“Do you really have to go?” Kyungsoo pleads for the fourth time, his eyes growing round while he’s holding both of Lay’s hands in his own. Those two have grown unexpectedly closer overnight, bonding over small talk, relationship experience and housekeeping advice. They share a passion for cooking especially; Baekhyun has managed to steal some kitchen tips from their conversations, and then they promised to make him a special tart soon, out of the blue. He doesn’t know why they offered, but you can always count on Baekhyun being very willing to taste new dessert recipes.

Now Kai tries to pull Kyungsoo away by the waist, whining a bit about losing Kyungsoo’s attention while he was in the middle of explaining something important that Baekhyun hadn’t been listening to either, but the smaller doesn’t even flinch. Baekhyun lazily swirls the swizzle stick in his bright orange and red colored drink –one with minimum alcohol that Xiumin very kindly offered Baekhyun after preparing it separately from the rest, especially for him who doesn’t like spirits. In all probability, his friends are so worried for him being near a certain giant again that they’re making their best effort to make him feel comfortable and placated.

“Yes, I’m afraid so” Lay answers calmly with an apologetic smile, paired with adorable dimples, and he disengages one hand to reach behind him. Suho takes Lay’s hand almost immediately, even though that leaves him with one hand short as he tries to straighten the lapel of his coat. Kyungsoo looks at Suho over Lay’s shoulder and the man smiles brightly in kindness. “Suho has a flight to catch, early tomorrow morning, so we shouldn’t be late to go home. We’re already kind of late, actually…” Lay giggles and turns around to fix Suho’s coat himself, and his boyfriend accepts the gesture with a sweet smile. Baekhyun sighs inwardly for the nth time tonight, fighting the urge to rest his head in his palm in a wistful and dreamy pose.

He wants that, too. He wants to feel that brilliant serenity of a loving exchange with your significant other. And maybe he wants to share it with Chanyeol specifically –no, he didn’t just think that. Or dreamt about it in detail for three nights in a row. No, that definitely didn’t happen.

All of his friends thought the most difficult mission Baekhyun would have to accomplice tonight would be to see Chanyeol again without feeling hurt, sad or awkward and uncomfortable in any way. They were wrong. The most difficult thing is to see all this love around him and keep himself from feeling dejected. He doesn’t know why fate has left him lovesick for a certain gorgeous giant in the room, but so it is, and he feels like he is missing out on so many precious life moments, like those their friends are having. He glances at the taller with the corner of his eye, seeing him playing with his fingers against the glass he is holding. All Baekhyun wants to do is to crawl across the table to Chanyeol’s side, whimper pitifully for attention with puppy eyes in full force, and wait for those fingers to comb through his hair affectionately, for a comforting hug and a kiss on the temple. Just like the one Kai gave to Kyungsoo just now.

“Okay then, if you must…” Kyungsoo nods in understanding, his face falling a little. Kai takes advantage of this momentary surrender and pulls him against his chest; Kyungsoo doesn’t protest this time. “Get home safely and have a good night’s sleep” he allows, proceeding to wish Suho a good flight and to arrange a date with Lay next week, but Baekhyun tunes them out. He makes a mental note about how nice a co-host Kyungsoo makes in Kai’s house, how comfortable and happy he looks, and Baekhyun smiles a little to himself. He is not paying attention to them as they say goodbye. Instead, he mixes his drink again and then slowly lifts his gaze under his lashes to watch Chanyeol, who is smiling and watching the rest as they part, sitting in his seat like a proper boy scout.

Baekhyun had almost forgotten how gorgeous Chanyeol is. It felt like the shock of his life to see him again, standing in front of him in flesh and blood. That outfit is not helping either, flattering all the right assets of his tall, lean figure. Baekhyun wanted to swoon and faint right on the spot when he first had to look up at Chanyeol’s face; he had forgotten that feeling. He is not exactly the lively giant Baekhyun remembers, bouncing on his heels when he’s excited or uncomfortable, hovering around with a brilliant smile that warms every heart, clumsily making his way through life and making his loved ones laugh. But even with his complexion slightly paler and his large eyes shining less brightly, he is still beautiful as ever. His smiles are not as wide as they used to be, but they sparkle anyway, and his laughter is not as carefree as Baekhyun remembers, but it’s positively booming. For some reason, the low timbre of Chanyeol’s voice doesn’t blend in with the voices of the rest to Baekhyun’s ears. Baekhyun likes the way he gets surprised every time he hears Chanyeol’s deep voice, saying even the most insignificant of things.

Chanyeol looked stiff and tired when he first came in; his posture was good but there was something about him that seemed resigned and anxious. Obviously, his work has taken its toll on him during the last month, even physically. It took a while until the demeanor of a lost, frightened bunny left him. But, over the past few hours, he has adapted to the cheerful and comfortable mood of their company, relaxing into the enjoyable atmosphere. There is not much anyone can do to deny such a happy vibe as the one floating in Kai’s house tonight. Baekhyun can see the baby steps Chanyeol has been making to return to his old, cheerful self; his sentences get longer, his smiles more genuine, his gestures less wooden and his expressions seem more earnest. And Baekhyun feels happier, just because Chanyeol is getting happier. Having Chanyeol physically near him again makes Baekhyun’s heart beat faster; it even skips a beat whenever their gazes meet momentarily.

Baekhyun stares at Chanyeol a lot. Undoubtedly, all of their friends have noticed by now –and he really hopes Chen and Kyungsoo will let it slide and they won’t corner him later with teasing remarks and questions that will make him blush eleven different shades of pink. But he simply can’t help it. He is tracing Chanyeol’s features carefully, trying to re-engrave his image in his brain, because it feels like it had faded away slightly. He needs to do this, he knows he does, even though he can’t explain why very well. In spite of being painfully obvious, however, Chanyeol doesn’t seem to have noticed him staring –and it’s not Baekhyun’s goal to be noticed in the first place; but it still bothers him a bit. Because the reason Chanyeol hasn’t noticed, is the general lack of attention towards Baekhyun. Sure, he is participating in conversations, he laughs with the rest, he even looked at Baekhyun once or twice and told him a few shy words. But he doesn’t dare initiate and hold a conversation for longer than a set of timid replies, he quickly averts his eyes as if avoiding Baekhyun’s gaze if the latter happens to look his way, and he keeps a careful distance whenever Baekhyun is moving around. It was a moment’s blessing when Baekhyun managed to sneak in between their friends and stand in front of Chanyeol when they were gathered outside to observe the questionable results of Kai’s barbeque; he still gets shivers down his spine remembering how warm and nice Chanyeol’s hand felt against his back.

Chanyeol is the way he used to be around his friends, a little less energetic, but just as benevolent and adorably silly. There is nothing in his behavior towards Baekhyun that’s unbefitting, inappropriate or awkward. All in all, his behavior towards everyone is what would be expected between good friends. But Baekhyun wants more. He wants the extra amount of attention Chanyeol always used to give him, his blinding, eye-twitching smiles, his not-completely-normal moments with Baekhyun. He wants those effortless touches, that smiling expression his eyes would make whenever Baekhyun’s gaze turned to him, that deep voice lulling Baekhyun’s senses when Chanyeol would say something to him and only him, sometimes stuttering and blushing. He wants that invisible blanket of affection he used to feel when Chanyeol’s attention would be on him. But Chanyeol is distant today. He hasn’t even called him ‘Baek’ and Baekhyun had been looking forward to it so fervently.

To be fair, Chanyeol did try to apologize earlier, but Baekhyun cut him off. It wasn’t exactly an ideal moment, when all their friends outside had pretty much plastered their noses on the glass doors to watch the show; even Sehun’s eyes were wide with interest as he tiptoed in the back to get a better view over the others’ heads. So maybe that’s why Chanyeol has been so shy around him ever since, because Baekhyun threw him off his track. Baekhyun didn’t feel like he had much choice back then, because everyone was watching, and he wouldn’t be able to tell Chanyeol all the things he wants to say, with an audience. Besides, there is nothing for Chanyeol to explain. He is already forgiven for everything, as far as Baekhyun is concerned. That’s what Baekhyun wants to tell him, when they get the chance to talk in private. And now that Chanyeol is back, Baekhyun has the chance to tell him much more than that, too. He has not forgotten about his feelings; how could he, if they swirl inside his chest and dance inside his tummy every time Chanyeol breathes and blinks his sparkly, wide eyes?

But he needs to be careful with those delicate matters. His feelings are complex and intriguingly unfamiliar, and he’s not sure he can express them properly yet. Baekhyun is well aware that his ‘confession’ –to call it in a childish manner– when and if it happens, might overwhelm Chanyeol. But they just got back to being around each other; he won’t be able to handle it if Chanyeol pulls another vanishing trick on him again, this time being Baekhyun who caused it! Baekhyun has also not forgotten that Chanyeol’s last known relationship was with a girl. A female –and a pretty one at that. There is good chance that he is not even looking at Baekhyun that way. He has most probably never even thought of the possibility, and maybe he won’t want to look into the possibility. Or maybe, he won’t be interested in him, even after looking –it’s not like Baekhyun is anything special. So, Baekhyun has to make careful assessments of what Chanyeol thinks of their future, of their friendship and in what way it should be restored. After that, he has to make wise choices; he doesn’t want to scare him away and lose him for good. If he finds out that Chanyeol is even slightly interested in him in the way Baekhyun hopes for, then Baekhyun has a few hidden tricks to sway Chanyeol his way –if they actually work, because they haven’t been tested before. But only if Chanyeol wants to, and only if Baekhyun is really sure about it first –or else he will just make a fool of himself.

Sehun’s and Kai’s loud laughter brings Baekhyun back to reality. He realizes Chanyeol’s restrained smile on his beautiful lips as he watches their friends, and he panics a little with how boldly he had been staring at the latter, dreamy expression on full display. He flinches and glues his eyes dutifully on the rest, promising to himself not to act like a stalker for the next five minutes. It’s hard; a subconscious part of his mind is trying to make him look, no matter his resolve –it’s like an instinct. He was spacing out earlier so he has no idea why Kai and Sehun are bent over with laughter, Sehun’s blond head bumping against Kai’s brunet one as their frames shake with mirth. They grimace at the pain but they only laugh harder after that. Luhan and Kyungsoo, on the other hand, don’t look as amused; maybe the joke was on them. Luhan’s ears are red under his blond curls and a frown is set between his eyebrows, while Kyungsoo looks like he can scorch anything with his gaze only, his fists clenching and unclenching. Baekhyun smiles loosely, seeing the cute pouting faces of his friends, but he tries to hide it, like Chanyeol has been doing, because he doesn’t want to get caught in crossfire.

“Okay kid, I think it’s time to go home and sleep now” Luhan says strictly at Sehun, raising an eyebrow. Sehun keeps laughing for a while longer, grabbing Luhan’s arm for support some when along the way, wheezing for breath. Luhan bares his teeth in annoyance and tries to pull his arm away, unsuccessfully. “I mean, now.”

“Luhan” Sehun chokes a little but keeps his eyes on his boyfriend steadily “I’m not that young” he raises a challenging eyebrow over his smiling lips. It might be an interesting exchange, anthropologically speaking, and Baekhyun would’ve loved to observe it from his quiet corner, but his body rebels against his will at this point and his eyes turn to the man across from him –he didn’t even make the five-minutes-of-not-staring mark. He’s hopeless. Especially with how his insides melt when he sees Chanyeol’s caramel eyes crinkling at the corners from a poorly concealed smile. Baekhyun sighs under his breath, his stomach shaking a little, but then he quickly turns his eyes back to the rest, mentally panicking and slapping himself for letting his control slip so easily. Stop it, Byun, stop it, stop it! There’s no way you can’t control where your eyes focus, just keep them on your friends, they’re so interesting, remember? Come on, you can do it! …Maybe. Probably not. His eyes wander in the room and oh-so-accidentally stop on Chanyeol again. Ugh, I really am hopeless.

“No, I think Luhan is right; both of you should go to sleep” Kyungsoo comes to Luhan’s rescue, agreeing with him, yet he is not even looking at Sehun, choosing to glare at Kai. Baekhyun’s attention thankfully gets stolen away by the squabbling pairs before anyone has time to notice how creepily devoted to Chanyeol his eyes seem to be. Baekhyun knows from experience the chills of horror Kyungsoo’s look sends to the bones of anyone who receives that look, so it doesn’t come as a surprise that Kai stops laughing, comically abruptly, and he looks distraught and pale all of a sudden.

“Eh?! What did I do?” he exclaims in a squeaky voice, his wide eyes blinking at Kyungsoo. The latter looks like he is about to make a fierce comeback, his hands already resting on either side of his waist sassily, and Baekhyun cringes over the imminent, intense couple scene, feeling like he’s intruding in a supposed private moment. He doesn’t regret seeing these sides of a relationship, however, and even the prospect of those fights, that are realistically bound to happen, doesn’t deter him from wanting something like what they have for himself, perfectly flawed, as it is supposed to be.

“Gentlemen!” Chen cuts in effectively before world war three breaks out, raising his hands in a universal sign of surrender. Everyone in the room relaxes, as the two couples that were about to jump on each other get distracted by the designer’s call for attention. Baekhyun’s previously stiff shoulders droop and even Chanyeol relaxes in his seat; the movement causes his long legs to slide and bump slightly against Baekhyun’s under the table, but he instantly jumps back, gathering his legs close to himself again. Baekhyun, who initially flinched a little in surprise, bites his lip a little in disappointment; is he that foreign and repulsive to Chanyeol now? But they always used to be so close, even tangling their legs under the table...He glances at Chanyeol guiltily, but the latter keeps his eyes very intently focused away from him. “I am afraid that we have to leave, too” Chen smiles apologetically, somewhere in the world outside Chanyeol and Baekhyun’s bubble.

“What? You too?!” Kyungsoo exclaims in disappointment, forgetting completely about his bickering with Kai earlier. He stumbles to Chen’s side and takes both his hands in his, like he did with Lay before, as if that would prevent him from leaving. “Why? You’re all vanishing all of a sudden?” he pouts, his big, round eyes getting droopy. Chen chuckles lightly, and so does Baekhyun; Kyungsoo doesn’t get this cute every day –he’s usually full of loving death glares and adoring sarcasm.

“Well, we’re very tired. I mean, Xiumin is almost sleeping on his chair, so…” he explains, a prettily curved smile overtaking his lips at the mention of the other man’s name. Baekhyun will most certainly tease Chen about it when they meet in private, and then he’s going to hug the living daylights out of his love-stricken best friend; he’s the type to get excited with other people’s happiness. Baekhyun glances at Xiumin, and sure enough the man is having a hard time keeping his eyes open, blinking slowly with heavy eyelids, his head lolling to the side every now and then. Kyungsoo pouts harder after assessing the situation and coming to the same conclusion. “On the bright side,” Chen continues cheerfully, hooking his arms around Luhan’s and Sehun’s necks, forcing the latter to bend down to Chen’s lower height. “I’ll be taking these two trouble makers with me!” he says with a sneaky smile.

“Oh, thanks hyung!” Sehun lights up suddenly, not minding his bent neck “I was really worried whether I would manage to catch a bus after taking Luhan home; it’s getting pretty late and it’s far to walk home…” he glances at the darkening sky outside and then beams down at Chen, erasing his worries in that instant. They look dangerously alike to a pair of devilishly mischievous kids with the way they’re smiling plottingly next to each other.

“You don’t have to walk me home, I told you. Jeez, I’m a grown man…” Luhan grumbles, frowning cutely –but everyone ignores him, even Sehun, despite being lightly shoved to the side by the shorter. It takes one breath until he returns to his former spot close to Luhan naturally. Baekhyun can see how their relationship works: Luhan is constantly pushing Sehun away, even if all he really wants to do is pull him closer with everything he has, but he is probably reluctant for some reason, which results in the aforementioned push and pull situation. Sehun doesn’t seem to mind. Baekhyun wonders if it’s natural not to mind when you’re in love.

“But, if you take those two, then what about Baekhyun?” Kyungsoo asks with a sudden flash of realization. Baekhyun straightens his back at the unexpected sound of his name and, to his horrification, a long, pregnant silence ensues. Everyone’s inquiring gaze is on him now, and the gaze of two particular sparkly eyes on the side of his face feels heavier than the rest, but he knows better than to look back at those eyes. He gulps uncomfortably, feeling every moment of silence stretching guiltily because of him. How on earth did I manage to become the centre of everyone’s attention, when all I’d been doing was peacefully sitting here, in perfect silence and invisibility, pretending not to be stalking the man across from me?! He shifts in his seat.

“Oh, don’t worry about me!” he reassures them with a kind smile and a dismissive wave of his hand, finally catching up. “I’ll just take the bus; the bus stop is not far from my apartment anyway, I can easily walk the rest of the way” There are still buses around at this hour and –if he hurries to the bus stop, probably skipping a few steps on the way– he can make it to catch the last bus home. It won’t take more than thirty or forty minutes to get there, and then ten more minutes of walking till he climbs the familiar flights of stairs to his safe heaven; dare he say, he’ll be home before midnight. Hopefully. He doesn’t let his optimistic smile falter from the thought of the long night of transportation ahead of him.

“Hyung, you can’t take the bus this late at night, it’s not safe” Sehun says seriously, sounding much older than he is, and giving Baekhyun a strict look. Everyone else seems to be giving him the same concerned look in perfect synchronization, which is weird –well, almost everyone, because Baekhyun wouldn’t know about a certain someone, because he doesn’t dare look his way. Since the matter seems to be important for everyone else though, Baekhyun puffs out his cheeks and pauses to think.

On one hand, Sehun has a point; drunkards and street people don’t make good bus mates, they’re loud and irritable and smelly, and Baekhyun has always been an easy target for bullying or anything else really; that’s why he tries to avoid late night bus rides most of the time. But it’s not always all that bad; most of the times, his bus mates are old ladies, tired people returning from work and perhaps a few teenagers going home after a night out. In any case, he’s a big boy, he can survive a bus ride at night every once in a while. It’s not such a big deal.

“Maybe we can all squeeze in the car” Sehun continues, quirking his lips with calculations “I mean, you’re not a big person, hyung…” he flashes a cheeky grin, reaching with one of his long arms to ruffle Baekhyun’s hair a little. Baekhyun pouts at the childish treatment –not the hair people, it’s hard to fix it without a mirror and he doesn’t like sporting the disheveled look for the rest of the night, but that’s not the point right now– and through his bangs he can see Chen smiling at him affectionately. “I’ll carry you or Luhan in my lap, how about it? You should be about the same size, I think” Baekhyun rolls his eyes, missing the jealous glint that flashes in Chanyeol’s eyes for the briefest second after Sehun’s suggestion. Baekhyun can’t see why they are fretting so much; since Chen’s car will be full, and Kyungsoo will be staying here for the night, going home by bus for once is really no big deal. He tries to blow his bangs away from his eyes, which is obviously unsuccessful, so he fixes them with his fingers quickly, hoping the hairstyle gods are with him today and he didn’t just unknowingly push a tuft of hair to stick awkwardly on his head.

“It’s okay, Sehunnie, I’ll manage” he offers the brightest smile he can manage; secretly, he’s starting to worry for his safety too, after all the crazy scenarios his friends have sparked in his head, but he knows he’s probably being unreasonable and there is no reason to alarm the rest. Luhan pouts unconvinced and Sehun presses his lips strictly. Kai doesn’t look convinced either, his eyes swirling with doubts, and Chen gives Baekhyun a serious look, which means he really wishes Baekhyun ‘would not be a stubborn puppy and listen to him this time’ –Baekhyun knows what the look means because he has asked in the past; he can be pretty stubborn, this is not the first time he gets this look. Ugh, what does a man have to do to convince his friends he is all grown up and dandy?

“Byun, you are the one who lectures me about safety all the time” it’s Kyungsoo who finally speaks, putting his hands on either side of his waist strictly and raising an eyebrow “There is no way I’m letting you go home by bus this late. Yes, I know you’re as old as I am, but let me be the smarter person this time and take my advice, because I don’t trust it’s safe for your cute little rear to roam the streets at night” he gives Baekhyun a deadpan look and Baekhyun returns it, raising an eyebrow at his friend who is exaggerating a bit, isn’t he? His pretty rear will hardly roam anywhere, following the way home is pretty standard procedure. Kyungsoo shrugs his shoulders, not interested in their staring contest, and he drops his hands from his waist to a more casual posture. “Maybe Kai can take you home by car and then he’ll come back; at least that way we’ll be sure you got home safely”

“What?!” Baekhyun startles and stands up quickly, waving his hands in front of him furiously “No, no, no” he mumbles in refusal, shaking his head simultaneously. Why would Kai go through all that trouble, to drive him home and then drive back in the middle of the night, that’s dangerous, and Kyungsoo would be left alone in the house for so long even though this is supposed to be their night, no, it’s really inconvenient, he can’t put them through that, so Baekhyun won’t have it, he could never accept such a gesture, however kind, because he doesn’t want to be a burden to others when he is fully capable of taking himself home and- okay, stop justifying to yourself: start talking. “You really don’t have to undergo all that trouble! It is too much trouble Kyungsoo, don’t give me that look, I live thirty minutes away and you know it. I appreciate your concern, really I do, but I can take myself home safely, I promise!” he pleads, blinking at them pitifully.

“Look, cutie B” Luhan starts with softening eyes and a sigh “there was one time when I almost got attacked by someone at night. It was quite recently and very scary, and if it weren’t for Sehun that night…” Luhan shakes his head sadly, opting to say no more. Baekhyun shivers at the thought of his friends in danger, and of himself in danger, and he feels very stressed; he understands and appreciates greatly his friends’ concerns, but he doesn’t want to inconvenience them, and he doesn’t want to act paranoid either…He turns to Chen as a last resort, to extract some support from his best friend, who must know he is old enough and capable of taking good care of himself, since he has seen him survive by himself on this earth for all these years, but all he gets is an unaffected look.

“Don’t pout at me, koala, I agree with them” he points at Kyungsoo and Sehun. Baekhyun’s ears flame in mortification at the sound of the nickname. It’s embarrassing that they won’t let him be a responsible adult for himself, and now they’re calling him all sorts of cute-ish names, and Chanyeol is right there, for chocolate’s sake; why are friends infallibly programmed to embarrass you in front of your crush?!

“Okay” he says finally, sighing in defeat. It doesn’t look like the odds are in his favor tonight, so he might as well compromise. He starts mulling over possible solutions that won’t be vetoed by his best friends. The next idea comes so suddenly in his head, like a lyric from a song you’ve sang too many times that it has become a reflexive hum under your breath by now, and he doesn’t even have time to think about it before it comes out of his mouth with his next breath.

“Chanyeol will take me home”

What. Did he just. Say?!

“What?!” Chanyeol’s panicked response comes half a second later, as expected from any sane person. Baekhyun looks at Chanyeol apologetically. He didn’t mean to surprise him like that; the poor giant looks like a bomb just went off in his hands. He is pale, his jaw slightly slack, his big caramel eyes opened wide in disbelief and surprise. Chanyeol gulps with difficulty, blinking up at Baekhyun like a lost puppy. It’s the most adorable thing Baekhyun has seen in months, and he suddenly wants to lurch across the table to hug him, and ruffle his hair, and –focus, Baekhyun. “I-I will?” he mumbles softly, and his disbelief is lost in his silky voice, because they are having steady eye contact for the longest time since the start of this evening, and that puts the rest of the world in slow motion and makes it seem unimportant. His heart beats in the strangest way, excitedly and shyly and anxiously all at once. If the look in Chanyeol’s eyes is any indication, the feeling is mutual.

Baekhyun forces himself to breathe –because what good would it be if he passed out from simply staring at Chanyeol?– and he thinks his words though. Is it okay if he asks such a thing of Chanyeol? It’s not a big favor and he knows it wouldn’t bring Chanyeol out of his way. But, what if he is not allowed to ask for any kind of favors yet, considering their frail, barely reestablished friendship situation? He shouldn’t be so absolute and dictatorial; he didn’t even phrase it as a request! It came out so automatically, did I even say please?! And if Chanyeol takes him home, they will have to spend a considerable amount of time alone, inside the confined space of the car; so maybe that’s what spooked Chanyeol the most. It’s not like Baekhyun is not thinking about it too, worrying about how that might go...Would he rather silence or an awkward chat? Would Chanyeol be as distant and timid as he has been so far? Baekhyun ultimately concludes that there are so many flaws in his suggestion that it’s safe to call it a giant mistake.

The rest of their friends in the room look just as stunned as Chanyeol looks and Baekhyun feels, and their silence is not helping, emphasizing the awkward tension in the room in the aftermath of Baekhyun’s unanticipated announcement. They blink in surprise and confusion at the pair by the table, glancing back and forth; who knows what runs through their minds…Well, seeing Chen’s smug and naughty smirk, Baekhyun knows what’s going through his mind –and he doesn’t want to elaborate on how embarrassing best friends can be about one’s romantic feelings– but the rest seem more shocked than anything else. Baekhyun feels guilty, counting the loud, startled beats of his heart. This silence is awkward.

Xiumin’s head almost hits the table in his uncomfortable sleeping position and that puts everything back into motion.

“Well, it’s not like you would go out of your way” Kai says finally, breaking the tension. Baekhyun lets out a small, discrete sigh of relief, sending a mental thank you to Kai for being brave enough to speak up. Kai shrugs his shoulders casually and throws one arm over Kyungsoo’s frame, so naturally it looks out of habit. Baekhyun would have liked to leave the conversation of his transportation at that. If only.

Suddenly, everyone –even Xiumin, who somehow managed to keep track of the conversation while napping in a seated position– is agreeing that Chanyeol should take Baekhyun home, and they’re being quite vocal about it. Baekhyun’s cheeks tickle when in the roar of voices he discerns phrases like ‘you should take care of your Baekhyun’ and ‘you can’t leave your koala defenseless’, your Baekhyun this and your Baekhyun that, your, your Baekhyun, yours. They start speaking over each other, motioning with their hands and using various tones of voices and different arguments, not even noticing the blushing silence of their audience of two people, as they go on in a confusing speech that goes too fast and incoherently to understand anything substantial.

Baekhyun bites his lips and decides that friends are so embarrassing; they are just so obvious…! He needs new ones, he knows, but where is he going to find another fashion designer lifelong best friend, or a business partner mother hen best friend? They’re kind of irreplaceable. That doesn’t make them any less awkward. He feels his cheeks turning red in embarrassment and his heart starts beating faster, and he just wants to be swallowed into the ground already or rewind time and take back his words that started all this. What will Chanyeol think of this? He must have noticed that the only consistent point in their sputtering of nonsense, is that Baekhyun is considered ‘his’, in their opinion at least.

Chanyeol looks at them as if they are speaking an alien language –and it is justifiable, in Baekhyun’s opinion– with his mouth still agape and his ears slightly red. Baekhyun will have to apologize to him for their friends later. Maybe he should also explain how he does not consider himself Chanyeol’s responsibility and how he doesn’t have that sort of expectations –for now he doesn’t, maybe in a very distant future he will– and then he will suggest they both find new friends. Yup, that would save them a whole lot of trouble. Maybe we could get a puppy together…Wait, what? Byun Baekhyun, no! What’s wrong with you?!

And, just as suddenly as it began, this pandemonium of voices stops and a silence follows, heavy as an elephant and thick as molasses. Baekhyun doesn’t dare speak, still feeling choked with guilt. He peeks at Chanyeol uncertainly with the corner of his eye. If he starts laughing, it will be understandable, Baekhyun thinks; but it will also break Baekhyun’s heart a little. Chanyeol opens his mouth and then he closes it, reconsidering whatever he was going to say at first. The next few moments of silence are torturous to Baekhyun, until Chanyeol speaks again.

“Of course I will.”

--

Long, slender arms wrap around him, white fingers splayed on his tummy over his coat and drawing him back towards a strong chest. He sighs in surrender, not having any hope of escaping even if he tries to claw his way out, and he glances up at the dark, star-dotted sky, asking the fathomless universe once again ‘why me?’. He doesn’t get an answer this time either. Thought so, you secretive, unfair universe, you.

“Can’t you wait till they turn the corner at least?!” Luhan hisses, wiggling restlessly and elbowing Sehun in the stomach in an effort to break free of his arms, but it seems to have the opposite effect, because Sehun tightens his arms around him even more, drawing him in by the waist and resting his chin on Luhan’s shoulder. He grins defiantly on the edge of Luhan’s viewing field. Luhan growls and stomps his foot in frustration, unfortunately missing Sehun’s shoe only by a little. “Chen’s eyesight puts a hawk to shame! So, can you not, when they’re in vicinity? It’s embarrassing!” he complains, trying to take a step forward and detach himself from the taller, to no avail. He ends up flailing and almost making both of them stumble to a fall, if not for Sehun’s good balance.

“They already know we’re a couple, Luhan. What’s the point of hiding or being embarrassed?” he answers in a blank voice, which is in fact reprimanding, and which Luhan lets go completely over his head. Luhan frowns; sure their friends know, how could they not? All those smiles, touches, gentle remarks and playful teasing; Sehun is very expressive in his quirky way, very proud of their relationship, and showing it very much too. Not to mention their friends are not blind or stupid, au contraire, they have a clever squirrel and an intuitive puppy among them; there is no way anyone can hide anything, especially a romantic relationship. It’s not like Luhan has been trying to hide either, but he is still a bit hesitant, maybe because Chen was the first to notice when Sehun and Luhan first got together –and Luhan still cringes at the memory of that morning-after conversation in the kitchen.

Luhan could do without the PDA in general, if you ask him. He doesn’t like other people knowing, even by glancing his way accidentally, about his personal life. He is not confident enough. But he has to keep in mind that he is not alone in this relationship –as Baekhyun good naturedly pointed out to him earlier tonight, because he is a cutie who would help with any of Luhan’s concerns and ease his worries. What can he do; he has a boyfriend now. Sometimes you need to invest in such things in life. Luhan heaves a great sigh and gives up, going limp in Sehun’s hold. Sehun swiftly readjusts his arms a little to support Luhan’s weight better, but he doesn’t otherwise complain for the shorter’s uncooperative attitude. On a side note, Luhan is very surprised with how comfortable he feels to let himself go in the presence of Sehun, because maybe he knows –and kind of counts on it too– that Sehun will catch him.

“Do we have to show it so much too?” he whines pathetically in a small voice, only half-meaning his question. Sehun knows there is no point in refuting his point, so he chuckles huskily in his ear instead, and Luhan gets goose bumps on his skin, but he won’t admit to it if anyone mentions it. And even though his skin’s reaction is invisible under his clothes, it’s as if Sehun knows, and he goes on to teasingly kiss Luhan’s earlobe, earning a choked whine and an elbow in the liver, because Luhan is pretty convinced by this point that he is riling him up on purpose, that brat. “Stop, Sehun, we’re in public!” he hisses in panic, his eyes scanning the empty street for any possible witnesses. The truth is, the night is quite advanced and most people are asleep or in any case absent from the neighborhood street, but Luhan has associated this place with the prying eyes of spying old ladies, the curious stares of innocent, playing children and the inviting or judging glances of passing or residing adults. He has been living here for at least four years, even the pebbles on the streets know him.

Sehun laughs, lightly dismissing his worries, and spins him around in his arms, keeping a firm hold on his hips that feels intriguingly possessive and Luhan leans onto him willingly. As a result, Luhan finds himself facing the rough, grey material of Sehun’s coat, which is not really ideal, so he looks up at his boyfriend, because two dark eyes are better than staring at two black buttons. The yellow streetlights cast strange shadows on his skin, but the sharp angles of his face are still clear and defined. His lips are not smiling, but there is a hint of entertainment in the upturned corners of them, and his eyes are so soft and glossy as he looks down, that Luhan blushes. As if the gentle look was not enough, Sehun traces an intimate, light finger over the edge of Luhan’s scarf, touching his jaw line all along. The butterflies relocate from Luhan’s stomach to his heart and it feels like his whole chest is shaking. His cheeks are literally burning.

“You’re wearing the scarf” Sehun notices absentmindedly and Luhan’s lips crack a small smile. So he finally noticed; better late than never. He thought tonight would be a good occasion to break in his new, bold red scarf, his gift from Sehun. It was a safe bet, because he wouldn’t have to wear it for too long and their friends wouldn’t stare at him like strangers might, so it would be comfortable to wear it for a while, in hopes of getting used to it. Chen was the first to praise it –which must be good, since he is a fashion designer, right?– but only Baekhyun was allowed to touch it –because Luhan has a soft spot for him and he’d give him his heart in his hands to pet if he asked. “It looks good on you” Sehun says quietly, pinching Luhan’s cheek when he notices just how bright pink his face is, not even the darkness can salvage the situation. Luhan purses his lips, being stubborn and proud enough to try to suppress his gleeful smile after his boyfriend’s compliment. Sehun doesn’t need to see exactly how mushy Luhan is for him; obviously, Luhan is choosing to ignore how bright red his face looks at the moment.

Sehun’s tongue swipes over his lips, looking as if he’s going to say something, but Luhan doesn’t wait to hear it, because that small mannerism is Luhan’s cue to act without thinking –because his brain is really faulty and the neurotransmitters fly everywhere when trying to cope with Sehun-related input. With one quick move, far more fluid than Luhan would have thought his clumsy-when-excited self capable of, Luhan unties the scarf from his neck and throws it around Sehun’s, hooking it behind the taller’s head and forcefully pulling him down until their noses bump and then remain touching; he loves the way the taller’s breath warms his skin and he’s so taken by the feeling that he doesn’t care about nonexistent prying eyes anymore.

“Looks good on you too” he smiles teasingly at Sehun’s startled look and then he pecks the lips of his boyfriend in a sudden surge of courage. He giggles a little, pulling back and blinking up at Sehun, before letting go of him while he’s still stunned. A dumfounded smile starts glowing on Sehun’s lips and Luhan has half a mind to grab him again and kiss him unconscious, because he hardly ever gets so cute and unguarded. But he gets a better idea and he instantly disengages himself easily enough from Sehun’s numb arms, making a run for the building, taking advantage of the small window of opportunity and dashing to the entrance. The night air tangles his hair more with each leap forward, his smile is wide in the darkness, he’s not sure his feet won’t trip on something sending him to a hurtful injury, but better than the rush of adrenaline from the chase, he enjoys the certainty that Sehun will follow him inside.

--

It’s quiet. Really quiet. Uncharacteristically and unsettlingly quiet. Chanyeol swears he can hear his own heartbeat –which is louder than usual in the first place–, and maybe Baekhyun’s soft breaths too if he holds his breath, over the constant purring of the car engine. He plays with his fingers on the steering wheel nervously, but the leather material around it muffles the tapping sound. He bites his cheeks and his lips several times a minute, the words of a conversation itching on his tongue but never getting out. He isn’t sure how this conversation should go anymore.

He used to have plans for various scenarios, from starting this casual to starting it grand, or even asking for Baekhyun’s thoughts before anything else –maybe he even practiced some of them privately in front of the mirror, just maybe. But their friends very unceremoniously had to meddle, and the structured, kaleidoscope conversation broke into a giant puzzle of shuttered glass pieces that are too fragile, and if misplaces them, they will break irreversibly.

They are already halfway the distance to Baekhyun’s house. The traffic is light, so they don’t have to wait, unless there is a red light –Chanyeol is guilty of stopping at every orange light, even the ones he could have easily and legally passed. Hopefully, Baekhyun won’t notice he’s stalling in hopes to win five more minutes with Baekhyun. It’s still too little time. The faint noises outside the car swoosh past them and the lights flicker in the car for moments before being replaced by other lights or darkness. He can feel the minutes dancing their merry way away from him, along with his chances; every silent breath is a chance wasted. But what can he do?

Chanyeol watches Baekhyun with the corner of his eye; he has been doing that since the very first moment they got in the car and every five seconds ever since. He doesn’t dare speak of course, or look at him straight; he only peeks stolen glances and then tries to focus on the road, biting his cheek in nervousness. His heart is not only anxious but excited as well; seeing his beautiful little guy so close to him, with his features dimly lit by the lights of the dashboard and the lights of the road, his jean clad legs crossed at the ankles, his fair fingers resting on his thigh, his pretty lips quirking with trivial thoughts sometimes and his eyes gleaming with the smallest flicker of light. It feels surreal, like a memory or a dream.

Baekhyun is silent too, but he doesn’t look as tense as Chanyeol. The silence is comfortable on his part, whereas Chanyeol is trying very hard to squeeze a conversation out of his brain, while fretting uselessly that he might give the impression that he is indifferent towards Baekhyun. He is all but that! Baekhyun, however, is sitting back comfortably, watching outside the window at the passing scenery. He hasn’t said anything either. Chanyeol was kind of hoping he would say something. Baekhyun was the one to suggest that Chanyeol took him home, and Chanyeol keeps wondering if there was a reason for that. Does he want this privacy between them or is it a burden to him? Is this ‘later’? Can Chanyeol apologize now? He really wants to do it now; he wants to do it as soon as possible. He feels like he is suffocating more and more with every minute he is holding it in. But he can’t blame Baekhyun for his cowardice.

Chanyeol pouts thoughtfully while he starts to drive after another stop at one of the scarce red lights. Only the car, instead of moving forward, roars and stops. Chanyeol’s mind goes blank in a moment and he looks down at the dashboard, searching frantically for malfunctions. It looks like…he makes a double take, because…did the engine just die on him? He inwardly groans. He probably released the clutch too soon; rookie mistake. He gasps, astounded at how distracted he is; he can’t even remember how to drive correctly! And this just had to happen now, when Baekhyun is in the car and they’re the first car after the traffic light. Baekhyun turns to look at him, blinking at him adorably.

“Everything okay?” he asks calmly, a tone that Chanyeol appreciates in the middle of his exploding mortification. It’s getting hot in here, with Chanyeol’s blood rushing to his flustered face. Baekhyun’s voice is so quiet that it’s almost lost in the zooming of cars moving around them, and Chanyeol uses it as an anchor to reboot his problem solving strategy. Who knew it’d get so hard to start a car after it has stopped, while you’re embarrassed and nervous? It was like all the years of driving practice had flown out the window for a moment.

“Uhhh…sorry” he mumbles, hastily tinkering with the ignition. The tips of his ears are tinged red in embarrassment; he is creating a small traffic line, oh god, this is so awkward. He manages to start the car again, his fingers trembling nervously as he shifts the gear and then- “What?! Come on…” he whines under his breath, his palms starting to sweat. Is it possible to fail to start the car twice in a row, right in the middle of a traffic lane?! He glances at the rearview mirror and sees the row of cars behind him; some of the drivers are looking out of their windows curiously, others are honking, he is sure much eye-rolling is involved, directed at his sudden incompetency. “I’m so sorry, um, this is so…ugh, well, this hasn’t happened in years and now it just keeps happening, I’m so sorry, I have no idea why-”

“Relax, Chanyeol, it’s okay” Baekhyun stops his frantic rant and his uselessly flailing hands with a gentle voice and a soothing smile. Chanyeol melts a little on the inside, and that distracts him from his growing frustration. Baekhyun’s eyes glimmer when he glances back at the other cars with only the faintest concern, and then he nods at Chanyeol reassuringly, a bit of his fringe falling over his eyes. He looks like an adorable, sweet puppy…Hey, Park Chanyeol, this is not your primary concern right now! Car, green light, traffic line, remember? “It can happen to anyone. Take your time; let Mr. Grouch honk all he wants. You know how to do this” he nods to his words again, but seeing how Chanyeol has not recovered yet, he bites his lips and leans slightly over the space between them, cupping one side of his mouth and exaggeratingly whispering “Or I can help, if you don’t?”

The mischief that shines in his eyes is the cutest thing Chanyeol has seen today and his brain squeals –because, as per usual, Chanyeol’s brain is off topic. It tends to happen. Even when he is responsible for a traffic mess downtown and he really needs to get moving in his fancy car. Chanyeol chuckles and his fingers loosen on the steering wheel, and everything else seems to fade away, even the judging glares of the drivers once behind him as they pass by his car. It has tinted windows anyway, they’ll never know it was him or Baekhyun inside it. He starts the car, successfully this time, easing forward. He internally cheers.

“Thank you” he mumbles, focusing on the road ahead of them and being very careful when changing gears. He doesn’t know if Baekhyun heard him, because he misses the proud puppy look Baekhyun takes on for a moment, but when Chanyeol glances again towards him, falling back into his newfound habit of secret glimpses, Baekhyun has a small smile on his lips and he is nodding his head to a happy tune of his mind, gazing at the shop windows. He wonders if he should turn on the radio for Baekhyun, but he quickly decides against it.

And so they fall back to the same silence they had before. More minutes tick by, comfortably for Baekhyun and agonizingly for Chanyeol, who returns to his former worries. Only now, it’s even more prominent in his thoughts that he should man up and finally do something. Chanyeol frowns while making a left turn, knowing that they are ten minutes away from Baekhyun’s apartment now. His time is running out, come on brain, come on! At the sight of familiar territory, a soft sigh escapes Baekhyun’s lips absentmindedly, fogging the glass on his side. That’s it, Chanyeol decides. Maybe this is not what Baekhyun had in mind as ‘later’, but Chanyeol is making it ‘later’, and maybe this is not the way Chanyeol had pictured it, but he’s trying to make a new picture now, otherwise he will physically blow up, waiting for forever. He switches lanes swiftly and drives to the edge of the road, stopping the car in the designated space and bracing himself mentally for what he is about to do. No matter what, he is doing this.

“Chanyeol? Are you okay? Why did you pull over?” Baekhyun asks, slightly worried, after he noticed that they switched to the furthest side of the road, which is not part of the trip to his house. Chanyeol doesn’t answer right away. He kills the engine and unbuckles his seatbelt so he is free to turn his body to face Baekhyun. He was not completely prepared for the sight of Baekhyun’s innocent and alarmed eyes, shimmering in the near darkness of the car, and his breath shudders alongside his skipping thoughts for a moment, but he manages to regain control.

“Baekhyun.” He begins, and he feels better and lighter already, just by calling out his name.

“Why did we stop here? Are you feeling alright?” Baekhyun almost doesn’t stop his questions, not even at the sound of his name, and then he scans Chanyeol with his eyes, worried that Chanyeol might have fallen sick all of a sudden. Chanyeol feels a stab of pain in his chest at that; how could Chanyeol hurt such a loving and caring person? Baekhyun should be hating him or be reluctant towards him, instead of fawning over the first signs of Chanyeol’s unease; he feels like he doesn’t deserve this person. Chanyeol shakes his head.

“No, I’m fine. I just wanted to talk. I simply really need to tell you a few things or I will explode” he watches as Baekhyun stops searching for signs of illness on him, his entire figure freezing up, and then he slowly lifts his eyes to meet with Chanyeol’s steady gaze. He looks so small and it’s obvious he is trying to keep calm on the outside but the inside is a whole other story that Chanyeol cannot guess. “I know you said I don’t have to explain anything to you, but please, let me apologize at least” he pleads, and his deep voice comes out so vulnerable and pitiable that Chanyeol marvels himself at how much he actually needs to share this with Baekhyun.

Baekhyun’s eyes grow wide in surprise, looking glassy and unreadable in the dim lighting. He stays silent and frozen for a few minutes, staring at Chanyeol in shock. Chanyeol starts doubting his decision was wise; maybe Baekhyun doesn’t even want to have this conversation, maybe Chanyeol shouldn’t be so forward with the introduction of the topic, maybe he should have asked Baekhyun if he wants to talk about it instead of announcing it, because he cares about him more than his selfish apology. Baekhyun blinks a couple of times, his lips numb with astonishment, but he doesn’t give any other reaction, not a positive or a negative one. Chanyeol starts wondering if he pushed too hard and how to fix it, but then Baekhyun blinks rapidly a few times in succession.

“Uhm…okay” he says in a quiet, slightly dazed voice, and he straightens his back in all seriousness, rearranging his beautiful features into a calm poker face. He seems to be as determined as Chanyeol to have this conversation and that’s a great relief to the latter. Chanyeol sighs and composes himself; maybe he has a chance. He should tread carefully now, he doesn’t want to ruin it. He doesn’t want to make any mistakes with the delicate issues he has to explain, but his body takes initiative and lets out of his mouth every thought, completely unfiltered. Because that’s the awesomeness of Park Chanyeol, in all its flailing glory.

“I am so sorry. For everything. I’m sorry for all the sadness and disappointment I caused, I’m sorry I disappeared. I never meant to hurt you. I acted the way I did thinking it would be best for you. I thought I would be able to handle everything by myself, I thought I could leave you out of all this, leave you in happy place and return to you when all would be over. My choices have cost me, too. There were so many things I had wanted to do with you, but…And all this time we had spent together, all this investment in ‘us’ went to waste, and it just frustrates me!

“I didn’t know it would get so bad; as if work was not enough, the engagement thing got in the way and…Ugh, that woman, she was horrible! I swear, Baekhyun, I never wanted her, I never wanted to even meet her in my life. But, my father was so set on it and it was so hard for me to say no to him; it has been so hard to say no to him all my life. I tried to keep her away but she was so clingy! I knew there was no easy, painless way out of all this, but I still thought I could protect you, by keeping you at safe distance. I was wrong; I should have told you.

“This month has been so hard for me. I didn’t mind all the work I had to do, I don’t care if I got sick and exhausted. What hurt me most of all, is that I had to keep you away. Kai was with me, he always is, but it’s…different with you. I wanted to see you, hear you, laugh with you, forget of all my problems with you, even for a little while. I needed your support, your strength; I needed them and yet I could not have them, not if I was to keep you safe and happy…I know it sounds foolish now, but I swear, I thought it was the right thing to do, that it was for the best.

“When you showed up at my apartment…And I wasn’t even there to see you…and you left, and I couldn’t reach you…I was so scared. You didn’t deserve to find out about it like that, I would never hurt you like this; it was heartbreaking for me, believe it or not, everything was wrong in the world. I could do nothing about it and I hated myself, for hurting you, for not running after you fast enough, for not telling you everything from the beginning. I wish I could take it all back. I wish I could have been the only one to suffer. I wish I had made better choices, choices that would include you.

“I understand it must be…hard, for you, to forgive me and give me a second chance. I would be overjoyed if you did, and I promise I will not ruin it this time. But I don’t want to ask for too much, or pressure you; it’s just a wish. This has been very sudden, so I will understand completely if you want time, or if you want to refuse me this second chance, and I will do anything you want me to. I’ll even make myself scarce, if that’s what you wish. But…let me be selfish one last time, Baek; let me tell you that I…have missed you. Terribly much.”

Chanyeol sighs and presses his fist on his eyes, which sting with tears. His voice quivered with his last words and his breath is slightly irregular. How can his self-control fail him at a time like this? He cannot see Baekhyun very clearly and his thoughts are fogged, because everything came out so unexpectedly, that he even surprised himself. Baekhyun must be surprised as well. Chanyeol curses in his mind for his body being so stupid, not letting him see Baekhyun, or hear his breath, or reach out to him. He doesn’t know what’s going on outside the confusion that’s swirling in his head. His stupid body only knows how to make tears that threaten to overflow.

“Chanyeol” Baekhyun calls softly after a while of silence and Chanyeol freezes. It’s as if the call of his name has ripped through the fog of his overwhelming emotions like a sharp knife. He opens his eyes as wide as he can, stubbornly chasing away the tears and taking in the picture of Baekhyun; he is still sitting calmly like before, his expression soft and mellow. Chanyeol stares at him in a stupor, feeling almost numb, besides his frantic heart. “Can I speak now?” he asks, bringing the taller back to reality, and Chanyeol clears his throat and nods. Of course Baekhyun can speak; he can say anything. Chanyeol will take literally anything and be thankful for it. Chanyeol’s future is hanging from his lips and he is silently praying for mercy but he’s prepared for anything. Baekhyun presses his lips in thought for a moment.

“I don’t like seeing you upset like this. It must have been very hard for you too. I wish I had been there for you; I really wish there had been a way. But I understand your choices, even though I don’t agree with them, and I believe you when you say that you did what you thought was for the best. So, I don’t think you deserve to regret so much; certain things were beyond your control, Chanyeol. And I was hurt, but so were you, and we’re both mending. Believe me, there is nothing I want to do more than to give you a second chance; give ‘us’ a second chance. You are forgiven on my part for everything you need to, and I hope we can be the way we used to be again. Because, Yeol, I’ve missed you terribly too” Baekhyun smiles, even though his eyes are glazing with tears, and Chanyeol’s chest constricts painfully, but that also leaves a small space for his joy to dance around. “And I really didn’t expect you to do this in a car, because I can’t even see you very well in here; but I was keeping you under pressure, so I guess I will have to compromise…” Baekhyun laughs quietly, ruffling his own hair, and Chanyeol simply stares at him for a while, completely mesmerized. He looks lovely with his hair in perfect disarray.

And everything seems right in the world again. Because Baekhyun is right there, right here, and that is an extremely important component of Chanyeol’s happiness. He had missed that feeling, he had almost forgotten how sweet it tastes and how fuzzy it feels. Baekhyun stares down at his hands for a few long moments, being bashful. Chanyeol sends a small prayer to the stars that a pretty smile will grace Baekhyun’s glossy pink lips soon. Come on eyesmiles, light up, come on. And sure enough, Baekhyun’s next move is to look up at Chanyeol with a blooming smile on his lips and sparkles in his eyes. Chanyeol’s heart thumps and then starts running in circles in his chest.

“Thank you, Baekhyun, for everything” Chanyeol says quietly, a smile he can’t control appearing on his lips. Baekhyun nods with a wordless, tightlipped smile, before smiling openly again, his head falling to the side to relax on the headrest of his seat as he blinks lazily. They allow a few moments of comfortable silence embrace them. Baekhyun looks adorable, and the way he is looking at Chanyeol makes the latter feel…squirmy. Maybe this is just his imagination or wishful thinking but, for a moment while they’re smiling quietly, it looks like Baekhyun is looking at him a little differently, a little like Chanyeol always looks at Baekhyun. But it’s gone too soon, replaced by a mischievous smile when Baekhyun breaks eye contact first.

“Now take me home, giant! I’m sleepy~” Baekhyun exclaims cheerfully, sitting properly in his seat. Chanyeol watches his lingering smile for a little while, trying to take a mental photograph of that lovely sight he had missed so much. Then, he follows his given order and starts warming up the engine. His smile feels very permanent on his lips in this moment. He feels so much lighter and happier, like the suffocating storm in his chest has turned to a calm night sea; sharing small moments with Baekhyun feels natural and easy to cheer up both of them.

“You’re interesting when you’re sleepy” he murmurs absentmindedly, checking the lights on the dashboard. But then he freezes up; what, wa- why would he say that?! Way to go Chanyeol, now Baekhyun will finally realize how much of a clingy stalker you are, and you haven’t been friends again for two minutes; oh joy. He realistically contemplates starting to hit his head against the wheel, just in case that will help his brain click into the right place inside his skull. He had a very serious talk with himself while he was leaving Kai’s apartment with Baekhyun, deciding that he should be very careful with his romantic aspirations; even more so after tonight. Cause his friends were totally not obvious about his crush on Baekhyun earlier…Chanyeol is not sure how much of it Baekhyun understood, but he is sure he wouldn’t want him to find out about Chanyeol’s lingering and blossoming feelings of affection for him in such a way. Kai is going to suffer come Monday, that is for sure.

“What is that supposed to mean?” Baekhyun pouts adorably, making Chanyeol’s heart flip twice in his chest. It’s a good thing he’s in a playful mood and not likely to ask any intuitive questions that will lead to embarrassing answers. His lighthearted reaction puts Chanyeol at ease and he tries to restrain his smile and keep it under control as he joins the other cars on the street.

“Remind me to tell you sometime” he says, thinking that he has said and done enough dangerous things he wished he had thought through first but didn’t for one day. He will probably tell Baekhyun someday, about how cute and stubborn and talkative he is when he is sleepy but not quite asleep, but the day is not today. They are going to have many days together from now on, if Chanyeol can help it, so he thinks he will have many chances to tell Baekhyun. Tell him that and many more. Tell him everything.

--

“So, how was it?” If you ask Kai, he’s totally not being clingy and breathing down Kyungsoo’s neck. If you ask Kyungsoo, Kai is totally being clingy and breathing down his neck. Kyungsoo rolls his shoulder in an effort to push Kai a bit further away, and oh-so accidentally splashes a bit of water his way while rinsing a dish. Kai flinches in surprise and takes a step back to inspect the damage.

“The food, you mean?” he asks, acting ignorant. Kai tries to smooth out the water stains on his shirt and Kyungsoo secretly rolls his eyes, but after Kai ingeniously realizes they won’t disappear like that, he takes his shirt off instead, completely at ease with flaunting his abs and chest. Well, this boomeranged right back at me and the idiot is not even trying. Ugh, not fair. Kyungsoo’s weakness for Kai’s general hotness is going to be the death of him someday, but right now it’s making his stomach tickle at a time it shouldn’t be.

The shorter scrunches his nose momentarily in response, but he keeps working on the dishes with an admirably calm demeanor; he’s almost done and he really wants to be done and go to sleep. Priorities, yes, let’s focus on that and not on exciting thoughts about chocolate abs; focus Kyungsoo, focus! “Edible for the most part, especially those pieces of meat you didn’t cook…” Kyungsoo keeps the comfortable conversation going, and he smirks after his playful remark, waiting for Kai’s refute which will come in three, two, one.

“Soo, you know I can cook!” he whines in a small voice, shaking his shoulders cutely. He does it unmistakably every time Kyungsoo mentions it; it makes Kyungsoo feel jittery and pleased. Of course Kai can cook, and Kyungsoo still ate all of the half-burned food Kai grilled tonight no matter what he says, but it’s fun to have the upper hand at teasing every once in a while. He only chuckles in response, taking the gloves off and wiping his hands on a towel. Kai follows him around in the kitchen and he is there the moment Kyungsoo’s hands are not busy to grab them and engulf them in his. Kyungsoo lets him, because his hands are cold but Kai’s fingers are warm, as they massage into his palm with care, helping him relax. He sighs happily, but when he looks up at Kai, the latter is staring at their hands pensively, a displeased pout set on his full lips and a frown between his eyebrows. “Just maybe barbeque is not my specialty…” he mumbles stubbornly. Kyungsoo’s brain awwws beyond his control at his brooding boyfriend.

“Don’t mop around, it was a great night” he says, more gently than he had expected. He lifts the hand Kai had been treating and cradles his childishly pouting face. Kai looks at him under his long lashes and Kyungsoo smiles a bit, lifting himself on his tiptoes to kiss the pout away from those delicious, full lips. Kai kisses back reluctantly and still looks a bit disgruntled when Kyungsoo pulls back, not moving away. “And I know you make the meanest scrambled eggs” he adds against Kai’s lips with a smile, falling back on his heels to watch as Kai’s lips crack a smile which gets wider and wider. Success. Kyungsoo is in the middle of mentally patting himself on the back for a job well done when Kai hugs him, wrapping his strong arms around him and bringing him closer to that warm, exposed chest. Kyungsoo yelps in surprise but he cooperates just fine, even though he decides his neck doesn’t like the angle he has to keep to look up at the taller’s eyes. He doesn’t say anything though, because the proximity is extraordinarily nice.

“I seriously love you…” Kai mumbles, looking straight into Kyungsoo’s eyes.

And boom, there goes all of Kyungsoo’s calm and peaceful inner zen, because the L word is still quite explosive to his ears. His thoughts flat-line but it’s not like his mood is ruined; he’s only a bit startled, his eyes growing round and his heart thumping strangely. Kai usually tries to avoid saying it, because he knows Kyungsoo is not comfortable with it yet, but sometimes it slips, and that’s understandable; human emotions are a familiar struggle. But Kyungsoo is more worried about his own reaction lately, which has changed from searching for the nearest escape route, to a tingling sensation on his lips, and his stomach lurching, and his heart racing. It’s so confusing. Kai seems to realize how Kyungsoo has gone rigid in his arms and he panics, his eyes flying everywhere.

“I-I mean, uhm…did you see Chanyeol and Baekhyun today?” he changes topic clumsily. Kyungsoo flinches a little, feeling guilty, but Kai looks very eager to start a new conversation, his fingers twitching nervously against Kyungsoo’s back. “I mean, of course you saw them. Boy, the tension between them was so strange, it was making me feel like I’d swallowed fluffy clouds!” Kai exclaims with wide eyes and Kyungsoo chuckles at his interesting choice of words. His mind is already regaining proper function, only a small reminder of adrenaline in his blood left in his system after the sound of the L word, almost like it never happened.

“Yes, they were cute like that” Kyungsoo puts Kai out of his misery, following the newly introduced conversation, which is interesting to him too in the first place. After all, they orchestrated tonight’s event partly in order to bring Baekhyun and Chanyeol back together. The show was not disappointing. “Did you notice how they stared when the other wasn’t looking? They missed each other’s gaze for mere seconds! And they couldn’t hold a second of eye contact? How cute, they were so shy and bashful!” Kyungsoo gushes, flailing his arms in the air in the characteristic manner of a fanboy overflowing with feels, and he probably looks ridiculous but Kai doesn’t say anything about it. It’s a small example that he loves Kyungsoo, enough to accept all his quirks, and that fact, which is often so ridiculously plain and clear to everyone, warms Kyungsoo heart to no describable extent.

“My favorite moment was when Baekhyun was searching for Chanyeol’s gaze from across the table; Chanyeol was pouting thoughtfully, and Baekhyun probably wanted to ask him if he’s okay, but my idiot friend was completely oblivious! How can Baekhyun be so sweet and caring~?” Kai starts ranting, his eyes glazing over and twinkling in the kitchen lights with excitement. Kyungsoo can feel Kai’s entire body thrumming with energy and excitement, and those happy emotions bring a smile on Kyungsoo’s lips. It’s not simply mirroring, it feels as if he is joining in Kai’s feelings. It feels so strange to experience this, it’s so unique. It makes him feel like he’s so connected, so unguardedly intimate with another human being, but he’s not even scared; he has come to trust Kai so much by now. Isn’t it the best thing when your boyfriend starts fanboying with you?

“Oh!” Kai keeps going, his eyes looking over Kyungsoo’s head and missing his wide smile. “And did you see Chanyeol rearranging the dessert plates faster than lighting so that Baekhyun would get the bigger slice of cake? I don’t think anyone else noticed, not even Baekhyun! And damn, Chanyeol is a clutz; how on earth did he manage to do it without, I don’t know, breaking three glasses and the table in the process?!” he ruffles his hair, one side sticking out more than the other afterwards. The sight is so funny -or maybe it’s just Kyungsoo’s overflowing feelings of mirth- that makes him eventually break out in loud laughter. Kai can be very entertaining and so endearing sometimes! His laughter seems to surprise Kai and his faster than a bullet speech comes to a halt, staring at Kyungsoo with round eyes instead.

Kyungsoo knows he is being stared at but that simply doesn’t matter to him right now. His laughter rings in the silence of the afterhours, echoing against the kitchen walls and spilling out of the apartment, a lively note of happiness in the darkness of the hallways. Rarely is he as loud, always mindful of his or Kai’s neighbors, but tonight he is that person who laughs obnoxiously and giggles happily behind closed doors, the person you can’t be mad at for being so noisy because he’s happy and you wish you had that too as you walk down the hallway. Kyungsoo always used to be that lonely person in the hallway; he has so much to thank Kai for. It takes him a while to calm down, feeling like every cell he owns is squirming happily.

“Hmm…” he hums, his voice eventually quieting and his laughter slowing down to mirthful mumbles. His breaths even out but somehow his heart remains racing and his cells are still having a party. He takes Kai’s hand in his and laces their fingers, eyes never leaving Kai’s face, as if they’re magnetically attached there. Everything he needs to say, all those thankful and affectionate thoughts are conveyed silently, and Kai returns the look, a soft, loving gaze pouring out of those warm chocolate eyes. “…cute” he murmurs absentmindedly, so low he wouldn’t think Kai would hear him. But he did.

“Do Kyungsoo, was that just now meant for our lovebirds or me?” Kai is quick to ask, narrowing his eyes at Kyungsoo in playful suspicion, a smile he can’t hide playing on his lips. Kyungsoo would normally panic after his boyfriend heard something he wasn’t supposed to hear, but strangely enough, he doesn’t. All sorts of strange things happen to him lately. He smirks confidently and he pulls Kai closer, if that is even possible, with one hand on the taller’s waist –and wow, this is Kyungsoo we’re talking about, this happens practically never. Kai gasps, reasonably even more surprised than before; and a small part of Kyungsoo’s brain is gasping dramatically too, because is this really the notoriously allergic to affection and timid until he bites back Do Kyungsoo?

“Do I want to answer it was for you?” he whispers slowly, accentuating their proximity with a hooded gaze and a lip bite. Kai gulps, his eyes fixed on Kyungsoo’s lips and following every fidget. Ah, it feels so good to know Kyungsoo has Kai right where he wants him. Or maybe, it’s the other way round, because Kai grips Kyungsoo’s sides and leans down, a silent rumble in his chest resonating against Kyungsoo’s chest. It feels good, no matter who’s responsible.

“It wouldn’t hurt…” Kai says breathlessly, closing the distance to crush their lips together. Kyungsoo accepts the kiss he had already been waiting for, accommodating him easily, and they fall into a slow, passionate kiss that makes bells chime in Kyungsoo’s ears. They enjoy each other, the taste of lips and desire mixing on their tongues, small breaths and sounds escaping in the silence of the apartment. Somehow, they end up away from the kitchen counters, Kai sitting on a stool by the kitchen island and Kyungsoo balancing on his lap. His hands are behind Kai’s neck, and Kai’s hands are keeping him in place, and it’s so simple, so common, yet it feels so beautiful and intense. The touch is burning, the air is not enough, the murmured words are sweet. When they part for air, Kyungsoo’s lips are a little swollen and he is very breathless, his heart beating frantically against his ribcage. He looks up to find dilated eyes and shiny, bitten lips, and it’s all his doing; he flushes bright red at the thought. And yet, he finds it in him to grin defiantly.

“No, it wasn’t for you” he lies, his lips tingling pleasantly when he stretches them to a smug smile. Naturally, Kai sees right through his lie in a second and he grins back, a mischievous glint shining in his eyes. Kyungsoo loves to see that promise.

“Liar” he accuses lightly, swiftly stealing a kiss from Kyungsoo’s sore lips. Kyungsoo chuckles into their kiss, Kai muffling his voice. His hands start searching Kyungsoo’s skin under his shirt and the smaller shivers but he doesn’t yield. “Say it was for me” Kai challenges when he pulls back, but Kyungsoo shakes his head and Kai leans down for another kiss, but shorter this time. “Say it” he mumbles, barely withholding his laughter just like Kyungsoo, as he shakes his head no again and looks away playfully. Kai chases his gaze and kisses him again, and they keep their pattern for a while, refusal for peck on the lips, again and again and again. Kyungsoo’s lips feel steadily set in a smile, unless he is in the middle of receiving a kiss. Kai challenges him wordlessly, only with his gaze now and only for pretences. The kisses remain short but get deeper, the touches are soft but lingering, Kyungsoo’s skin is burning as he gasps and groans silently, his breath speeding up to the point he can’t breathe enough if he’s biting his lips to hold back his whines.

“Wait wait wait” he mumbles, only half of his mind following instructions as he pulls back and keeps Kai away for longer than two seconds by fistfuls of his hair. He doesn’t look too happy about it. “Does that mean I’m staying over tonight?” he asks, still a little breathless, but his eyes are serious while searching Kai’s equally serious gaze. They sober up pretty fast but neither moves and Kyungsoo is trying not to make any rush conclusions and waits for Kai, who looks like he is debating with himself on what to say.

The truth is, Kyungsoo stays over sometimes. Or a lot of times –Kyungsoo has lost count. Definitely more times than average though. Sometimes he is more prepared for the ‘slumber party’ than others, but somehow Baekhyun sniffs him out every single time, and he has mentioned that Kyungsoo seems to be spending a lot of his free time at Kai’s place. He did so in the characteristic offhanded, casual, no-judging-I’m-actually-happy-for-you way, the way all lovely, manipulative, psycho-mumble-jumble-knowing koalas out there use to drop a bomb on their unsuspecting friends. Kyungsoo has started thinking about it more since then, being more mindful than before, and he sure does spend a lot of time in this apartment. He has yet to find the courage to ask Kai’s thoughts on the matter –that will probably take three martinis for motivation at some point in the future– so for now he is playing it safe, asking if it’s okay to stay over one more night. With Kai’s consent he feels less guilty.

“You didn’t spend yesterday night here” Kai starts in a quiet voice, his hand travelling across Kyungsoo’s stomach and making said stomach flip. In spite of his hands’ exciting ministrations, however, Kai’s gaze is soft and comforting, and a little vulnerable, if Kyungsoo may say so. He doesn’t understand why Kai would be hesitant right now, but he definitely is, because he suspiciously tries to hide his face by turning it away to lightly kiss along Kyungsoo’s clavicle. “The bed was cold” he mumbles against Kyungsoo’s skin in a very low voice. Kyungsoo combs his fingers through Kai’s messy hair.

“I wouldn’t make that much of a difference” he chuckles darkly, his shoulders slumping a little. Kai looks up at him abruptly, eyes wide and pleading and lips pouting a bit. Kyungsoo knows he’s holding back, he knows he would say something like ‘but you make all the difference to me’ or something just as heartwarming, and it’s one of those times Kyungsoo wishes he had normal reactions to commitment and displays of fondness, because then Kai wouldn’t have to hold his tongue, he could be as tacky and cliché as he’d wanted. But even just this gaze is enough to make Kyungsoo’s heart flutter and he yields a little. “Thank you for tonight. I really enjoyed myself” he says, looking right in Kai’s eyes and still playing with his hair comfortingly. A spark flashes in Kai’s eyes and Kyungsoo smiles a little at the sight. “I felt like I belong. It felt…nice” he confesses honestly.

“It felt nice for me too…” Kai replies calmly, returning the honest look and not-so-secretly glowing with happiness. Kyungsoo is pleased there are no loud exclamations of accomplishment this time on Kai’s part, because this feels better, less of a game and more of a relationship.

Kai leans down for one more kiss. Somewhere along the way, someone –let’s not point a finger at Kyungsoo here, okay?– lets out a naughty sound, and what did you expect, they have a way of escalating quickly. Kyungsoo’s nails are trailing down Kai’s bare spine before he knows it, and Kai’s hands are working magic on his torso. To no one’s surprise, they find themselves stumbling out of the kitchen, tugging at each other’s clothes and lips, and discovering more familiar skin. Kai breaks the kiss when they step out of the kitchen, glancing around worriedly.

“Wait, we have to clean the-”

“Tomorrow.” That’s not a suggestion, by the way. Kyungsoo knows the house is a small mess and they were supposed to clean it before anything else, but he’s not letting go right now, his fingers firmly guiding Kai’s chin to kiss him again. There is nothing in Kyungsoo –not even he otherwise very opinionated mind– advising him to do anything else but kiss Kai and guide him to the bedroom. Former priorities be damned.

“It’s unfair you can seduce me so much” Kai chuckles against his lips, entertained, as he follows Kyungsoo’s lead very willingly. Kyungsoo mumbles a refute against his lips, because he is the weak one who can’t keep his eyes and his hands and his mind off his gorgeous boyfriend, and not the other way round, but nothing coherent comes out. At this point, nobody really cares, to be honest.

--

Baekhyun keeps thinking about it. Chanyeol looked so heartbroken earlier; he almost cried, even though he tried to hide it. Chanyeol’s attempts at hiding have always been very unsuccessful with Baekhyun. He feels bad about it. He thinks- no, he feels like Chanyeol hasn’t calmed down completely yet. He’s been quiet, driving on the familiar route to Baekhyun’s house, looking more cheerful than before; Baekhyun –who glances in Chanyeol’s direction more often than he’d like to admit– has even detected a small smile playing on the corners of the taller’s lips once or twice. Baekhyun told Chanyeol that he is forgiven, very clearly too, but Baekhyun knows Chanyeol doesn’t believe it yet. He has such great guilt in his chest. It might take them a while to go back to the way they were, but Baekhyun is not afraid of that work. He wants to go through it and he will do it diligently.

But for tonight, he doesn’t want to leave Chanyeol like this, only half-sure things are mended between them. It doesn’t feel like it’s enough. Call him greedy, but he can’t be patient with acting around Chanyeol in their strange way they have set as their normal; he wants to touch him and make sure he’s real, he wants to smile at him and see him smile back, he wants to make sure Chanyeol will go to bed with only happy thoughts tonight.

Chanyeol stops the car on the side of the road, and only then Baekhyun really takes in the scenery he’s been gazing at through the window, and he realizes they’re already there. He starts for a moment, having an acute sense that he’s very nearly out of time. He is going to have to say goodnight and go upstairs to crawl under his comforting covers for the night, without having any chance of improving Chanyeol’s mood before he leaves him for who knows how many days until they meet again. He doesn’t even have a plan to cheer Chanyeol up! But he wants to, he really really does. So Baekhyun grabs at the first remotely reasonable idea that crosses his head.

“Umm, Baekhyun?” Chanyeol calls uncertainly after an embarrassingly long amount of time Baekhyun has spent looking out the window blankly. He’s been going through the details of his plan, but they are elusive little things and he can’t focus on chasing them in his head while preparing to get out. He keeps his lips set impassively, and he calculates his whole stance to be calm. I can do this. I think. The silence and the severe demeanor must have been very awkward and unsettling for Chanyeol. “We’re here” his voice is timid, as if he’s afraid to talk to Baekhyun –and this is exactly the sort of thing Baekhyun wants to fix as soon as the universe allows him. He’s not made of glass and he’s not afraid of Chanyeol; Chanyeol needs to know this. He unbuckles his seatbelt mechanically but his hands stop on the door handle.

“Get out.” He instructs, his voice coming out surprisingly more steady than he had expected after such long silence. He doesn’t look at Chanyeol but he catches the latter’s moment of full-body rigidity with the corner of his eye. He realizes that maybe he sounded more intimidating than he needed to, so he adds a small “Please” before he gets out and closes the door behind him.

He walks around the front of the car, avoiding to look inside it through the windshield. If he sees Chanyeol hurt, frightened, uncomfortable or sad, his reserve will break and he’ll become an emotional gooey mess inside, but we can’t have that. Chanyeol said it himself; he needs Baekhyun’s support and comfort, and Baekhyun can’t wait to become useful. When he reaches the driver’s side, Chanyeol is still inside the car, his hand resting limply on the door handle. The poor man seems thoroughly stunned. Baekhyun guesses he can use the confusion to his advantage, because it means less resistance and more instinctive connection. He opens the door himself, calmly getting it out of the way, so that he can peer down at Chanyeol. His seatbelt is not fastened, but he is still sitting, showing no intension of getting out. His face is a bit pale and his plum lips slack in surprise, as his eyes look up at Baekhyun with a wide, uncertain and shocked gaze, as if Baekhyun has suddenly turned into an angel of destruction. Baekhyun withholds his giggles at the thought, which is written all over Chanyeol’s enchanted and terrified face, and he simply nods at him instead, motioning him to get out. Chanyeol gulps and gets out tentatively, as if he’s walking to his impending doom. Baekhyun doesn’t think he looks that threatening though; he even made sure he’d keep a straight face.

“I-” Chanyeol starts stuttering in a trembling voice but he doesn’t get to finish. Because Baekhyun fists his hand as tight as he can and he punches Chanyeol in the gut in a swift blow without mercy. “OWWmmf” Chanyeol doubles over, holding his abused stomach and choking on sobs, immediately trying to muffle his pained sounds before they leave his lips. He doesn’t complain, he doesn’t ask questions, he doesn’t try to strike back –although Baekhyun feels he could handle all of the above, if it were the case. But Chanyeol chooses to suffer the blow in stoic silence. He probably thinks he deserved it. Baekhyun thinks he deserved it a little, too. That’s why he decided to get it out of the way while his mind was still unaffected by his soft heart, which is way too lenient and biased towards Chanyeol.

He lets the taller recover in his hunched position for a few moments, but he doesn’t wait for the shock to fade completely into self pity. He puts a firm hand on Chanyeol’s shoulder and helps him unfold until he’s standing almost straight again, feeling a small pang of guilt for hitting Chanyeol so hard when he sees the taller’s scrunched nose. In his defense, Baekhyun never thought of himself as a physically strong person, and he didn’t know Chanyeol’s abs wouldn’t hold the blow better –you can be sure that Baekhyun’s knuckles hurt too though. As soon as Chanyeol is conveniently upright, Baekhyun seizes his chance and lurches forward, throwing himself against Chanyeol and locking his arms around the other’s waist.

And Baekhyun holds him, he holds him tight and doesn’t even think of letting go. And in holding Chanyeol, all their sweet memories return, making the feelings squirm inside Baekhyun. He wants to cry in relief and joy, because he had dreamt of this moment for so long. It feels so strange to hug Chanyeol, to be so close to him, to be allowed to touch him after so long; it scares Baekhyun, because it feels maybe like a fleeting moment, like the last flickers of the hearth that give light and hope but then they vanish. But all Baekhyun has to do to reassure himself, is to hold Chanyeol tighter, until he feels the heartbeat in his chest against his cheek, the warmth of his body under his fingertips, the stuttering breaths against Baekhyun’s clingy body. Baekhyun’s heart is dancing happily inside his chest, twirling and leaping in excitement, because this moment is real and he hasn’t forgotten what a special person he is holding.

“You kept secrets from me. Everyone else did too, but you’re the worst.” Baekhyun doesn’t wait for long until he starts throwing accusations at Chanyeol, frowning glumly. His tone is unforgiving and unyielding. Baekhyun’s arms around Chanyeol are comforting but his words add salt to the wound. Chanyeol slowly comes out of his stupor and loosely wraps his arms around Baekhyun’s body, too.

“I know” he whispers dejectedly. And so their pattern starts, with Baekhyun complaining wounded in the silence of the night and holding onto Chanyeol like there’s no tomorrow, while the latter accepts everything with a small, broken sob of acknowledgement, tightening his hold on Baekhyun with remorse and hurt, as if trying to ask for forgiveness and comfort in the same time.

“I was hurt. I felt confused, surprised, disappointed, angry at myself.”

“I know”

“And somehow I still missed you. It felt terrible.” His voice becomes small at that.

“I know.” A small hitch in Chanyeol’s breath.

“You stupid giant, don’t ever do that to me again!” Baekhyun finally exclaims, turning his head to bury his face in Chanyeol’s chest. Chanyeol’s arms around him are very tight now, as if he’s trying to assimilate their two bodies into one, but Baekhyun doesn’t mind. He likes feeling the taller’s natural response to his emotions, so raw and physical and unhindered, so pure and soft and immediate. He breathes in Chanyeol’s cologne and his scent, realizing once again just how much he had missed Chanyeol. Chanyeol seems just as eager, unwilling to let Baekhyun move an inch away from himself and hugging him for all he’s worth.

“Mmm” he agrees in a soft hum, but they both know he doesn’t need to. Baekhyun believes him, he trusts him. They stay like that for a while, Chanyeol holding Baekhyun and tracing comforting patterns on his back, sometimes caressing up his neck and through a few strands of his hair. It’s probably one of those moments that should be kept private, but neither seems to care about the setting, since it’s dark and silent and no one is around to see them on the street. If it was up to Baekhyun, he would choose to sleep right where he is, because it feels safer and warmer than anywhere he’s been in weeks. A small drop of something warm on his cheek startles Baekhyun out of his focus on the bright, whirling emotions in his chest.

“Yeol?” he calls, curiously touching the transparent drop on his skin. Chanyeol squeezes him one more time, clinging before timidly letting go. Baekhyun looks up inquisitively and his eyes widen instantly when he meets Chanyeol’s overflowing eyes. A horrifying grip appears in his chest and he flinches in distress. Oh my god, is this my fault? “Did I hurt you?!” he panics, taking half a step back to examine any damage, but Chanyeol doesn’t let him step far enough, keeping him within his arms’ distance. The taller shakes his head.

“I’m, no, I’m fine” he reassures Baekhyun quickly, in spite of his glistening caramel eyes that twinkle prettily in the moonlight. “I just…I feel so, um. I’m happy, honestly” he chuckles at himself and his hardly coherent, broken words. His arms abandon Baekhyun and he brings his hands against his eyes, wiping away tears fast and sloppily, but smiling all the while. “This is so foolish! I didn’t want you to see me like this and now, well…” he gives up trying to fix his wet cheeks and Baekhyun smiles a little before reaching out to lend a hand.

He wipes away a few stray tears on Chanyeol’s face with his own fingers, affectionately caressing the smooth skin. Chanyeol lets him, looking like a frightened, shy animal, eyes wide open and almost scared. The doe look in his large eyes doesn’t go away, and his teeth start worrying his lips in anxiousness, his cheeks paling. Baekhyun soon realizes this is not something Chanyeol is comfortable with; he’s not used to crying in front of others, much less in front of Baekhyun. It’s probably one of the reasons he chose to keep Baekhyun away for the past month.

Baekhyun decides to save the taller’s pride, because Chanyeol seems too hesitant to hide away from Baekhyun now that he has found him after so long. This time, Baekhyun is the prince charming who has to save the day and the distressed sweetheart. So, he hugs Chanyeol again, but his hold is softer this time, less possessive and more comforting. Chanyeol willingly takes him back, albeit a little confused, but he doesn’t protest, not even when Baekhyun combs his fingers through Chanyeol’s hair and guides his head to tuck it against his shoulder. Chanyeol’s neck is straining, since Baekhyun’s shoulder is lower than his natural height, but that doesn’t stop him from nuzzling his nose hesitantly against Baekhyun’s collarbone over his clothes.

“Here” Baekhyun almost whispers, thumbing Chanyeol’s adorably large ear “It’s not so bad now, right?” he chuckles and keeps petting Chanyeol’s head, until he has cried all he needs to. Baekhyun is patient with Chanyeol, because his emotions are important. Maybe he will feel better after this and sleep in peace tonight. It takes a while but still too little of physical proximity until Chanyeol pulls back, wiping his newly drenched and flushed cheeks. He gives Baekhyun a small smile and he is the most adorable thing, with childishly puffy eyes and slightly tussled hair. Baekhyun wants to squeal and suffocate him again but he doesn’t dare move, other than giving an encouraging smile in return, because three hugs in one night might be one too many.

“Thank you, Baek” he says with soft eyes, taking a step back and getting the last few dewy drops on his cheeks. His smile is wide and full of teeth, but sweet on the edges. And Baekhyun feels like a weight has lifted off his shoulders and like he can see sunshine in the middle of the night. “Now go inside, it’s cold” he advises, his protective side taking over naturally, and Baekhyun would like to think he’s not just imagining the affectionate concern in his voice. It had been a while since he’d heard that tone of voice; it makes something squirm and swoon inside his chest. With his spirits severely lifted since the appearance of Chanyeol’s tears, Baekhyun takes a few playful steps backwards, smiling up at Chanyeol mischievously.

“Is it?” he chirps teasingly and hops on his heels twice like an impatient little child. Chanyeol laughs quietly, his blush blooming prettily on his skin in the dim moonlight. Baekhyun unexpectedly enjoys being cheeky, especially since it serves well for Chanyeol’s entertainment and it makes him blush. He gives a wide smile, waving his hand calmly and spinning towards his building. He feels like he’s floating, high on Chanyeol’s presence. Chanyeol lingers beside his car, watching Baekhyun with amused and relieved eyes, while he walks to the door. “Get home safely Chanyeol. Sweet sleep”

--

Luhan’s eyes crack open to the picture of his bedroom drenched in darkness. He is pretty sure it’s morning outside though; the birds are chirping like excited little bells and slivers of sunlight that slip through the close window illuminate the curtain in bright, colorful sputters. He yawns and stretches his arms lazily to rid of the knots, but carefully, not to hit Sehun.

Sehun. His boyfriend.

Luhan thinks he’s an awful distance away from his source of heat. He squirms his way into the sleeping boy’s arms and the latter responds in his sleep, embracing Luhan and pulling him close. Luhan smiles and presses his cheek against Sehun’s chest. Since when is he this sort of cuddly person? Since when does he enjoy sleeping late on mornings and waking up with someone next to him? Since when is he actually happy to have someone snooping around in his house, cooking in his kitchen, napping on his couch, brushing his teeth in his bathroom and doing laundry? Although, the laundry and the cooking are good perks. Since when does he feel less stressed and tired, since when does he turn to jelly with one touch? Since when does he l…like Sehun?

Seriously, brain? ‘Like’? We both know what you were going to say…

The point is, Luhan has changed in non-obvious ways that only he can notice, because only he knows. He is starting to remember what he used to be like many years ago, when he was living with his family in China. Almost two months ago, it felt like there was no life before he came to Korea, before he started his studies and got hired to work for Chanyeol’s father, turning instantly into a responsible, uptight, stiff, orderly person and forgetting about the times he was carefree, childish, smiling and fooling around. Maybe it was easier to forget those times, because they were a package with sorrow, fights, remorse and shame. But now he is starting to remember only the good things, becoming happier, and all that is thanks to Sehun. It’s like collecting mental pictures of happy memories.

Sehun shifts in his sleep, giving Luhan a better angle to nuzzle his nose on the younger’s skin. Luhan blinks lazily in the dark. Sehun has such white skin, it is almost glowing in the darkness; and Luhan thought he was pretty fair skinned himself, but his skin looks more like peaches compared to Sehun’s marble white one. Luhan’s eyes gaze across the expanse of skin and his nose fills with the warm scent of Sehun’s body. He starts playing with his fingers idly, letting his thoughts drift to quiet places of his consciousness; it’s been a while since he’s spent a lazy morning in bed like this. Sehun shifts again after a while, slipping his hand over Luhan’s stomach and drawing circles with his fingers; he’s probably close to waking up. Luhan sighs. He might as well wake him up now.

“Sehun” he calls softly, looking up at the sleeping man’s calm face. He has unfairly good angles. Luhan feels an unintentional smile spreading on his lips and he stretches his neck to kiss him on his sharp jaw line. “Sehunnie~” he tries the pet name on his tongue and giggles by himself at how silly that just sounded. Okay, he is changing, but some things don’t change –and maybe that’s a good thing, because if Luhan suddenly realized he is one of those mushy people who like to call their lovers ridiculous pet names, he would be utterly freaked out with himself. “Sehun, wake up” he says and, since he cannot reach Sehun’s face, he settles on planting small kisses on the boy’s fair neck.

Sehun makes a grumbling sound in his throat and then takes in a deep breath before sighing and opening his eyes. He seems disoriented in the darkness for a moment, but then he looks down and a bright smile that makes Luhan’s eyes see twinkles appears on his drowsy lips. Why are you smiling so early in the morning, idiot? Luhan blinks up at him curiously.

“Now, that is proper boyfriend behavior” he says, in a voice still heavy with sleep. Luhan smacks him lightly once, wherever he can reach –which is Sehun’s hip and forearm apparently– but he smiles nonetheless. Sehun has these strange categories, or a list maybe, of things that are boyfriend-like and things that do not classify as proper-boyfriend-behavior. That’s as far as Luhan has managed to decode of Sehun’s brain; he hasn’t got the faintest idea about what each category includes. So Luhan is just…himself. He gets them fifty-fifty every time, but it’s not like he is trying to be perfect, and Sehun doesn’t seem to mind his mediocre scores anyway.

“Wake up” Luhan repeats softly, bringing his hand up to pat Sehun’s flat chest.

“I will” Sehun answers, stretching his long arms. But, instead of pulling away, he suddenly gathers an ambushed Luhan even closer. And they were already pretty close, and this new proximity makes their skin brush in a million places, and Luhan feels his heart picking up the pace in fluster. He squeaks in surprise and Sehun smirks, entertained “…eventually…”

“Yah, kid, don’t press me on you like that!” Luhan exclaims, feeling his cheeks growing significantly hotter. He tries to free himself, pushing Sehun and wiggling his body to earn some space, but Sehun only squeezes him in his arms, effectively immobilizing him. Luhan gurgles in protest under his breath.

“Really? You didn’t mind that a while ago, when I was sleeping, or last night when we were-”

“Hush, hush! I get it, okay? Okay…” Luhan stops him quickly, flinching and trying to glare at Sehun, but the taller is keeping him imprisoned below his chin level. Luhan knows Sehun is still smirking though. Last night things happened. Things have been happening more often lately. Not that anyone here is complaining. Luhan would be lying if he said he doesn’t thoroughly enjoy those nights. But sometimes he wonders if Sehun’s parents ever get worried, because their son spends so many nights away from his house.

“Who knew you would be a prude?” Sehun laughs lightly. Luhan gasps in shock. The frequency of those certain events is not making Luhan feel any more comfortable about them –whereas Sehun is totally comfortable with the idea…

“I’m not!”

“Okay” Sehun clicks his tongue, loosening his hold enough for Luhan to glare up at him properly “You’re pretty stubborn too, so I won’t even try to explain to you what I mean” he says and Luhan prepares to make a strong and witty comeback, but Sehun suddenly moves on the bed, ruffling all the sheets, until he brings himself on Luhan’s eye level. His wide, glassy eyes momentarily throw Luhan off his track “Please, let’s not do that right now. Let’s enjoy this beautiful morning” he says softly and pecks Luhan on the lips.

Luhan pouts and a frown appears between his eyebrows. So they are going to stop this conversation right after he has been described as prude and stubborn, without giving him the chance to defend himself? That’s not a great last impression. Nobody cares about impressions between the two of them anymore, because how much worse could Luhan do that Sehun hasn’t seen and vice versa, but Luhan doesn’t like the feeling. He glares at Sehun. Sehun sighs lightly, blinking in surrender, and gives Luhan a proper kiss on the lips.

“Pretty please?” he tries. Luhan softens a little but acts indifferent and shrugs his shoulders. Maybe he can gain something out of this; because if he makes Sehun do what he wants him to do right now, it won’t feel like he lost the argument as much. Sehun smiles. “Ah, I see where this is going” he says and turns Luhan flat on his back while simultaneously lifting his own body off the bed and hovering above him. Luhan doesn’t protest, he pretends to be neutral and unaffected –never mind his stomach bursting with butterflies. Sehun cannot know that, but that doesn’t stop him from sneakily smiling down at Luhan. “I won’t say please again” he warns him and then leans down for the kiss Luhan has been expecting –only he didn’t expect it to be so mind-blowing; Sehun always surprises him with that.

It’s downhill from there. Luhan closes his eyes but it’s almost as if he can see in the dark, knowing where everything around him is or feeling the rest. The butterflies turn into sparks and they fly through his veins, shooting small jolts of electricity all over his body. For the first three seconds, Luhan pretends to be relatively unaffected, allowing only his lips to move in response to Sehun’s –because he doesn’t mean to imply he is not enjoying this. In fact, he’s enjoying it very much, so much so that Luhan’s arms soon forfeit his pride and wrap around Sehun’s shoulders, his fingers pressing on the skin and sliding to his neck. Sehun pries his lips open easily, and Luhan lets out a willing sigh, shifting his weight so that Sehun can fit himself better on the bed. Luhan’s skin feels too sensitive and he whines a little when the chill air of the room hits his skin; he hates losing the warmth of his bed cocoon. But Sehun makes up for it, with warm hands and caresses and a warm stomach pressed against his own, and it’s all worth it. Luhan is getting lightheaded and eager, his hands pulling the taller closer; until Sehun gets too close and he lands on Luhan’s chest, very unceremoniously letting his weight free-fall and land on Luhan. Their kiss breaks inevitably, with Luhan gasping for air and coughing.

“I have work today” Sehun mumbles near his ear and Luhan glares at him murderously, still unable to breathe enough to talk –or yell indignantly. Well, he gets the point. If they had kept kissing like that, things would have turned into morning bedroom activities very soon, and maybe Sehun doesn’t have to leave immediately for work, but bedroom activities take time anyway. However, Sehun didn’t have to suffocate Luhan to stop their intimate exchange; he could have just said so. But whenever does Sehun just say so? Sehun removes himself from Luhan and the latter breathes in deep, reclaiming his lost oxygen. He is still coughing a little when Sehun leans over him with a concerned expression. “Are you okay?” Instead of glaring at him, Luhan takes advantage of Sehun’s unguarded moment and hooks an arm behind his neck, bringing him down again and swiftly turning his head to bite at Sehun’s ear. “Hey!” Sehun protests and struggles, but Luhan is not biting too hard in the first place –he doesn’t want to injure him, it’s just a bit of payback. Sehun doesn’t try to disengage himself either, acknowledging to some degree that he deserved some sort of punishment.

“Next time, just say so!” Luhan shouts in Sehun’s ear, and the moment his teeth are away, Sehun flinches back and then lurches forward again, wrestling with Luhan playfully. The bed becomes a mess and the sheets get dislocated from their corners as the two of them roll around, halfheartedly shoving limbs and trying to get on top. Sehun is downplaying his strength so that Luhan can keep up, that much is obvious, but also irrelevant, because after a while no one remembers why they started this and they just laugh as they pin each other on the bed and tangle their bodies. When Luhan finds an auspicious moment, when he’s above Sehun, their legs tangled and holding Sehun’s long arms in strange, twisted angles above his head and somewhere behind his waist, he looks down at the taller and pouts, announcing his demands. “Will you make me breakfast before you go?”

Sehun stops struggling to break free and his body goes limp under Luhan. He looks up at the older, the faintest of excited blushes dusting his sharp cheeks in the little light from outside that defuses in the room in faint colors. He seems to think about it for a moment, then he grins. Luhan knows he’s going to say yes and he smiles triumphantly. He hasn’t had breakfast a la Sehun in a while, and it’s a pity, because his boyfriend’s culinary skills are far above average –and definitely above Luhan’s level– and Luhan is greedy, so dinner by Sehun every once in a while is not enough.

“What do you want? Scrambled eggs?” he suggests and Luhan wrinkles his nose, shaking his head no. He likes the dish, and Sehun has a special recipe for it –for nearly everything, really– but he doesn’t feel like eating scrambled eggs right now. “An omelet then?” Luhan grins and nods eagerly in agreement. Yes, that sounds good! “With bacon?” Sehun smirks as Luhan nods faster in a silly, excited manner. Yey, yey, please! “You’ll have to eat some kiwi with that though; you need to eat fruit too” Sehun cuts through Luhan’s daydreaming of mouthwatering breakfast, and Luhan abruptly stops his enthusiastic displays. He looks at Sehun, who gives him a strict look, and he presses his lips in a thin line. It’s breakfast he’s negotiating, this is serious business.

“But kiwi?” he ends up asking in a small voice, scrunching his nose a little in distaste. Sehun is good at keeping the nutrients of meals in balance, something he has picked up from Baekhyun, he said. But Luhan doesn’t like sour things to begin with, and he’s not in the mood to eat that for breakfast. Your life would be all sugar and carbons, if not for Sehun, Luhan…What are you, five years old? Sehun sighs, rolling his eyes a little.

“Alright, bananas” he compromises and Luhan lights up again. Bananas are sweet, he likes them. Sehun allows a rueful smile on his lips too. “Do you want pancakes perhaps?” he suggests. Luhan thinks about it and finds himself facing an unexpectedly insurmountable dilemma so early in the morning. Pancakes or an omelet, that is the question…

“I want pancakes and an omelet now, I can’t decide” he complains and pouts at Sehun accusingly, as if it’s his fault Luhan can’t decide. Sehun chuckles and shifts Luhan to lay him on the bed beside him, disentangling his limbs. All the while Luhan remains pouting, trying to decide for his breakfast and dreaming meals straight out of pinterest, the way Sehun usually makes them.

“I’ll make you both” Sehun says, slithering out of bed and walking over to the closet to get a few things to wear. Luhan hums to himself, satisfied with the option, and he thinks best boyfriend ever –because his former boyfriend couldn’t boil an egg, much less make breakfast– but then Sehun turns around, fully dressed and illuminated by the sunlight in the hallway. “…if you go shower like a good little boy first” he instructs and Luhan immediately deflates and groans. Not best boyfriend ever; most manipulative, maybe.

“Dontwanna” he mumbles stubbornly, rolling around in the sheets and trying to gather as much material and warmth around him as he can. He makes a show of getting comfortable. He doesn’t want to go under the stream of water, and then feel the cold on his skin, and then get dressed, and then have to comb and dry his hair…it’s such a hassle and it’s been such a nice, lazy morning so far. Sehun laughs lightly, completely uncaring about Luhan’s childish reservations.

“Sun’s out, pans out, buns out!” he calls over his shoulder as he walks down the hall to the kitchen. Luhan growls and whines, but he’s already walking to the bathroom, carrying his pillow is his arms for some bizarre reason.

--

Chanyeol is having one of the cutest dreams of the last few years of his life. It’s in a light, sky blue background, with small flower petals, pink like candy, floating around. It looks a bit like designs from animes –which Chanyeol is definitely not watching on weekends’ worth marathons whenever he has free time. It’s quiet in his dream and sunny; it feels relaxing and the warmth is seeping under his skin. It makes him smile contentedly. Kai would cringe at his fluffy imagination.

And then, a song sounds softly, in a lovely voice. The lyrics are hummed and it’s mostly the cheerful melody that brightens the sky even more. The playful music dances around his heart, making it beat faster and lighter. Chanyeol looks around, searching for the cheerful voice that follows the notes so prettily, like a wind chime. He realizes there are blooming flowers around him in the process. At some point, he spots a small tail, swishing left and right. The small animal it belongs to seems to be a short corgi, its light brown ears twitching as it skips from side to side, bouncing to the rhythm of the song, sometimes joining with a jolly bark. Chanyeol coos at the sight.

And right next to it, drawn in the cutest chibi figure imaginable, is a short person. His legs drawn in light blue and his hoodie in cheerful yellow color, this person has a cute round head of chestnut brown hair, with one tuft sticking up on top. His small arms are flailing in a childish dance as he is shifting from foot to foot too, keeping the same rhythm as the puppy, and they look adorably alike. The person and the puppy have their backs turned to Chanyeol, and the humming of lyrics is getting further and further away as they skip their merry way through the shower of flower petals. Chanyeol nearly swoons.

“Baekhyun!” Chanyeol’s mouth runs ahead of him and calls out to the figure. His deep voice sounds distant in the silence, but it’s loud enough for the person to hear. The humming stops, and the puppy starts running around in excited circles, while the person slowly spins around, the tuft of hair rebounding on his head. Two droopy puppy eyes, warm and sweet like hot cocoa, focus on him and they sparkle instantly, a line appearing and forming a smile on his chubby, pink cheeks. Chanyeol’s brain squeals in delight. It really is Baekhyun, in cute chibi form!

Without having to call for him again, the small image of Baekhyun starts bounding back to Chanyeol in happy leaps and awkward running with his chubby little legs. He opens his arms as wide as he can and so does Chanyeol, ready to accept him in his embrace. There are silver sparkles in Baekhyun’s puppy eyes and his round ears are flushed, and he looks like the cutest thing ever drawn on paper! Chanyeol lets out a very manly squeal when Baekhyun is close enough and starts making grabby hands at him, and Baekhyun opens his mouth cutely as he jumps forward.

And then he grabs Chanyeol’s hand and bites him hard. Chanyeol yips at the unexpected gesture, looking at the tiny fingers and the even tinier teeth on his finger. Baekhyun bites down a few more times, making a line of crescent marks, eyes wide and determined to inflict pain, to Chanyeol’s great bewilderment. Why is Baekhyun biting him all of a sudden? And why does that miniscule pain on his finger translate to a deeper pain contracting in his abdomen, where there is a bruise the size of Baekhyun’s fist forming on his skin?

Chanyeol groans a little and curls his back protectively, feeling the pain in his stomach resurfacing, but then Baekhyun stops. His tiny tongue dances on his lips as he appraises his work on Chanyeol’s skin. His big eyes seem pleased. He blinks cutely and smooches one big kiss on the injuries he inflicted, before he swings from Chanyeol’s finger and lands against his chest. Chanyeol holds him in his embrace reflexively, keeping him there easily, as he is small and feather light. Baekhyun smiles dazzlingly with his white teeth and snuggles against Chanyeol’s warmth, small hands wounding around his neck. Chanyeol completely melts on the inside, squeezing tighter the figure in his arms, and feeling so warm and complete. He sighs and relaxes, a big, content smile stretching on his lips.

The very next moment finds him whimpering and growling, while he is gathering his limbs and picking himself off the floor. Why does he always have to fall off the bed and ruin a perfectly good dream?!

Chanyeol recognizes the edge of his bed just in time so as not to hit his head against it, and he sighs in relief. Except for the well deserved bruise on his stomach, he suspects he will have a few more unfair ones by tomorrow morning –which shouldn’t be that far away. He searches blindly for something to hold onto and he helps himself up on wobbly legs, not even bothering to stand straight to his full height before he faceplants onto the bed. And lo, he was born an awkward octopus indeed. He rolls around a bit, tossing his long limbs until he finds a comfortable position under the covers, pulling them higher on his neck with numb fingers.

Shielded from the chilly night, he basks in the warmth of his bed, yawning widely in his pillow. Everything is just right to push him into that deep, dreamless sleep until the moment he will have to wake up, like those morning naps after the alarm, which are too sweet and unfortunately too short lived, too. Everything, from the scent of his sheets to the warmth around his ears, is just right; but it’s not enough. On some nights, Chanyeol can’t find peace under the comfortable shell of his blankets, because his large bed feels too empty. He used to not care, spreading like a starfish and enjoying his sleep, but after sharing the bed with a certain little koala who has a habit of whimpering like a puppy in his sleep, Chanyeol feels like the empty space on the bed is too much to fill in any other way, except for a slender body with cold fingers and soft hair that smells of strawberries.

Chanyeol’s heart tugs sadly at the thought but he tries to ignore it, resolving to his familiar countermeasures. He grabs a spare pillow, one of the big fluffy ones, and he pulls the covers over it, tucking it snuggly against his side. Chanyeol is the sort of man who protects and cherishes his pillows. Pillows are important things in life. He pulls it in his arms protectively and sighs against its heat, nuzzling his nose against the soft material. And as his routine goes, he names it ‘Baek’ with a silent mumble, sighing contentedly and smiling against it, as he finally falls asleep.

--

Kai wakes up when his arms search the covers and end up only with an armful of sheets. That’s not quite what he expected. He cracks one eye open and is greeted by the dimly lit darkness of his room. Are those his pants hanging from the hinges of the closet door? It wouldn’t be the first time; Kyungsoo can be somewhat messy when he’s in a hot haste, throwing clothes anywhere. The bed is still warm where Kyungsoo had been sleeping and Kai sighs, getting comfortable and basking in the warmth. He can hear the water running in the shower, and he is proud to tell you that he knows his quirky boyfriend so well by now that he can tell exactly at what showering stage he is, at any given moment, just by listening. For example, right now he is rinsing the soap on his back and then he’ll do his right arm and then his left arm, then his waist and legs, in that exact order. He always does it this way, even when they shower together and there are room restrictions.

Kai catnaps for a while longer, soaking all the warmth left in the sheets, until he hears the water quieting down to silence. He yawns and stretches his lazy limbs; time to get up. With the last traces of his sleep draining from his body, he manages to disentangle himself from the bed’s sweet, treacherous clutches, stumbling dangerously close to falling only once if you please, and crosses the short distance to the bathroom door. Kyungsoo always shuts the door while he’s bathing but he cracks it open the moment he is dressed. Something about water misting in the bathroom and fresh air and mould. When Kai detects that small line of light on the side of the door, he gently pushes it open and tangerine-scented warmth envelops him.

“Why up so early princess?” he mumbles. Kyungsoo peers at him through the bathroom mirror and Kai gives him a drowsy smile. Kyungsoo’s gaze is calm and almost blank; he only shrugs in response and keeps ruffling his hair with the towel. Kai pouts; no good morning? Not even a smile or a retort, a complaint about being called a princess?

It takes exactly forty two seconds of pouting until Kyungsoo is done with the towel. It takes another two seconds to throw it in the hamper and one second to step into Kai’s personal space and give him a kiss. Good morning –as close as it gets at least, considering Kyungsoo is the punch-now-talk-later sort of person. Kai is pleasantly surprised it’s not a punch or a shove this time, his insides doing an impromptu happy dance, and he steals as much time and love as he can from the kiss. It doesn’t happen every day. But Kyungsoo pulls back too soon and steps around Kai and into the bedroom. Kai follows him happily and he plops down on the bed while Kyungsoo searches for something in the closet, folding and putting away Kai’s pants in the process. His small rear is wiggling while he rummages around and Kai giggles at the sight.

“I have a date with Baek and Chen” Kyungsoo’s voice informs him, echoing from inside the closet. Kai hums affirmatively, leaning back on his elbows against the mattress. Kyungsoo’s head emerges from the closet, his hair sticking up in every direction. Isn’t he dashing? He blinks with owlish eyes. “And boy, will I be late” he mutters, examining his watch.

“I can give you a ride” Kai proposes benevolently, ready to spring to his feet and get dressed to go. Kyungsoo looks up and gives him a blank glare.

“No thanks, I need to get there alive and hopefully, inconspicuously” he retorts and Kai accepts his choice, but he secretly smirks. As if there is any chance Baekhyun won’t know his friend’s whereabouts just by looking at him; it’s probably something like a puppy superpower, Kai can’t tell exactly, but it’s inescapable. You can run but you can’t hide. “Where’s my blue sweater by the way? I thought I had it here” Kyungsoo’s brows knit together as he points to the closet.

“Could be in the laundry. Take mine” Kai suggests, having no clue as to where that sweater is, but it’s colored clothes due to be washed today, so maybe it’s tangled somewhere in there. Kyungsoo sighs, resting one hand on his hip.

“Yours is huge on me” he drawls and drags his feet to the bed where he halfheartedly collapses. Kai scoots closer instantly, massaging Kyungsoo’s stiff shoulders. Kyungsoo rolls his neck and leans back on him for support, sighing and blinking slowly, as if he doesn’t really want to be awake yet. Kai allows a few long moments of silence, watching Kyungsoo getting sleepier, breath by breath. He can feel the tension melting away from Kyungsoo.

“Take the beige one then; it’s still big for you but you like it, right?” he chirps, kissing Kyungsoo’s warm neck. He remembers his boyfriend saying that he liked the material of that knit sweater and Kai feels so accomplished to be able to help. “It will look good with your jeans, too” he mumbles against his skin, his hands slowly trailing down Kyungsoo’s sides and hips, and toying with the belt loops. Kyungsoo groans, his voice reverberating against Kai; but then suddenly he jumps out of Kai’s arms like a bunny in a hurry. Kai presses his lips in a displeased line.

“We don’t have time for this, I need to go soon” he explains without even looking at him and walks to the closet again. Kai sighs and resigns to his fate; he would very much like to change Kyungsoo’s mind but he doesn’t want to pressure him and make him even more late for his date. Kyungsoo is much more efficient in his second search and he comes out with the fluffy cream sweater in his hands. He takes off the t-shirt he had temporarily thrown on –which Kai thinks is his own too, but he’s not very sure with the situation of all their not-size-distinguishable clothes mingling in the closet– and slithers in the sweater. Kai smiles a little when he sees the blooming marks on Kyungsoo’s skin, but they are soon covered under his clothes. The sweater is long and large, reaching mid-thigh length and looking comfortably loose. He looks good in it, better than Kai ever thought he looked himself while wearing it. “Any plans for today?” he asks cheerfully, rolling up the sleeves. Kai gathers the blanket around him depressively, but he accepts the change of topic.

“I’ll probably pester Chanyeol to go out for lunch with me” he plans on the spot and then gets up to follow Kyungsoo to the bathroom again, the blanket hanging from his shoulders like superman’s cape. He elaborates on his plans in the meantime; a text message definitely won’t make Chanyeol blink twice at his proposal, so maybe he should try calling him, but not even that will be enough probably, therefore Kai will show up at the office and haul him away from his chair if he has to. It’s how friendship works sometimes, and everyone ought to be happy with it. They’re having lunch together, period.

“Well, I’m leaving you in good hands then” Kyungsoo says, combing his hair. Kai would like to protest that his friend’s clumsy hands are not good, especially when glass vases are involved, not that he considers himself made of glass. But he opts to stand by the door silently, watching Kyungsoo fixing his hair absentmindedly, feeling as if he’s in the middle of solving a math equation; Kai was never good at math, he always paid extra attention to the equations in order to pass his tests. Chanyeol, on the other hand, had always been good in everything; unless his natural dumb shined through and led him to a completely different universe from the one they were discussing in. Kai can tell you from experience that having an academically smart friend comes in handy, but he will never forget that day when Chanyeol help up Kai’s test and asked the teacher in front of everyone in class ‘Sir, are you sure he got an F? But he actually studied, I saw him!’. Kai had studied and had failed nonetheless, and his silly friend was so unhelpful, that he almost ended up murdered that day. “Oh, can you pick up some sugar while you’re out? And strawberries?” Kyungsoo’s voice brings Kai out of his small reverie. He blinks and catches the reflection of Kyungsoo’s inquiring eyes.

“Sure, but why?” he asks, raising his eyebrows curiously when meeting gazes with Kyungsoo in the mirror.

“I’m making strawberry millefeuille” he explains, searching for the dryer and finding it easily; he knows the place of everything inside Kai’s house by now. “My puppy friend won’t give up his privacy penchant and share details without a bribe” he continues, giving Kai a knowing look in the mirror. Kai is confused for two or maybe three seconds before he realizes that his evil little boyfriend is planning to mislead Baekhyun with sweets so that he will spill everything that has gone down between him and Chanyeol since last night. Now, that sort of deception is what friends are for.

“He won’t?” Kai perks, suddenly alert. He has heard about Baekhyun being a stubborn oyster that won’t budge for the world’s worth of chocolate, but he can’t be this cruel, to leave everyone else in the dark concerning his and Chanyeol’s fluffy interactions…right? What is privacy and discretion between friends? And if he and Chanyeol decide to be tight lipped about it together, Chanyeol would rather be hanged than break his promise to Baekhyun. Which basically means…the rest may never know! Oh my god. “They wouldn’t do this to us, would they?!” he flails his arms, hitting the doorframe by accident and hissing in pain a little.

Kyungsoo hums thoughtfully, ignoring Kai’s antics, but the conversation dies quickly, because Kyungsoo starts styling his hair with the blow-dryer and it’s making so much noise that it’s hard to communicate. Kai relaxes, filing away his ideas to extort Chanyeol to confess everything for later assessment; there are other things that matter right now. He squeezes himself next to Kyungsoo –even though he doesn’t have to, since his bathroom is big enough for five people– and starts brushing his teeth. Kyungsoo rolls his eyes and mumbles something like ‘impatient idiot’ under his breath. Kai would bet he got it right. He smiles at Kyungsoo in the mirror, his teeth showing blue from the toothpaste, but Kyungsoo doesn’t even complain it’s gross; he just chuckles and shakes his head.

It doesn’t take long to finish their tasks in the bathroom and they return to the room together, after tiding everything up. Kai helps Kyungsoo make the bed like every other morning; Kyungsoo doesn’t seem to believe in laziness, not even when he’s in a hurry or as tired as it gets. Kai unintentionally pulls the blanket a little too much to his side and Kyungsoo scoffs, pulling it back; it’s like inviting a puppy to play. Kai pulls it back again, with no intension to make the bed this time, but to see that cutely annoyed look in Kyungsoo’s eyes as he pulls it more harshly; and they repeat that competition for a while, until Kyungsoo loses his grip and the blanket flies to Kai’s knees. The shorter sighs dramatically with soulless eyes and Kai spares him, offering the blanket back and patiently smoothing it over the sheets. He’s an exemplar helper after that, but he can’t help giggling when Kyungsoo doesn’t react in time and the pillow Kai threw him hits him in the face by accident. Kyungsoo gives him an irritated glare while fluffing up the pillow emphatically, and Kai forces his lips to close, if he is to keep his head on his shoulders. It has been a peaceful morning, let’s not spoil it. He doesn’t say anything when three pillows hit him unreasonably hard, ejected from Kyungsoo’s side, almost in retribution; almost, because Kyungsoo is above all those childish stuff. Most of the time. Or at least, so he claims.

Once they’re done, Kai readjusts the blanket on his shoulders –he’s not sure why he’s keeping it there, but the superhero look seems like a good idea right now. Maybe the semi-reasonable part of his brain is still half asleep. Kyungsoo turns around to spray some of Kai’s cologne on his neck and wrists before he walks out of the room, grabbing his coat as he goes. Kai follows him and they walk down the corridor together, towards the living room.

“Okay so, I’m kind of in a hurry and we can’t have breakfast together, but you should eat something before you leave for the office, and I promise I will eat something when I meet with the boys too” Kyungsoo orders, fixing his collar and smoothing out his buttons. Kai nods like a good soldier. Breakfast without Kyungsoo is no fun, but if his little princess is worried, who is Kai to deny such a request, a rare token of affection and concern? But wait, Kai never said he’d go to the office to get Chanyeol; it’d be the most probable option anyway, though, because Kai likes going out and annoying his best friend in person. Kyungsoo knows him so well. Kyungsoo continues his speech about his plans while he walks, rolling his eyes momentarily. “We’ll meet at the usual coffee shop but they will probably drag me somewhere for lunch too, they always do. If you need anything just call me, if you text me because you’re bored or feeling particularly smitten, you will be ignored” he warns, jabbing an accusing finger in Kai’s direction. Kai’s eyes widen in surprise at the sudden shift of the conversation back to him and he holds up his hands in surrender. Kyungsoo nods approvingly and keeps going; Kai sighs in relief. That was fast, he barely had the wits to understand what he was being accused of. “Ask Chanyeol for information about yesterday and- oh.”

Kyungsoo plants his feet to the ground all of a sudden, causing a small collision with Kai behind him. Kai almost bumps his nose against Kyungsoo’s head, but he avoids it last minute by throwing his balance on his rear leg and halting his step. He flails his arms for balance, finding an appreciation for those years of ballet lessons that left him some remnants of grace and coordination. The shorter stands frozen at the end of the hallway, unaware of Kai’s ridiculous maneuvers behind him, staring ahead with wide eyes. Kai quirks an eyebrow and leans around Kyungsoo to see what the problem is for himself, completely clueless and bewildered.

And then he sees his apartment, which doesn’t look exactly like his apartment, but it could be. The furniture is rearranged, his familiar living room transformed into a dining room, and the windows are slightly open, the breeze sweeping in a few dry leaves, flower petals and dust from outside. There are plates stacked in a neat pile, right where Lay left them last night, and a few glasses here and there on the table. The pillows are messily thrown around and that small piece of lettuce Kai threw at Sehun but the younger dodged is still on the floor. All in all, a small mess of remnants from last night is what Kai has for a house at the moment. He and Kyungsoo were supposed to clean everything up before going to bed, but well, more interesting stuff demanded their attention, and Kai would do it all over again. Now, however, the mess is here to haunt them.

Oops.

“Totally missed that part. Um…” Kyungsoo mumbles, coming back to his senses. Kai can see it in his eyes, how he is torn between making his friends wait for him for an unnecessarily long amount of time and leaving Kai to fend for himself against this grand untidiness which grates on Kyungsoo’s ocd side. Kai decides to save the day and face one of his most hateful tasks alone, becoming a fragment of the superhero the blanket on his shoulders is proclaiming him to be.

“Just go, Soo, I can handle it” Kai says with a rueful smile; he can handle it, he has done it before, all he needs afterwards is to complain for a few hours about how he hates cleaning and then all is well. Seeing as Kyungsoo hasn’t moved an inch, he nudges him a little to move forward. But Kyungsoo starts taking off his coat instead, hastily undoing the buttons and trying to get his arms out of the sleeves.

“No, I feel bad. It’s my fault, I should help you with-”

“You should go and have fun” Kai stops his panicked mumbling with a firm voice and Kyungsoo stops his effort to take off his coat. He looks up at him with reservations. Kai doesn’t get why Kyungsoo is so fixed on cleaning, why would anyone be, it’s horribly boring. “I can clean my house!” Kai defends, raising his eyebrows and his arms, as if he is stating the obvious. It’s not obvious, at all. Kai hates cleaning. But he does it anyway. Kyungsoo raises a taunting eyebrow, knowing very well of Kai’s aversion to house chores, and Kai decides to make amends, because, okay, he’s not very good at cleaning, he tends to overlook a few corners sometimes. “To a decent degree…” he murmurs, deflating.

“Do you even know where the mop is?” Kyungsoo deadpans challengingly. Well, that much, Kai knows! He internally woops it’s a question he can answer, otherwise his case would be lost.

“Of course I do” he retorts incredulously, playing offended that Kyungsoo would assume he’s so clueless –which he nearly is– but the unimpressed look doesn’t leave Kyungsoo’s face. Kai shrinks in defeat and forces the answer out of his lips. “Under the back stairs cabinet” Kyungsoo still doesn’t look impressed, but he seems to believe it. Kai secretly sighs in relief. “See? I’m a big boy, I can keep my house standing” he smiles for credibility, pointing proudly at himself, and Kyungsoo nods slightly in agreement, his lips set in a hesitant, doubtful line.

“I’m sorry” he says then, shaking his head and pulling his coat back on his shoulders properly. His eyebrows frown pitifully and then he lifts his hands to cradle Kai’s face apologetically. Kai’s smile softens and he leans into the touch, following Kyungsoo’s indications willingly, until their faces are level and their lips sealed over each other’s. If Kyungsoo is asking for forgiveness, Kai is more than willing to kiss his guilt away. Besides, they both got carried away last night, it’s not only Kyungsoo’s fault. They kiss for longer than Kai had expected, losing focus a little in their private bubble. He chuckles and pulls back after a while, his lips feeling more swollen than before.

“Soo you’re sweet but…” he tries to speak in between pecks upon pecks from Kyungsoo’s persistent, addicting lips. “Weren’t you worried you’ll be late?” he manages to remind him, and Kyungsoo pulls back, blinking with wide eyes. Kai can almost hear the click inside his head as realization dawns on him.

“Right. Okay, I’m going then” he declares decisively, fixing his coat one last time and turning towards the living room. He makes a distasteful grimace but he walks through it, valiantly skipping to the door over surfaces that need cleaning and tidying up, with Kai following close behind. He slips his shoes on and rushes out the door, calling over his shoulder “Take care!”

“You too, Soo!” Kai is quick to return. He leans by the doorframe, deciding to wait until he sees Kyungsoo off before he deals with the mess; it’s not like it’s going anywhere, sadly. Kai hopes no one of his neighbors will choose to come out right now, because he might or might not look ridiculous, wrapped in his blanket like wearing an ancient tunic, but he thinks he doesn’t care much, as long as he gets to watch Kyungsoo patting his pockets to make sure he has everything while waiting for the elevator. Kyungsoo completes his search and seems to have checked every necessity off the list, but the elevator hasn’t arrived yet, so he spares a glance back, towards the door.

Kai knows it’s too early to shout in the hallway so, suppressing his sudden urge to declare his love for Kyungsoo, he smiles at him sweetly, making a heart with his fingers to show Kyungsoo. It’s silly and childish, but who cares? It’s love. Kyungsoo is not very comfortable with the words that match the gesture yet, so Kai tries to swallow them most of the time, but most gestures are okay. Kyungsoo accepts them like any other affectionate gesture, with a punch, an eye-roll and a retaliating gesture, befitting of his quirky affection standards. The elevator dings and, wait-

Was that a smile on Kyungsoo’s face just now?! That’s a first...

--

“So, did you make up or not?” Kyungsoo blurts out in a serious and curious voice, that only he could manage voicing. That was a bit too straightforward, but excuse him, he has been dying with curiosity since last night, when Chanyeol left with Baekhyun! He had been clawing at the doorframe while Kai was pulling him back, because he had wanted to see every single moment of interaction to the last he could; and he did get a glimpse of that adorable, shy glance Baekhyun stole of Chanyeol in the elevator as the doors were closing –that’s what turned him into goo and Kai finally managed to drag him back inside the house without resistance. Kai served as a good enough distraction throughout the night, but ever since his alarm woke him up, Kyungsoo has been itching with renewed curiosity.

“Wow…why don’t we sit down first?” Chen says, giving Kyungsoo a look. Baekhyun only blinks innocently at him from his seat, looking like a confused puppy, and Kyungsoo decides, fine. Maybe he’s being a bit pushy, but he’s not sorry for it. He takes off his coat properly and sits down like an impatient child, tapping his foot against the floor and waiting eagerly for Chen to sit down as well, and perhaps give him a cue to unleash his load of questions on Baekhyun. “So, Baek, how did it go?” Chen beats him to the question, but Kyungsoo doesn’t mind much this once, because he really wants to know all about that too. He had been praying and wishing to the stars all night for this, okay? He thinks he deserves to know if his prayers have been answered. Baekhyun hums thoughtfully and, just as he is about to start talking, Chen sneezes loudly. “Achoo!”

“Bless you” is what Baekhyun ends up saying, offering Chen a new tissue, a well-practiced routine. Chen takes it with a mumbled ‘thanks’ and blows his nose. Kyungsoo would have liked to be upset by this delay in the conversation of interest, but he can’t, seeing Chen’s red nose and his watery eyes.

“That’s the fifth time in two minutes; your sinus is acting up huh?” he observes, playing with his fingers on the table. Chen shakes his head, folding the tissue.

“It’s spring al-achoo” he doesn’t even get to finish his sentence before the next sneeze; he’s in a pretty rough condition, and Kyungsoo kind of feels sorry for him. Baekhyun pats Chen’s shoulder comfortingly while Chen blows his nose again, hissing at himself in annoyance.

“Spring allergies; it happens sometimes” Baekhyun answers for Chen, leaving his tissues on the table within Chen’s reach, so he can help himself. Spring allergies…so they go on throughout spring time? That must be terrible. “He’ll be fine in a few days” he reassures Kyungsoo, as if he could read his mind. Kyungsoo trusts Baekhyun for Chen-related information, since they have spent all their lives together. “It just gets a bit worse when he goes out of the house”

“Man, the timing is really bad” Chen laments, wiping his nose one last time and sniffling quietly “Xiumin wants me to meet his sister tomorrow” he complains. Kyungsoo can see how he must be uncomfortable, with his nose running all the time and his sneezing out of control. His nose and eyes are constantly red, too. But he looks more annoyed than insecure; it’s Chen we’re talking about, he’s a fashion designer, so he can fix his looks any way he wants.

“He has a sister? I didn’t know that” Baekhyun comments, blinking at Chen curiously. Oh, that’s right, Kyungsoo didn’t know that either. Chen nods affirmatively at both of them.

“Sohee, they’re twins” he informs them. Kyungsoo instantly assumes they’re identical twins for some reason, and he tries to picture Xiumin with long hair, slightly softer features and makeup. It works really well; she must be a beautiful lady, if she’s anything like Kyungsoo is picturing her to be. “I’m invited for dinner. Allergy medication makes me drowsy, so that’s not an option. I’ll have to do something about all this first though…achoo!” he sneezes right after he points vaguely at the small heap of tissues he’s gathering. Kyungsoo presses his lips in a line and nods solemnly in understanding.

“He’ll be fine, give him a minute” Baekhyun dismisses Kyungsoo’s serious expression with a light wave of his hand. Chen nods in agreement and takes another tissue. Kyungsoo turns his eyes on Baekhyun, raising an eyebrow.

“Okay, so while he’s taking his minute, do tell us Baekhyun, how did it go with Chanyeol?” he breezes through the question naturally, after all the times he has practiced it in his head. He’s so glad he got to say that out loud! He laces his fingers on the table with a professional vibe, eyes trained on Baekhyun and trying to read through his very soul. Baekhyun panics a little, his puppy eyes growing round and flying everywhere.

“Should I go order now?”

“Byun. Baek. Hyun.”

Kyungsoo pins Baekhyun in place just with his glare and Baekhyun gulps, almost unnoticeably, but his stubborn puppy side doesn’t let him look away, and a staring contest ensues. Kyungsoo’s tone was absolute and Baekhyun presses his lips in a distressed pout, shifting uncomfortably in his seat, but he still doesn’t look away. He even offered to go order, even though he knows Kyungsoo and Chen will be making fun of Doyoon; he must be really keen on avoiding that conversation. The question is, why. But that question comes after a hundred and seventy five others Kyungsoo has prepared for today.

Kyungsoo doesn’t stop glaring at his friend with his spooky wide-eyed glare and Baekhyun doesn’t stop staring back with the apprehensive puppy look, but the seconds that tick by are, unfortunately, in Baekhyun’s advantage, because he’s good at escaping uncomfortable situations unscathed, all the more if you give him some time to think his plan through. Kyungsoo can see the wheels turning in his head, mapping out his sneaky escape. It takes a push on the shoulder by Chen’s index finger to get Baekhyun into motion.

“Oh fine.” He grumbles with a sweet pout, throwing away a loose thread he had been fiddling with and folding his hands on his lap, pressing them with his knees on either side. Kyungsoo relaxes in his chair and exchanges a knowing look with Chen. This won’t be the end of it, it’s never that easy. Baekhyun is not paying attention to them currently, rocking back and forth bashfully. Then he looks up from his lap, but his gaze still doesn’t meet Kyungsoo’s or Chen’s, focusing somewhere indefinable instead. “Well, it went pretty well, actually” Baekhyun nods to himself with a sheepish smile. He looks like the cutest thing, making Kyungsoo coo internally, and it must be having the same effect on Chen; a couple of girls across from them coo openly, in fact. But Kyungsoo keeps his composure, because ‘pretty well’ is not nearly enough…

“What do you mean, pretty well?” he presses, squinting his eyes in suspicion. It’s a very vague and lukewarm description, what is Kyungsoo supposed to guess out of it? Baekhyun is so sneaky that he won’t even let a man dream of rosy, bright sunshine! Kyungsoo was hoping for ‘amazing’ or ‘you-won’t-believe-how-excellently’ or maybe ‘we didn’t only make up, we also got together’ –but, okay, that last one was a pretty farfetched hope. Any of those answers and many more exciting ones would have been welcomed, opening a whole new world of possibilities for Kyungsoo to dream of! But no, he got the secretive koala as a best friend, ugh. Baekhyun chuckles, his eyesmiles meeting Kyungsoo’s inquisitive gaze, and he shifts uncomfortably on his pretty rear.

“I mean, nothing extraordinary happened” he says, blinking innocently “He took me home and then we said goodnight and he left. We had a stop along the way and we talked a bit; he apologized, mostly. It wasn’t anything dramatic. It was just one moment in the car, when he explained everything I already knew thanks to Chen, and I told him he was forgiven. And that’s pretty much it” Baekhyun shrugs his shoulders nonchalantly, but Kyungsoo is not willing to dismiss him as easily, not when Baekhyun has that lovely blush all over his cheeks. He wants every detail, to the last of the words spoken. Everything he’s heard is still not enough to make him rejoice and plan a rosy future for this couple.

“Baekhyun, really?” Chen raises an eyebrow and Baekhyun returns an innocent expression at him. He’s really good at playing innocent, assuming he isn’t innocent, of course. Because if he is, then all this effort is pointless and Chanyeol doesn’t have a hint of drama in his system –that would be a shame, considering those two have such fluffy potential. “What does all that even mean? Did you or did you not make up?”

“Hello, hyungs! Should I bring you the usual?” Sehun pops out of nowhere, with a polite and cheerful smile on his lips. Well he’s in a good mood. Both Kyungsoo and Chen hold up one hand to stop him, signaling him to wait while they stare at Baekhyun inquiringly, waiting for a definite answer out of his mouth on the hot topic. Baekhyun looks disoriented and flustered, blinking furiously at all of them and not knowing where to focus. Kyungsoo feels slightly guilty for cornering and pressuring his friend like this, but he is more curious than anything else.

“I-I don’t know. Maybe?” he stutters uncertainly, still looking confused. Chen sighs in defeat, his hand landing on the table with a thud. A sneeze comes very unceremoniously right after his dramatic surrender.

“Maybe?! That’s not even a possible answer!” Kyungsoo exclaims in exasperation, throwing his arms in the air and drawing attention. The uneventful silence that follows is enough to make everyone lose interest and look away, continuing their peaceful lives. Only Doyoon looks one moment away from rushing to their table to take Baekhyun away from his embarrassing, pushy friends.

“Baekhyun hyung, Kyungsoo hyung is right” Sehun seconds Kyungsoo in a serious voice and, even though Kyungsoo didn’t see it coming, he is glad and thankful for the support. “Everyone is worried for you, and of course we want what’s best for you and Chanyeol hyung. ’Maybe’ is not a good answer for this sort of question. So, say it simply, yes or no: are you and Chanyeol hyung friends again?” Sehun tilts his head to the side and he looks cuter than usual. Of course, why didn’t Kyungsoo think about it sooner? Those two have soft spots for each other; he should have recruited Sehun from the beginning in his search of the truth. A moment of silence in tribute to Sehun’s sudden wise insight passes by, and then Baekhyun blinks a few times, slightly less distressed now that he has a person of main focus, before sighing in surrender.

“Yes” he says softly, cracking a small smile of relief and gratitude at Sehun. Sehun winks back at him. Their mute exchange gets lost in the thrill of the moment for the other two.

“Hallelujah!” Kyungsoo raises his eyes to the sky.

“Finally!” Chen exclaims, and Sehun smiles widely.

“I’ll go prepare the usual, but don’t say too much without me! I want to hear it too!” Sehun announces, leaving hastily for the kitchen, stealing frequent glances towards their table. Doyoon is waiting anxiously for Sehun behind the counter, hoping he’ll find out why his crush was looking so distressed a while ago; Kyungsoo suspects he won’t be very happy to hear his puppy crush was in the middle of explaining how he has very recently made up with his own hot crush.

“Okay, what did he say?” Chen takes on the interrogation-slash-gossip look and leans on the table, closer to Baekhyun, who leans further back in his seat defensively, seeing as Kyungsoo did the same thing as Chen on his other side. Baekhyun blinks at them confusedly.

“Um, he really didn’t say anything new…He just-” Baekhyun gets interrupted by his own phone, his already hesitant speech coming to a complete stop. Kyungsoo glares at the device which chose to announce a message just when things were getting interesting. Chen sneezes again. Baekhyun picks his phone from the table and, after an automatic glance, he looks at it again, probably because something captured his interest all of a sudden. Chen tries to read the screen too, but he has to blow his nose before he accomplishes anything substantial. “Oh…” Baekhyun says after a few moments of torturous silence, while Kyungsoo and Chen boil in curiosity. “It’s from Chanyeol”

“Chanyeol?!” Chen and Kyungsoo exclaim together, making a few heads turn inquisitively inside the café. Why is Chanyeol sending a message to him? What for? Why why why? Baekhyun might be the only person in the café who didn’t notice their stunned exclamation, and he keeps staring at his phone with a thoughtful look. Chanyeol sent a message to Baekhyun? In the middle of the day? Okay, they are definitely back to being friends again. But what level of friends, exactly?

“What did he say?” Kyungsoo demands after a while of lip bitten silence, feeling like he will explode with anticipation, and Baekhyun just won’t talk, goodness gracious, spare me! Baekhyun blinks a few times more, his eyebrows quirking, and then he comes back to reality.

“Uh…he just- okay, here it is:” Baekhyun decides to read them the message, thank god! “Hey Baek! I was on my way to a business meeting and I saw this cute café at that area, and I haven’t checked it out yet –with all the work and stuff. So…I was wondering, would you like to go with me and have some coffee there next weekend??? Three question marks and various emoticons follow” Baekhyun keeps staring at his phone after reading the message, trying to understand who knows what, reading it to himself again and again.

Meanwhile, Chen and Kyungsoo are having the shock of their lives. They stare at each other with more astonishment than any human face can take, eyes wide open in shock, mouth slack and jaw dropped dramatically. Because, under all the useless awkward information, did Chanyeol just…

 

ASK BAEKHYUN OUT ON A D.A.T.E.?????!!!!

 

Oh my god.

And Kyungsoo is witnessing this development firsthand?! Kyungsoo glances at Baekhyun, who is still deliberating something unknown in his pretty head, looking at his phone as if it’s doing the salsa in his hand. Kyungsoo kind of wants to grab him and start shaking him in glee, treating everyone in the shop ice cream and throwing flower petals on the street while singing. Why do you look so confused? It’s clearly a date, you dummy! Only, Chanyeol didn’t make it sound very clearly like a date, he made it sound like sort of a date. But it’s a date. Kyungsoo can spell it too: d-a-t-e. Can Baekhyun, though? Wait. You mean, Baekhyun doesn’t even realize it is a date we are talking about?!

“So, what are you going to wear?” Chen asks cheerfully, cutting Kyungsoo just as he’s about to voice out his concern on Baekhyun’s dubious understanding of the matter. Kyungsoo gives Chen and Baekhyun a strange look. So, they are not going to make it clear to Baekhyun that it’s a date? The guy is innocent as a unicorn and inexperienced as a baby in relationship stuff. Shouldn’t there be someone to translate Chanyeol’s adorably awkward romantic efforts to Baekhyun so that he may understand them clearly and be in the same wavelength? Then again, Chanyeol and Baekhyun always manage to be in the same wavelength, strangely enough…Chen’s glare is telling him not to even attempt at what he’s thinking of doing.

So Kyungsoo stays silent and watches as Baekhyun returns to his usual self slowly and starts discussing outfits with Chen, getting more and more into it and smiling or pouting playfully according to the conversation. After witnessing that, Kyungsoo thinks that it might be for the better, if Baekhyun doesn’t think of it as a definite date and keeps himself busy with details instead; because he might get scared and anxious, and petrify, like when he was staring at his phone a while ago. We definitely don’t want that. Kyungsoo decides that it’s okay if Baekhyun doesn’t know for sure that this is a date –oh god, he can’t say it enough times to believe it himself, that this is finally happening– as long as he will be attending; and so he joins his friends in their conversation cheerfully.

One week of anticipation and planning begins.

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a/n: Hello my wonderful people! Oh gosh I've missed you so! I'm terribly sorry for being so busy all the time mais c' est la vie :/ I want you to know that I read all the comments & messages, even if I don't have time to answer! I hope things will get better soon :( because I've missed talking to you &learning from you &making you smile *hugs you all with tears in my eyes*

I'm sure this chapter has made you happy, since all the couples had their beautiful moments!^ω^ I feel like such a better person to be making you happy again! I was squealing by myself while writing most of the chapter -and I had to write some parts on the train (yup, that's how busy I am) so that was awkward...but who cares? I am proud to be the kitten author of a big subbie family (jaw-droppingly big, if you ask my poor heart, which is receiving so much love that I just- *explodes into flower petals*) which unfortunately I haven't got to know to thoroughly yet, but fervently hope I will *hugs you again because I've really missed you*

With this chapter, the angst for baekyeol is officially over! There was the apology & the punch & the cuteness, in one delicate, interesting blend -too interesting for best friends to ignore; but ignorant they shall remain, because baek is a secretive koala like that, hehe As for the other two couples, living the fluffy life, we saw veeery sweet goodmornings ;) which awakening would you prefer? (I am making standards impossible for your boy/girlfriends, aren't I? Sowwie -but not really, hehe)

Until next time, stay tuned, because DID YOU SEE THAT?! CHANYEOL ASKED BAEKHYUN ON A DATE! ...sort of. And Kai has an interesting announcement to make, while Sehun finds ways to make his boyfriend blush, so don't give up on me yet! Thank you for your patience and your support! (to me it means more than you might think) You are better cupcakes than I could have ever hoped for! *cries* Take pretty pictures with flowers guys; 'tis the season! I love you all! *muah* kitty