and a cast on his left arm. What breaks his heart most was Chanyeol's chest, with a long bandage covering what seemed to be a big cut from surgery. Baekhyun bit his lips as he walked closer. What mattered was that Chanyeol was okay and breathing. Chanyeol's eyes were tightly closed and there were some red sractches on his face. He slowly took Chanyeol's right hand and held it tight. Sometimes that's only what he could do. Now he just had to wait until Chanyeol wakes up.

When Chanyeol finally woke up about 10 minutes later, Baekhyun was already falling asleep. 

"Baekhyun?"

Baekhyun lazily smiled at him. Just a warm smile. "You're awake."

Chanyeol was confused, yet still very tired. He looked at the clock. "Why are you still here?" His voice was raspy.

Baekhyun sighed. "I just couldn't leave without seeing you wake up." I needed to see you even though you're not worth it. 

"I thought you wouldn't even want to see me wake up." 

They both just stared at each other for awhile. Sometimes it was just nice to have a moment like this. Baekhyun missed those times when it was just them and nobody else, letting themselves get caught in the moment of just each other. And then Baekhyun noticed the little cut on Chanyeol's bottom lip and that brought him back to reality. 

"So what happened? Some drunk driving or what?"

Chanyeol made a funny face. Way to ruin the moment, Baek. "When do I drink? Some just tried to kill me." 

Baekhyun smiled, letting go of Chanyeol's hand. "He did a bad job trying to kill you." He slowly stood up, leaning closer and gently trailing his fingers on Chanyeol's bandaged chest. It stung his fingers. He hated seeing Chanyeol like this, but he can't help but worry. Chanyeol's other hand suddenly stopped his movement and Baekhyun realized what he just did. 

"Oh, sorry."

Chanyeol shrugged it off. "It's fine. It doesn't hurt you know."

Baekhyun sat back down. He had so much to say, yet nothing seemed to really matter. He just needed to know that Chanyeol was okay.

"I'm glad you're fine. Just get better okay?"

Chanyeol nodded, stretching his good arm out. "Come here." 

Baekhyun looked at the empty spot that Chanyeol had made for him. He remembered what it was like to be in Chanyeol's arms, but that wasn't the case. He and Chanyeol aren't anything more than friends and he shouldn't be coped up with the feeling of having Chanyeol's arm around him. It was a dangerous territory despite everything they've gone through. Being in Chanyeol's arm was always dangerous. 

He needed space from Chanyeol. He needed to figure out his feelings. Or whatever it was. 

At that moment Kris had arrived. Baekhyun turned away from Chanyeol to look at Kris.

"What did you get?"

Kris walked closer to them before looking down at Baekhyun. "I got some Gimbap, Dosirak, Burritos, and just some other snacks. I also got some stuff for you Chanyeol."

"Thanks man."

They exchanged some words while they ate and after that, Kris had driven Baekhyun home. 

Jongin and Kyungsoo were silent the whole ride home. It was pretty awkward, but they both managed. 

When Kyungsoo got out of the car, Jongin decided to walk him to the front door. 

"Why are you walking me?"

Jongin just shrugged. "Because I want to."

They both walked to the porch. When they stopped at the door, Jongin was the first to talk

"I'm thinking Kyungsoo, that I should be more mature about this." 

"About what?"

"About everything. Look, we are seniors and we should be more mature. I was stupid for taking you for granted just because you were a bet."

Kyungsoo looked away. It was the first time he heard Jongin say the truth. He was just a bet, he was nothing more than that. "Yeah, we both were pretty stupid." Kyungsoo finally looked up. "Sehun told me a while ago."

"Oh. So you knew?" Jongin had a guilty look on his face. Of course Sehun would spill the beans.

Kyungsoo nodded, tilting his head to Jongin's car. "Your car. The one that Chen gave you for winning."

Jongin looked at his car parked on the side of the street. "Oh yeah." Jongin bit his lips. It was time for him to say something. "Hey look, if we could do it all over again, I would still date you, but that all depends if you would take me back. I know that you still have those feelings for me and maybe I could too, but we may ever know until we try again."

Kyungsoo looked up. "We'll see." Was trying again worth it? Will their feelings be more real the second time around?

Jongin just smiled at him before leaving. Kyungsoo sighed as he watched the red car disappear. "You were just a bet too, Jongin." And then he opened his door and went inside. 

"Hey Baek, I have to tell you something."

"What is it?" 

Kris had already stopped in front of his house. "You must know that Chanyeol is ed up right?"

Baekhyun looked over. "Yeah?" Who else doesn't know that? 

"Look, Chanyeol might not regret hurting you, but that doesn't mean he doesn't love you."

Baekhyun snorted. As many times as people would say that Chanyeol loves him, he doesn't feel it. He needs that reassurance. "So what do you want to say?"

Kris leaned slightly closer. "You can't just let him get to you. As his friends, we both know how he is, but he won't change unless something happens."

Baekhyun made a face. How can he change the way Chanyeol is? It seemed so impossible. "He's just so ing complicated, Kris. He won't change even if I try. I can't even get through him without him knocking my down."

"Baekhyun, don't you get it? Chanyeol is injured and this is your chance. You can get back at him."

Shaking his head, Baekhyun looked out the window. "Revenge? There's no point."

"Why is that? After what he did to you? You're backing down?"

"No. I find that it's stupid getting revenge. He just wanted to reveal a personal thing about me to everyone at school and ruin my family. I don't care that everyone knew about my gender, but it's the fact that he worked with his family to sabotage us. What's done is done and we don't plan on getting back at them. It's their fault."

"Why are you still friends with him?"

Baekhyun sighed, deciding to ignore that question. He looked at Kris closely. Kris was always handsome, he was nice and things that Chanyeol wasn't. Kris' too sharp features brings out his personality and matureness. But Baekhyun could never be interested nor even go for Kris. Kris wasn't his type. 

"When you found out about the blackmailing, how did you feel?" Baekhyun asked. 

"I confronted him. I asked him if he would do it to his other friends too."

"What did he say?"

"He was being an but I know he means well when he doesn't show it. You just have to understand him to know his intentions."

Baekhyun slowly nodded. "Chanyeol is just someone I can't ever figure out." After all these years, why couldn't he figure him out? 

"Do you love him?" Kris asked slowly. It was a simple, yet hard question. 

Did he love him? Love was such a strong word. It wasn't like Baekhyun never thought about it before, he just ignored those feelings. But loving Chanyeol was something that he couldn't do. Chanyeol was a such a hard person to love. 

"If I did, would it really make a difference?"

Baekhyun barely got any sleep that morning. He was planning on skipping school. He had arrived home at 6, washed up, and went to bed but couldn't sleep. It was that weird feeling he had ever since he stepped foot in the hospital room. He couldn't rub it off. He was actually scared of seeing Chanyeol in that situation, but there's nothing he can do about it. But it just kills him. 

Baekhyun got up and grabbed his laptop off his desk. He needed to busy himself. He needed to get rid of Chanyeol off his mind. 

He decided that he's going on the vacation without Chanyeol. Because he needed to be away from him. He had to understand his feelings. 

Being around Chanyeol was not a good thing. He looked back at what Kris had asked earlier. Did he love Chanyeol? He sometimes just thinks the heart wants what the mind wants. But one thing for sure, he needed to get over his little obsession on Chanyeol's kisses and slight touches. Would he call it obsession?

Baekhyun ended up going to school anyway. Pretty much words got around campus about Chanyeol's situation. People have been asking him what was up but he couldn't tell them anything. Because he honestly didn't know when Chanyeol will get better or when he'll be back on the courts. He was lacking sleep and the tiredness was seeking into his body. He was a bit jet lagged. 

Taeyeon was there by his side when he needed her. She was a supportive girlfriend, but he felt guilty being with her. She deserves someone who could give her their full attention and love. Baekhyun couldn't do anything of that for her. 

When the bell rang for school to be over, he wanted to see Chanyeol and know that he was getting better, but that was something only in his mind. He wasn't going to see Chanyeol anyways. He had met up with Suho for an ASB meeting after school. They were going over some stuff that needed to be done before the break. 

"Hey, I have something to confess," Baekhyun said once they were out. 

Suho looked up at him, worry in his eyes. "Please don't confess you love for Chanyeol. He doesn't deserve your love." 

Baekhyun opened his mouth but then closed it, taken aback. "No, it's not that. Why would you think that?" 

Suho shook his head. "No reason. So what's up?"

"I did overhear something the other day before walking in the dance room. About Jongin kissing Lay." 

Suho didn't look fazed. "We both know you heard something. Okay then, what else did you hear?"

Baekhyun arched his brows. "What else? Is there something I should know?" 

Suho sighed. "Not really. None of it is important." 

Baekhyun was determined to know what that is. "Suho, you trust me right?" 

"It's not about trusting, Baek. You know I trust you. Like you wouldn't go around saying that you kissed Chanyeol, right? And when people ask you why you kissed him, how would you answer?" 

"Oh." Baehyun wasn't quite getting it. Did Jongin just kiss Lay just because he can? "Are you saying that there wasn't a reason to it?"

"Jongin just wanted to make sure that Lay was bi." 

Baekhyun smiled. Lay was for sure something. Bi or whatever, but at least they knew the truth. "At least we know he likes guys too." 

Smiling, Suho said, "Yeah. And besides, I am coming on the vacation. Just update me on everything." 

"Yeah." Baekhyun bit his lips for a sec. "Wait, just be honest. Do you still want Lay?"

Suho was silent. Baekhyun watched the boy closely. 

"I don't even know. I've been in love with him for years, but maybe it wasn't love? I was infatuated with him." 

They were outside now. Baekhyun noticed the little droplets on his cheeks and looked at the ground. It was going to rain and he didn't have a ride home. He could just run home in 5 minutes. 

"I sometimes wonder what you see in him. What makes him so important to you." 

Suho looked the sky and suddenly walked out, reaching his hand out to touch the rain water. It was lightly sprinkling now. "I love the rain. Back in those elementary days, he always seemed like the brightest kid around. I remember seeing him dance in the rain, sing, and the way he smiled. I only watched him from afar, yet I wanted to get to know the guy who smiled the brightest when it rained." Suho turned back to look at Baekhyun. "He knew it was me who saw him, but he never said anything. Years flew by and the older you get, you lose interest in the ones who always had your attention. I still like him a lot and wonder why too. But then it's because you connect to them, you can feel them, and understand them. Lay may seem like a bad guy for blackmailing you, but he's really not."

Baekhyun smiled at him. He barely knew Lay, but he can understand what Suho meant. You can understand how one is just from watching them for years. 

Baekhyun looked at his own relationship with Chanyeol, the mess they made, and the pain that came through. How can he really understand Chanyeol better? How will he ever know what Chanyeol feels?  

Suho looked at him. "Did you go see Chanyeol?"

Baekhyun looked away. "Yeah."

"Can I ask you something?"

Baekhyun turned around. "Go ahead."

"What do you see in Chanyeol? What makes him so important to you?"

"Chanyeol?" Baekhyun bit his lips, hands reaching out to feel the cold droplets on his finger tips. It was the exact question he asked Suho earlier. "I really can't answer that for you. I don't even know the answer myself."

"You sure?"

Baekhyun nodded. "With Chanyeol, I never know."

Taeyeon had planned their date to a festival on Thursday. And it was also the day he had to meet up with Key.  He decided to tell Key to meet up with them at the festival because he thought it'd be better to hang out there. Besides, Taeyeon was cool with it. Baekhyun was pretty excited for the festival because he's never been to many of them. When Taeyeon had brought up the idea, he was stoked.

Taeyeon's older brother drove them to the festival at 5. Taeyeon said there were going to be some kpop band performances, rides, and lots of food. Baekhyun had alway liked carnival dates and was glad he was finally able to take someone to it.

They held hand throughout, took some