The following days passed quickly, as both Baekhyun and Chanyeol were busy planning. They spent endless hours in Chanyeol’s room preparing, and filled up way too many notebooks with ideas and important notes.

And in the end, with only four days left, it was time for scouting, finding the place where it all would happen. It was a new place each year, so even it the city council wanted to stop them, they couldn’t, because they never knew where Chanyeol and Baekhyun were going to be next.

As Baekhyun and Chanyeol walked down the streets where people were busy preparing for the Summer Festival, Baekhyun found himself looking at girls. He hadn't really been interested in them before, and as he looked at them he wasn't now either, but at least he took notice of them. He didn’t really understand his brain for making him interested now of all times, in the middle of planning with Chanyeol. But nonetheless, his brain insisted that now was the time to become attentive towards them. But everyone was wrong in a way. Too low (he liked girls that weren't too small). Brown hair (he preferred black hair, obviously). Potato-nose (Chanyeol had that kind of nose a girl should have. Why couldn't the girls have a Yeol-nose?).

He sighed. If he was ever going to find someone, he would probably have to move out to one of the big cities. In the end, maybe he would find someone at university.

"Chanyeol?" he asked the taller beside him as he put his hands in is pockets, walking leisurely along the sidewalk.

Chanyeol, who had been busy examining the buildings to find somewhere to fit a thousand balloons, turned to Baekhyun curiously. "What?"

Baekhyun considered if he should ask at all for a couple of seconds, as love and girls hadn't really been a topic between them before. But he decided at they were just as okay with clearing up that none of them liked another person, so they could continue their lives as normal. Once, long ago, they had promised each other that they would always be together, forever. And that promise still stood clear in Baekhyun's mind, even it was so many years ago. Chanyeol and him were one soul with two separate bodies. As close as brothers, they belonged by each other’s side. It would be cheesy telling Chanyeol this, and Baekhyun swore that he never would, but it was his most honest thoughts. So he jumped into it.

"Do you have someone you like?" he asked casually.

Chanyeol was silent for a couple of seconds, looking weirdly at Baekhyun, like he wondered why he was even asking. His eyebrows crept together with traces of confusion in his eyes, examining Baekhyun's face, looking after signs of whatever was going on. Then he obviously decided that it was nothing, because he turned around again, and kept on going like they had been doing before Baekhyun's question.

"Of course I have," he answered.

And all that had been Baekhyun's world since they were five years old, seemed to disappear. He felt a stab in his heart, and looked at Chanyeol. Hadn't it always been those two? Why was there suddenly another person in their relationship? And how long had it been going on? Had there always been someone else out there for Chanyeol, even if it hadn't for Baekhyun? Was there someone Chanyeol loved more than him? All these questions raced through Baekhyun’s head, making him completely unfocused on what he was actually supposed to do. He knew he didn't own the giant beside him, but he felt as if it wasn't right, having another person there. It was Chanyeol and Baekhyun, Baekhyun and Chanyeol. It was supposed to be like that forever.

For a period of time, nothing was said. Chanyeol walked on like nothing had happened, scribbling down a few things in a small notebook. Baekhyun walked a couple of steps behind, feeling like all his energy as suddenly out of him. It was like he was carrying the whole world on his back, and he felt a sting of something he didn’t usually feel – jealousy. Was he in the process of losing Chanyeol? As Chanyeol walked in front he didn’t notice the painful look on the face of his best friend, or the way he was hunched forwards. Chanyeol was completely oblivious to everything Baekhyun felt.

“Then,” Baekhyun asked through clenched teeth. “Who do you like?” he tried to make it sound normal, and even though he had to press the words out of his mouth, Chanyeol obviously didn’t realize that something was wrong. As the latter rubbed his temples, Baekhyun focused on making himself looking normal as well, like he didn’t care. It turned out to be a wise choice, because in that second, Chanyeol turned to him, so that their faces were only centimetres from each other.

“You’ll know soon enough,” he smiled and turned around again. And what hurt most in Baekhyun’s heart right then, was that it was one of his honest smiles. The ones he only shared with Baekhyun. And so, he wondered if Chanyeol gave theses smiles to the one he liked. Wasn’t Baekhyun as special as he had thought he was?

But he had to find out who Chanyeol liked, before he was told. What if Chanyeol confessed? For some reason, Baekhyun didn’t want it to happen. It might have sounded selfish, but he didn’t want anyone else into their life. Into his and Chanyeol’s life. It was perfectly fine as it was.

“But then, how is the person you like?” Baekhyun asked, trying at least get some information from Chanyeol. He knew almost everyone in the town – maybe he would recognize the one from how Chanyeol described.

Chanyeol hesitated for a moment, but then stopped for a few seconds to let Baekhyun catch up.

“How the person I like is like? Pretty. Very pretty. Beautiful actually. Beautiful eyes even without makeup. Just everything with this person is… perfect. Personality, smile, style. The way we are together, how easily we are around each other. Actually –“ Chanyeol walked in front of Baekhyun, causing him to stop, and almost crash into the taller as they stood face to face. Chanyeol leant against Baekhyun, and he was so close their faces almost touched. “Your eyes are strangely alike,”

Baekhyun tilted his head slightly, raising his eyebrows quizzically. “Our eyes, alike?” he asked, trying to keep his voice from wavering. But it was as tough something was squeezed around his throat, making it hard to breathe, and he almost blew his cover.

Chanyeol nodded. “Strangely alike.” He said, suddenly with a thoughtful look in his eyes. But as fast as it had come, it disappeared.

He quickly faced towards the way they were walking, and pointed to the observatory, which was placed in the middle of the city.

“Anyways. I’ve been thinking. We should use the observatory. We’ll have the opportunity to open the roof so we won’t ruin the surprise, and it’s placed pretty central. It isn’t being used these days, so no one will bother us.” he remarked. As soon as the conversation had started, it came to an end. All the talk about liking people stopped, and the topic was put on ice for the time being.

Baekhyun, who hadn’t even thought about the observatory as a possibility, nodded slowly. It was perfect, after all. Chanyeol really had an eye for these things. But even though they moved onto another topic, he kept their conversation fresh in mind, clinging to Chanyeol’s words and strange actions. He could never forget them, now.

“And then we should place the speakers evenly on the square outside the city hall, so everyone will hear us.” Chanyeol kept pointing things out, from where they were going to place the speakers, to how they would light up the fireworks. It didn’t seem like anyone were noticing them as they walked through the crowd of people preparing, even if they should. One should’ve thought they would have learnt to keep an eye open for the two of them, as they followed the same routine year after year, but no one seemed to get the pattern of their actions. It didn’t really bother neither Chanyeol nor Baekhyun though, as they would need to come up with another way to plan, which would only be time-consuming and bothersome.

And so, with only four days left, they continued getting their master plan right.

Chanyeol had never really realized how much helium cost until he and Baekhyun bought enough to fill up a thousand balloons worth of it the day before the Festival.

“I’ll live on soup for the first year at university,” Baekhyun announced as he filled up the last balloons with helium, and then let go of them. He tiredly fell back on the floor in a star-shape, and stared at the ceiling for a while. Chanyeol, who was mainly in charge of setting up the fireworks in a safe way, looked at Baekhyun. “I won’t even have money for that,” he replied, “I’ll have to live on rice for my whole life. Maybe, if I’m lucky, I’ll get some carrots to the rice during holidays.”

This made Baekhyun laugh despite being exhausted. “We can combine our money, and we can buy salad once in a while,” he grinned.

Chanyeol smiled and let out a small laugh. “Maybe even a couple of onions,” he said and lay down beside the elder, who turned his head to him.

“Something tells me we’ll have an enjoyable time at university,” Baekhyun laughed and looked up at the balloons that coloured the other so grey roof of the observatory. They were in different colours – green, blue, yellow, orange, purple, pink… everything one could imagine.

And then it went quiet. None of them really knew how to continue the conversation, and Chanyeol ended up just looking at Baekhyun, who closed his eyes and let out a happy sigh.

‘This,’ Chanyeol thought. ‘Is one of the things I love the most about us,’

They didn’t need to say anything at all times. Sometimes, like now, it just went quiet. And it didn’t bother either of them, as it was a comfortable silence. They didn’t feel the need to having to fill in the quietness, as distant friends or people one were uncomfortable with felt like. They gave each other room to think alone, even though they were together.

“Hey, Chanyeol?” Baekhyun asked after a while, staring at the coloured ceiling as he said it. He talked in a low voice, and in a rather dreaming manner. It was completely different from how he usually talked, but Chanyeol heard it every now and then, and was used to it. Actually, he thought it was a nice change. People usually saw one side of Baekhyun, the bubbly and mischievous one. But Chanyeol’s favourite side of Baekhyun, was the one people never saw. The one reserved for Chanyeol only, even if Baekhyun didn’t notice himself. The one he was showing now.

Chanyeol turned his head to Baekhyun. “What?” he asked in a soft voice.

“Do you think this will be okay? I mean, will everything go as planned?” he looked concerned. Baekhyun usually never looked the slightest concerned, like he had all the confidence in the world. It was ages since Chanyeol had seen this the last time. Maybe even years.

He smiled reassuringly and slipped his hand into Baekhyun’s. “Hey, Baekkie,” he whispered. “Your plans are great. Every time you come up with a new one, I find myself overwhelmed by your genius all over again. Your never fail to amaze me. And I think that this idea is your best yet. And I am happy to take part in it, you know? So you do the creative part. And I’ll plan the practical one. I’m just happy to be able to do this with you, so I’ll do my best to make things go as smoothly as possible. And I can reassure you – it will. I would never let one of your fantastic plans go to waste, you know?” he squeezed Baekhyun’s hand lightly, and let the other boy’s cold palm be warmed by his own.

Baekhyun smiled thankfully at Chanyeol, and Chanyeol felt a recognizable, warm feeling spread in his chest. And all he wanted to do, right in this moment, was to hug Baekhyun and never let go.

The pair was nowhere to be found the next day. They never showed up anywhere, and even though the mayor asked all over town, no one could seem to find them. And this reassured him, as the festival maybe – just maybe – could go as planned, without the interference of the two pranksters. Of course, he had no idea what they had actually planned.

The observatory was located in the middle of the town. And even though it was central and a perfect place to plan a prank, no one seemed to even think about the possibility that the two best friends were hiding inside, laughing to themselves and almost bursting with excitement.

When the clock turned five in the afternoon, Baekhyun sighed. They had been jumping around and let out their excitement for quite a while, but after hours of it they got tired. Time seemed to pass slowly when one waited for something.

“Chanyeoool,” he said for the thousandth time that day.

Both Chanyeol and Baekhyun sat on the roof of the observatory, and looked down on the town. Everyone seemed to be in such a festive mood – no one looked bothered by anything, like their usual struggles and problems had been lifted from their shoulders. It was a nice sight. People looked so much happier during occasions such as this.

“What is it now, Baek?” Chanyeol asked. He had his eyes closed and his face was turned against the sun, as he tried to enjoy the sun as much as possible. It was one of the few days in the year where there wasn’t a cloud on the sky, and the sun shone perfectly – not too bright, but it wasn’t too cold either. It was perfect, so to say. It had been all week, and sometimes he wondered if they were going to get a whole year of rain for this fantastic week.

“I’m bored,” Baekhyun replied, to which Chanyeol didn’t even bother to answer. He had stopped trying to after about the five hundredth time Baekhyun had complained.

“So, what do you wanna do?” he asked after a while, staring up into the nothing. It had been an amazing sight to see all the balloons colour the ceiling inside, but after a certain amount of time it became boring and they sought outside instead.

Baekhyun shook his head. “That’s the problem,” he muttered. “I don’t have the energy to do anything,”

But that wasn’t entirely the truth. He had almost asked Chanyeol about the topic they never had discussed to an end: who Chanyeol liked, who was stirring their relationship. The words had been on the tip of his tongue, on the back of his lungs. But he couldn’t muster up the courage anyways, and they had been stuck in his throat. Instead, he’d complained about being bored. Baekhyun knew it was unfair, as Chanyeol couldn’t help him with not being bored, because he probably was suffering from the same lack of enthusiasm himself. But Baekhyun wanted to know. Baekhyun wanted to understand. For some reason he had gone with this everlasting, painful feeling just below his ribcage for days, and he knew Chanyeol caused it. It had never been like this before, and they had happily been together. He had always thought that Chanyeol had been the more oblivious one, as he tended not to see things or understand some of Baekhyun’s more complicated jokes (even though no one else did either), but maybe he was the one being oblivious? What was he not seeing, what everyone else seemed to get? He hated admitting it, but he felt jealous. Extremely jealous. It had been him and Chanyeol since the dawn of time, and he had no intention of letting that go now. He was his happiest with him. And he wanted to be happy forever.

“Chanyeol?” Baekhyun said once again. But this time it wasn’t a loud, complaining tone. It wasn’t his usually bubbly voice, or even the serious one, which he used on rare occasions. It was a low whisper of sincerity, a beg for an answer, so lonely that the voice almost couldn’t recreate the feeling.

Even if Baekhyun didn’t notice himself, Chanyeol did and turned his head in the older one’s direction. He didn’t ask if something was wrong – he simply looked at Baekhyun, waiting for an explanation. And it came, soon after.

“How does it feel?” Baekhyun asked in a low voice. “Being in love, that is?” The words weren’t forced, but they didn’t roll off his tongue either. They were strained. He had wanted to ask for days, because just he didn’t know. Never had he seen the necessity of love, because he had Chanyeol. But if Chanyeol was being taken away from him, what did he do then? Suddenly the breeze felt too cold, and the sun’s warmth too hot. Baekhyun wanted to wrap his jacket tighter around him, as well as he wanted to take it off. Why did everything have to change so fast?

Chanyeol took his time, as he turned his head into its original position. He smiled a peaceful smile as he closed his eyes and let the warmth soothe him. “I don’t think love is something you simply feel,” he said slowly after a while. “I don’t think you can point out the exact feeling, say ‘oh, so this is love!’ and then go on with your life. It’s something you feel in your bones, burning like you’ve caught a fever. It’s in the pit of your stomach when you go to bed, making you unable to sleep because of the pain. It is fear so great it leaves you awake whole nights in desperation because you don’t want to lose what you have. It carves its way through you body, leaving invisible scars on your skin. It’s jealousy to kill for, it’s pain to die for. Especially when it is unrequited. But at the same time, it’s wonderful. It gives you the feeling of euphoria, just being there. It makes you want to scream out, it makes you what to whisper. It’s deep. Like it reaches through your body and down into the earth, all the way into the core. It gives you so much pain, so much that the happiness is nothing compared to it. I think that is what love is. It’s painful. It’s hard. It makes you stupid, because when you’re happy because of it you actually think all those painful moments are worth it.”

Baekhyun didn’t answer. Partly because he didn’t know how to respond, partly because he didn’t want to. Partly because he felt his tongue twist and partly because he knew the descriptions and how they felt. Jealousy to kill for. Yes, he certainly knew.