Chapter Nine: Awry

awry: out of the normal or expected course

~*~

"F-Fiance?" Baekhyun nearly choked on his own saliva. "Baekbeom was getting married?"

Oh, this is awkward.

Bohye gave a nod, trying to avoid staring too long at Baekhyun's cast, "Can we talk inside?"

Baekhyun shot Jongdae an exasperated look before returning his focus to the woman, "I don't know if I should believe you."

"Baekhyun, just hear her out," Jongdae said, making sure to keep his foot by the door so the door wouldn't slam in his face.

From within the house a woman's voice called out, "Baekhyun? Who's at the door?" Seconds later, Mrs. Byun appeared behind her son, blinking in surprise at the two bodies standing outside the door. She could see the tension dancing on Baekhyun's shoulders as his eyes were fixated on the woman. Mrs. Byun acknowledged Jongdae, but questioned who the woman was.

"Hello Mrs. Byun," the young woman bowed, "my name is Lee Bohye. I know your son, Baekbeom."

"Let them in, Baekhyun," Mrs. Byun firmly gripped her son's shoulder and pushed him to the side. Jongdae and Bohye glanced at another, hesitant to enter now that Baekhyun was no longer guarding the door.

Jongdae gave a small wave to Mrs. Byun, "I think I should get going. This seems to be a family matter." With those words, he left Bohye alone on the front door step.

Slowly, Bohye entered the house, Mrs. Byun guiding her to the kitchen, "Baekhyun made brunch. Let us eat first." Despite Bohye's protest at intruding a family meal, she took a seat at the table with her future in-laws.

Mr. and Mrs. Byun attempted conversation with Bohye, trying to get to know her better. According to her, she and Baekbeom met when her car broke down in a storm and he was the only one who offered assistance. The story unphased Baekhyun who was still stuck in the moment when she revealed her relationship with Baekbeom at the front door.

After the meal, the four gathered in the living room where Bohye would reveal the reason for her visit. In a soft voice, she began by saying, "I don't know what you are aware of and what Baekbeom has told you, but he didn't burn the school, please know that."

"We do," Baekhyun immediately said. His mother gently touched his arm to shush him.

"How do you know? What makes you so sure?" Mrs. Byun questioned.

Bohye lowered her eyes, chewing her lower lip as she muddled on what to say. Baekbeom had made her keep silent, but after hearing he was sentenced to prison for 15 years... there was no way she was just going to ignore everything when her fiance was going to spend 15 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. "He was with me at the time the school burned. We were at a small, nearby clinic," Bohye said.

The revelation stunned Baekhyun, more than it affected his parents. "Why didn't you help him?!" Baekhyun demanded, anger flaring in his chest. "You could have been his alibi. You were with him so there was no way he could have burned the school!"

"I'm sorry," Bohye responded, "but he made me promise him to stay out of everything. Before leaving to visit you for two weeks, he told me not to say anything no matter what. He said he knew what he was doing."

Baekhyun's fingernails dug into the palm of his hand. He couldn't understand Baekbeom, that stupid idiot that was his brother. Mrs. Byun placed a firm hand on Baekhyun's shoulder, "Don't lash out, Baekhyun. At least we know for a fact that it was not Baekbeom."

"I already knew it wasn't him!" Baekhyun couldn't control himself. "Were you doubting his innocence?"

"We are aware that your brother isn't the perfect angel," Mr. Byun replied. Shocked, Baekhyun blinked at his father. As if to answer Baekhyun's silent question, Mr. Byun nodded, "Yes, Baekhyun. We know what your brother did with Yonghwa back in high school."

Bohye lowered her head, her eyes fixated on her hands. The sight of the woman tugged at Mrs. Byun's heart and she reached out, gently taking Bohye's hands in hers, "I apologize for my son's outburst. It's not your fault, dear. Baekbeom... he always seems to have his own schedules." Bohye didn't know whether or not Mrs. Byun was masking her anger and disappointment or if she was being sincere.

Tears stung Bohye's eyes, blurring her vision. "We were going to get married in October. We even made invitation cards that we planned to send out as soon as he returned from the two-week visit, but..." Mrs. Byun gently held onto the crying woman, softly patting her back.

"Would you like to stay over? You can take Baekbeom's room," Mrs. Byun whispered softly.    

---

Chanyeol massaged the back of Jaehwa's hand with his thumbs, briefly glancing into her eyes and clearing his throat, "So Jaehwa..."

"So Chanyeol..."

Chanyeol continued with a nervous chuckle, "Do you know a Noh Raehyuk?" She nodded but before she could reply verbally, Chanyeol asked, "You introduced him to Baekhyun?" Chanyeol carefully observed his girlfriend's reaction -- the slight pursing of her lips, the quick flit of her eyes.

She slowly nodded, "Why are you asking? Did something happen?"

"I was just curious, that's all."

"How do you know him?"

Chanyeol continued massaging Jaehwa's hands, "My parents order their supplies from his parents' company. You mind telling me about them two?"

Jaehwa stared at Chanyeol with a blank expression. Why did Chanyeol want to know? Did Raehyuk tell him?

"Well, we were still in middle school. I asked Baekhyun to join me and a group of friends -- Raehyuk included -- to a party," Jaehwa explained, attempting to avoid Chanyeol's curious eyes. "I don't really know what happened at the party, but I'm guessing it wasn't good. Actually, it was after the party that Baekhyun turned cold on me."

Chanyeol's brows furrowed together in confusion. Something must have happened. He dared to question his girlfriend, "Is it that you don't know, or you choose to ignore what happened?"

Swallowing a lump in , Jaehwa summoned the courage and set her eyes on Chanyeol's. With a shake of her head, she replied, "I don't know."

Chanyeol was stumped; he couldn't tell whether Cho Jaehwa was lying or telling the truth.

---

Bohye fidgeted with her hands, her eyes fixed on her lap, "That young man earlier, who is he?"

"He's Baekhyun's new friend, Kim Jongdae," Mrs. Byun answered, offering the woman a glass of water. Bohye accepted gratefully, taking small sips before setting it down on the coffee table.

I thought so.

"Do you know him?" Baekhyun questioned. "Or perhaps his brother?" Bohye nodded, fidgeting with her hands once again.

"I met Jongdeok on a couple of occasions. Baekbeom allowed him to stay for a few of nights before they eventually found a new place or somewhere along those lines."

Mrs. Byun escorted Bohye upstairs to Baekbeom's bedroom, showing her the interior of the house while Mr. Byun and his son remained downstairs seated on the couch.

Baekhyun ran a finger lightly along his cast, wondering what would happen to Bohye and Baekbeom. "Dad," Baekhyun softly whispered, his eyes lost in space. "Do you think Baekbeom will be okay?"

Mr. Byun nodded slowly. Once the real arsonist was found, Baekbeom would be freed. But how long would that take? Glancing at Baekhyun, Mr. Byun said, "Don't beat yourself up, son."

"But it's my fault and you know it." Baekhyun got up and disappeared into his bedroom. He needed time to absorb everything in.

Lee Bohye... are you for real?

~

Four days later, Lee Bohye finally left the Byun residence. Baekhyun had actually grown fond of her after the second day when she wasn't so depressed and teary-eyed. Beauty, kindness, intelligence -- Baekhyun could see why his brother fell for her. The only concern was her health; Bohye was physically weak, due to her being diabetic. But overall, Baekhyun silently approved of this Lee Bohye.

Jongdae spaced out as he gazed at the back of Baekhyun's head. His eyes traveled downwards to the shirt's collar before eventually landing on the cast covering Baekhyun's entire right arm. The brunet was upset and frustrated that the police were unable to identify the three men who hurt Baekhyun. They were caught on the CCTV in the alleyway -- barely visible under the dim lighting, but recorded nonetheless -- but their identities were still unknown. No fingerprints, no DNA.

Baekhyun and Baekbeom must be going through a lot. Hell, their whole family must be upset.

Leaning forward, Jongdae tapped Baekhyun's left shoulder, "Hey, are you and your family busy in the evenings this week?"

"How am I supposed to know?"

"Nevermind," Jongdae sat back. He would have to ask his parents and the Byuns by himself.

---

Kyungsoo was busy reading his novel when he glanced up from the text to see Jongdae smiling innocently at him.

Oh damn, he wants something.

"Do you want to help me babysit?"

"Are you serious?" Kyungsoo deadpanned before continuing his novel. "I have a life."

"Please?" Jongdae begged, taking Kyungsoo's hands in his. "I'll give you half the money. All of it if you want."

Kyungsoo narrowed his eyes, prying his hands free, "I'm not doing it." The wind flipped the pages of Kyungsoo's book, but before Kyungsoo could find his original spot, Jongdae snatched the book and closed it. "Hey!"

"Just think of it as an early birthday present, please?"

"Why can't you just babysit them yourself? Don't you always?"

"Come on, Kyungsoo!" Jongdae whined with a pout.

"I will reveal embarrassing things about you," Kyungsoo stated flatly, retrieving his book.

Baekhyun's pursed his lips at Jongdae's childish behavior. Slamming his own novel down, he snapped at the two, "My god, if Kyungsoo doesn't want to do it, stop asking him! I'm trying to read this stupid- novel and I keep getting distracted by your annoying voice! Do it yourself!"

The three seated around the table -- Jongdae, Chanyeol, and Kyungsoo -- frowned at the raven-haired boy's outburst. The rest of the time remained quiet for the ones reading to read in silence. But the silence didn't last long.

"Please?" Jongdae asked again.

"Oh my god!" Baekhyun attacked the brunet with his novel. To Kyungsoo he asked, "Are you doing it or not?"

"No," Kyungsoo replied without sparing a glance their way.

"There you have it," Baekhyun said. "Kyungsoo's not helping you babysit. So shut up now."

Jongdae frowned, rubbing his shoulder where Baekhyun had hit him. He addressed Baekhyun, "What about you? Will you come with me?"

"No, thanks," Baekhyun muttered. "Why don't you ask your girlfriend?"

"It's her birthday on Saturday, she's busy."

"Does she even like you?" Chanyeol questioned, glancing up from his book. "Do you even like her?"

Without another word, Baekhyun grabbed his belongings and ditched his three friends. It was impossible to focus with their lips flapping everywhere. Kyungsoo decided to follow his raven-haired friend to avoid any more questions from Jongdae, leaving Chanyeol and Jongdae alone at the table.

"So?" Chanyeol blinked expectantly.

"Yeah, we do. Every couple is different, you know."

"Have you two even kissed?" Chanyeol sensed Jongdae's hesitation, his eyes wide in disbelief. "You two haven't kissed yet? How long have you been going out?"

"There's more to a relationship that just kissing," Jongdae retorted. "Perhaps you were unaware of that?"

"I know that, but you two don't even go out."

"Yoonmi doesn't really like going out to public places. On top of that, she's shy, too."

Chanyeol nodded, "She's a mixture of you and Baekhyun." Jongdae blinked in surprise, puzzled at where Chanyeol had gotten the comparison. To elaborate, Chanyeol said, "If you haven't noticed, Baekhyun's kind of an introvert. And you're shy."

Jongdae's eyes narrowed, his lower lip jutting out, "I'm not that shy. How can you not be? I'm so jealous of people like you. You can talk to other people so easily." He sighed, lazily flipping through his book.

"Kyungsoo can be pretty shy, too. How did you two become friends? Two loners meeting each other, is that it?"

Jongdae paused as he recalled the day he first became friends with the red-haired boy. The two were seated side-by-side, but neither boys spoke to another until about a month into the school year and that was when Kyungsoo had dyed his hair red. Jongdae had simply complimented the hairstyle and Kyungsoo had thanked him.

Jongdae had thought Kyungsoo was this cute and innocent little boy that couldn't harm a fly, until he got to know the younger boy better. It was Kyungsoo who influenced Jongdae to do so many things that Jongdae never would have dared. Or maybe he would have, Jongdae couldn't be sure.

"His hair," Jongdae stated. "It caught my attention."

"That's it?" Chanyeol asked in disbelief. "Well, you two started a conversation and it just clicked, right?"

"Yeah, I guess," Jongdae replied as he caught sight of Kyungsoo. "Speaking of the devil."

Kyungsoo returned to the table, standing beside Jongdae, "Hey, Jongdae. On second thought, I'll babysit with you."

Jongdae grinned up at the red-haired boy, "Why the sudden change of mind?"

"Because I pity you for babysitting all by yourself," Kyungsoo rolled his eyes as he slapped Jongdae's back. "When, where and what time?"

"Saturday morning at 8:30 to sometime around noon I think. You can either come to my place and we can go from there or you can head to their place."

"I'll be at your place. And stop smiling, you're disgusting," Kyungsoo's pursed his lips, giving Jongdae a three-second stare before walking away.

---

Jongdae didn't leave with Kyungsoo right after school, he was volunteered by his chemisty teacher to clean up the lab stations along with two other students. As he was wiping the counter, Jongdae received a text from Kyungsoo informing him that Kyungsoo had to hurry on home.

Of course you wouldn't wait for me.

As the three were near finishing their clean-up task, Jongdae said, "I can take it from here. You two can go." The girl seemed hesitant but before she spoke, Jongdae hastily held up his hand. "It's fine, really. I can handle the rest by myself, it will only take a couple more minutes. You two have worked hard."

"What about you? You worked the hardest out of all of us," the boy said before emitting a small cough. "But if you insist, I'll go." The girl punched his shoulder, but Jongdae ended up convincing the two to leave.

Jongdae hurriedly took care of the last details of the classroom before bolting out to the bike racks. Within a couple of minutes Jongdae was almost home. Up ahead, he made out a lean figure resting on the front doorsteps of the porch. As he pedaled closer, his heart rapidly picked up speed, nearly ready to leap out his chest.

It was Jongdeok.

Jongdae's bike sreeched to a stop, his knuckles white from clutching too tightly onto the bike handles. He couldn't pinpoint the reason, but the sight of his brother after nearly two years sent his stomach churning.

Jongdeok glanced up and stared at his younger brother, rising on his feet, "Jongdae."

"Why are you here?" Jongdae asked, hopping off his bike. "Of all the times you decided to drop by, you choose now?"

"I know it's not a good time," Jongdeok replied, hands hidden in his jacket pocket, "but I need to help Baekbeom."

Jongdae's feet glued to the floor. Jongdeok and Baekbeom really did know each other. Clearing his mind, Jongdae said, "How can you possibly help him? The Yoonkyu Fire case is closed."

A small smile danced on Jongdeok's lips, "If it's closed, why are they investigating me?"

"But--"

"I'm here because Dad called me."

Jongdae's phone suddenly rang -- Baekhyun. Answering the call in a flash, the brunet quickly said, "Baekhyun, this isn't a good time."

As his little brother spoke on the phone, Jongdeok took a good look at his grown little Kim Jongdae. Two years had changed Jongdae -- his cheek bones became more prominent, his jawline sharper, his eyes harder.

Jongdae rolled his bike toward the garage, "I'm sorry, but--"

From the other side of the line, Baekhyun snapped, "I kept my end of the deal, you have to keep yours." After a moment's pause, Baekhyun sighed, "You know what, forget it." The line went dead.

Jongdae groaned, slipping his phone back in his pocket as his brother approached him. "That was Baekhyun? Baekbeom's little brother?"

"How do you plan to help him?" Jongdae ignored his brother's questions. "If you don't already have an idea, then go back to where you were hiding."

"Dad said I could help open the case back up. He hasn't necessarily explained everything to me, but I trust him."

Jongdae pursed his lips as he set his bike against the wall. He turned around to face his brother, reaching out and pulling one of Jongdeok's ears. Jongdeok was real. His brother that he longed for to return had finally return, but why was he feeling... sick? Jongdae couldn't explain it, but the sight of Jongdeok somehow made him feel as if everything was going to crash downhill.

Unlike Jongdae, Mr. and Mrs. Kim greeted Jongdeok with open arms and tearful eyes. Unlike Jongdae, they stayed by his side.

Jongdae propped the window open, gazing into the night sky. Climbing into bed, he turned off the lamp, burying his body under the blankets. He dozed off until about an hour later when there was a knock at the door.

"Jongdae?"

Eyes still shut, Jongdae dared not to make any movement. Jongdeok stood outside his brother's door, his hand resting on the door knob. He hadn't imagined their reunion to go the way it did. Jongdae was so cold and different... Jongdeok almost didn't recognize him.

"I'm sorry I wasn't a good brother."

Tiny droplets trickled down Jongdae's eyes the harder he tried to push everything away, the harder he tried to push his brother away.

You're right outside my door, but I can't bring myself to open it.
    
---

The next day, Baekhyun noticed Jongdae's lack of concern. It wasn't difficult to miss. Being who he was, Baekhyun said nothing, even pretending not to notice or care. He rather enjoyed the quiet, anyhow. And he was still a little pissed about Jongdae's rejection from the previous day.

You'll be at my front door quick as lightning, my .

In fact, it seemed everyone was lost in their own world.

Then Baekhyun remembered the dinner. Turning around in his seat, he tapped Jongdae's desk, "Hey." When the brunet slowly raised his head and their eyes met, Baekhyun asked, "You're coming to the dinner tonight, right?" The brunet nodded and resumed writing on his paper.

Why so silent? Did something happen?

Baekhyun only found out later that evening when his mother announced that there were four guests coming for dinner -- Mr. Kim, Mrs. Kim, Jongdae, and Jongdeok.

That must be why he rejected me.

But the raven-haired boy was puzzled. If Jongdeok was back, shouldn't Jongdae be happy? He remembered Jongdae was moping about Jongdeok in the early days of their friendship.

The Byun family was busy in the kitchen when the door bell rang. Mrs. Byun gestured for her husband to go. Mr. Byun immediately glanced at Baekhyun and the young man silently cursed under his breath for looking up, "Get the door, why don't you?"

With a huff, Baekhyun got up to answer the front door. But before he opened the door for his guests, he straightened his back and performed a quick breathing exercise. Baekhyun opened the door and greeted his guests with a wide smile, "Good evening."

His smile slightly faltered when his eyes landed on the unfamiliar face.

That must be Jongdeok.

Everyone gathered around the dinner table, Jongdae seated between his father and Baekhyun. Orignally, Jongdeok was to be seated beside his brother, but one look from the younger Kim brother and Mr. Kim was forced to intervene. Even Baekhyun noticed the lightning shooting from Jongdae's eyes. As everyone began eating and chatting, Baekhyun felt as if he would lose his mind if Jongdae didn't stop shaking beside him. He wasn't used to Jongdae being so... tense and upset. Reluctantly, Baekhyun gently touched the brunet's shaking knee. "Can you relax a bit?" Jongdae stopped shaking his leg, something in his chest winding and unwinding. With a quick apology under his breath, he resumed eating.

"Jongdeok," Mrs. Byun smiled from across the table, "I remember you at Baekbeom's graduation. You were the one who kindly took pictures for us." Surprised, Jongdeok nodded. He hadn't expected her to remember him at all.

Mrs. Byun was dying to throw herself at the young man and ask him the questions running through her mind.

What if he knows? What if he's just keeping it a secret?

Mr. Byun lightly kicked his wife's foot. Jongdeok was their guest. They were having a dinner with friends. For all they knew, Jongdeok could be innocent. Mrs. Byun couldn't simply interrogate and accuse Jongdeok of something he didn't do.

The two high school students finished eating before everyone else. After cleaning up their dishes they sat together in the living room, allowing silence to speak for them. Baekhyun took out his phone and texted Jongdae.

Are you okay?

The brunet gave a single nod.

"Jongdae," Baekhyun sighed, "what's wrong? Aren't you happy you finally get to see your brother?"

"I honestly thought I would be, but I just feel angry, Baekhyun. I-I don't-- I don't know how to explain it." Jongdae sat back into the cushions of the couch, eyes closed. "I'm sorry. I came over to help you but instead I'm the one feeling like crap."

Baekhyun frowned, about to speak when Jongdeok approached them. Baekhyun smiled at the older male, "Hello."

Jongdeok smiled back and sat down, "How are you Baekhyun?"

"I'm doing well thanks to your brother. He won't ever seem to leave me alone, it's rather annoying sometimes," Baekhyun laughed as he gently slapping the brunet beside him. Jongdeok, a prime witness of his younger brother's caring nature, joined in on the laughter.

Jongdae cringed inwardly at his brother's laugh. Too long ago it was that he last heard it.

Why do I feel this way? All this time I thought I missed him... maybe I really didn't.

---

"They're not wild... are they?" Kyungsoo asked, slipping his fists into his jacket pocket. He didn't have much experience with children and didn't want to offend anyone.

Jongdae rolled his eyes, pressing the doorbell to the Gu family household. "For one, Dongbin is a high school student, a first year not much younger than you. Maybe you're even born in the same year, I can't remember. And Sooyeon is an angel, you'll love her."

The two awaited outside in the morning chill until the front door opened. Mr. Gu blinked at Jongdae and Kyungsoo before finally remembering Jongdae was inviting a friend over to help babysit. He smiled and allowed them entry into his home, "Come on in, you'll get sick standing out in the cold."

The two high school boys stepped into the warmth of the home, both sighing in relief as they removed their shoes and shrugged off their jackets. A sweet aroma suddenly filled their nostrils and their mouths began to water. Mr. Gu chuckled as he observed the two, quickly disappearing into the kitchen. Before Jongdae could take two steps forward, Sooyeon ran out from the kitchen with a plate of small custard-filled bread. She held it up to her two babysitters with a wide smile, "I helped Daddy make it! Try it, try it!" Her eyes flickered past Jongdae to Kyungsoo and she hesitated.

"Oh! Sooyeon," Jongdae touched Kyungsoo's shoulder, "this is Do Kyungsoo."

He's... beautiful.

Her cheeks pink, Sooyeon stepped a little closer to the boy with the red hair, "Hello Mr. Kyungsoo. Won't you try a custard bread?"

At Jongdae's nudge, Kyungsoo chuckled nervously and took one, "Thank you Sooyeon."

The little girl giggled and held out the plate to Jongdae, "You take one too, Daedae!" Kyungsoo smirked, side-glancing at his friend's nickname. Sooyeon led the two into the living room where she set the plate down on the coffee table, "Dongbin has tutoring later, so after he leaves with Kai and Sehunnie, it will be just us." She stole a glance at Kyungsoo before darting away down the hall.

Mrs. Gu came down the staircase wearing a formal, navy blue dress, her hair styled in a neat bun. She smiled at the two young men, "Good morning. I hope it isn't a bother for you two to watch my children. We are always grateful for your help."

Mr. Gu smiled at his wife, an arm sliding behind her back, "We will be back around noon. Until then, please take care of our little Sooyeon and our Dongbin."

A couple minutes later, after the married couple left, Sooyeon emerged from the hallway dragging a large bag. She opened the bag and took out her dolls and plushies, setting them down in a neat and orderly fashion against the bottom of the couch. Jongdae flipped through the TV channels as Kyungsoo observed Sooyeon in silence. Reaching for her new turtle plushie, she handed it to the red-haired boy, "You can play with him. Sehunnie got this for me last week. I haven't given him a name yet, you can name him for me if you want." She went to retrieve a green dinosaur and showed it to Kyungsoo, "Daedae bought this for me a long time ago. His name is Rawr." As Sooyeon played with her toys, Jongdae and Kyungsoo were obligated to join her.

"I don't see why it's so hard to babysit by yourself," Kyungsoo said to Jongdae once Sooyeon retreated to the bathroom.

Jongdae chuckled nervously, "Well, the place kind of gives me the creeps. Don't you feel it?"

"That's cause our place is haunted," a voice said, startling the two babysitters. Dongbin flashed a small smile, "I think there's a ghost in our attic."

Kyungsoo's eyes widened before shooting a dark look at his friend, "You're trying to kill me, aren't you?" His expression quickly softened once little Sooyeon skipped into the living room. She paused, looking from boy to boy to boy before finally deciding to look at her brother.

Sooyeon scurried to Dongbin and whispered to him, although Jongdae and Kyungsoo caught every word. "Did you tell them about the ghost?"

"Should we go say hi?" Kyungsoo asked, getting up and stretching. The other three stared at him as if he were insane. In the end the mission was abandoned while the four sat in the living room watching a TV show.

After an hour passed, Jongdae turned to Sooyeon who was seated in between him and Kyungsoo, "Are you hungry yet, Sooyeonnie?" She shook his head and Jongdae proceeded to ask Dongbin, but the younger boy claimed he already ate. The eldest of the four sighed; the Gu children may not have been hungry, but he was. "What about you, Kyungsoo?"

Before Kyungsoo could reply, the doorbell rang. Dongbin bolted up and raced to the front door. Voices filled the air and before long, Dongbin shouted, "I'm leaving with the guys for tutoring! Bye!"

Jongdae decided he wanted to eat, so he checked the fridge. "Hey guys! How about I make us all ramen, you okay with that?"

"Yeah," the other two responded in unison.

Sooyeon added, "Do you remember where the stuff is, Daedae?"

It was Jongdae's turn to say, "Yeah."

A pout formed on Jongdae's lips as we watched the contents swirl in the pot. It was taking too long. He was too hungry. Deciding the noodles were soft enough, he turned off the stove, but caught sight of something in his peripheral vision.

A shadow.

Jongdae shouted in surprise when someone touched his shoulders and shouted, "Boo!" His heart rate increasing, Jongdae realized it was only Kyungsoo. He punched the younger male as he struggled to calm himself.

"What's wrong with you? I'm cooking here!" Jongdae snapped.

"Yeah, you're cooking all right," Kyungsoo smirked, stepping away. He helped Sooyeon set the table for three while Jongdae brought the pot to the center table, the brunet's heart still pounding furiously in his chest. After eating, the three crowded in the living room and built a fort. Time passed by faster than they realized and soon, it was time for the babysitters to leave. Accepting their monetary payment, Jongdae and Kyungsoo said goodbye to Sooyeon. Frowning, she walked them to the door.

"Soosoo, will you be back next time with Daedae?" Sooyeon blinked up at the red-haired boy.

Kyungsoo chuckled, "Of course."

Sooyeon whipped out her pinky, "Pinky promise?"

Dang it, don't make me...

Kyungsoo knelt down before her and stuck out his pinky, "Pinky promise."

The two slowly walked away before Jongdae burst into laughter. "Sooyeon has a crush on you. It's so cute. You just promised to help me babysit next time, don't forget. She'll be extremely heart-broken."

Scoffing, Kyungsoo replied, "At least she likes me, I don't see her crushing on you."

The two parted ways as they went off to do their own schedules. Because it was such a nice weather, Kyungsoo called some of his friends over to the river, but only two responded -- Chanyeol and Ken. Kyungsoo and Chanyeol arrived around the same time, choosing a nice, shady location to sit under.

"Hey Kyungsoo, do you know Noh Raehyuk?" Chanyeol asked. Kyungsoo nodded. "Do you happen to know what happened between him and Baekhyun?" Kyungsoo shook his head. With a sigh, Chanyeol brushed his bangs away from his eyes, "Well, I'm trying to dig up Baekhyun and Jaehwa's past and it seems Raehyuk is connected."

"Just leave them alone," Kyungsoo responded as he scrolled through his phone. "Why do you have to be so nosy?"

"Excuse me, but Baekhyun is my best friend and Jaehwa is my girlfriend."

"So what?" Kyungsoo challenged, looking up. "Are you asking to choose a side? Break up with Jaehwa and stay friends with Baekhyun, or sever your friendship with Baekhyun and stay with Jaehwa? Don't venture into murky waters, Chanyeol. If you dig too deep, someone's going to get hurt."

Chanyeol threw his hands up in the air in frustration before clawing at his hair and groaning loudly, "Ugh! I don't know what to do in this situation! I can't just ignore their hatred, Baek's already getting sick and tired of me! Haven't you noticed the way he spends so much time with Jongdae lately?"

Kyungsoo nodded. Of course he had, Jongdae was his friend and he had noticed the empty space that Jongdae occupied in his life, the delayed messages and phone calls. It wasn't terrible, but when one was used to instant replies it was difficult to wait an hour or two.

"Are you jealous?" Kyungsoo raised a brow. "Relax, Baekhyun can have as many friends as he wants."

Chanyeol lowered his voice and asked in a serious tone, "Jongdae isn't gay is he?" Kyungsoo immediately shook his head. "Are you sure?"

"My god Chanyeol, why do you keep asking that?"

"Because... I like Jongdae and I don't want him to get hurt. Baekhyun might break his heart, you know how Baekhyun is. He doesn't really think of others' emotions before his, at least not until it's too late."

Does Chanyeol actually believe Jongdae is gay?

The red-haired boy nodded wordlessly to the brunet and the conversation ceased.

Chanyeol propped his elbow on the table, his chin resting in the palm of his hand, his eyes scanning his surroundings. He spotted an elderly couple slowly walking along the river, a small smile dancing on his lips. Chanyeol loved seeing old couples, it was cute. He hoped to grow old with someone that meant the world to him; he hoped everyone had a special partner to grow old with.

Kyungsoo noticed the lost daze of his friend but kept his thoughts to himself. At least Chanyeol wasn't talking to him.

---

Jongdae had spent a good ten minutes at the jewelry section of the store trying to decide what to get Yoonmi, finally settling on a bird necklace with a couple of inspiring words. He wasn't sure she would even like it. It was tacky, but Jongdae wanted to see if Yoonmi would accept it. In a way, he was testing her.

Jongdae handed the miniature gift-wrapped box to Yoonmi once he deemed it was the appropriate time. "I got this for you, Happy Birthday."

Yoonmi smiled, accepting the gift. She wasn't going to lie, she had hoped Jongdae would get her something. Jongdae paid extra careful attention to Yoonmi's eyes. The words and body could lie, but the eyes couldn't. Jongdeok had taught him that years ago. It was a hit or miss, but Jongdae was pretty good at guessing. Yoonmi slipped her fingers in between Jongdae's, "Thank you, Jongdae."

And it seemed she liked the necklace.