(( Hello all! Angel and I really hope last week's skip didn't seem like a punishment to the 99% of our readers who are sweet-hearts, like the ones who left such encouraging comments last week. We thank you for being so supportive and understanding, and are happy to bring you a nice chapter this week~ ))

Chanyeol had thought that learning to live alone had been difficult after going straight from living with his parents and sister to living with Baekhyun and Kyungsoo; he was quick to realize that relearning how to live with Baekhyun was the real challenge. The apartment suddenly felt crowded, and Baekhyun seemed put off by the fact that Chanyeol didn’t cling to him as he had used to; it was as if they both expected things to go back to the way they had before, but they had forgotten how to get to that point. Sometimes Baekhyun would appear in the kitchen while Chanyeol was cooking to make himself something to eat, and Chanyeol would tense a little and struggle to work around the older, making Baekhyun leave the kitchen until Chanyeol was finished making his own mean – it made eating difficult with the knots that it caused in the younger’s stomach.

On top of that, Baekhyun’s temper hadn’t changed much. The longer his shifts at the make-up store, the higher his stress levels rose, and it caused a knee-jerk reaction in which he would respond in a sharper tone than natural, regretting the way it made the taller flinch. He’s deflate from his irritated puff-ball like state, and then would disappear from the apartment for around an hour. Chanyeol only asked where he went the first time he had gone off, and he replied tiredly with saying he had gone on a walk before flopping on the bed. ‘A walk?’ Chanyeol had echoed and Baekhyun nodded as much as he could without moving much; his legs and lungs burned since his walk had been more like a run. Wonshik had mentioned that he ran to blow off steam and Baekhyun tried it – he wasn’t sure if it made any of his irritation go away, but at least it wore him out to the point that he didn’t have the energy to yell about the little things.

Or anything, really. He wouldn’t be awake for long after he got home, but would wake up several hours later with the realization that he had been changed into sleepwear while he had been asleep, and with how his body lacked the gritty feeling of dried sweat he was pretty sure Chanyeol gave him some kind of a sponge bath while he had been unconscious. The more stressed he was, the longer he went on a run, and the more worried Chanyeol looked when Baekhyun got home. At least he wasn’t bringing up the idea of Baekhyun cheating again.

“Get in the car,” Chanyeol said, tossing a duffle bag onto the brunet’s lap. The other glanced down at it, then back to his mobile.

“Why?”

“Get in the car,” Chanyeol repeated, Baekhyun finally glancing at him. “Don’t ask questions, just do it.” Baekhyun squinted at the younger, then turned away.

“What if I say no?”

“Then I’ll make you.” Baekhyun stood, the duffle bag falling onto the floor as he turned to face that other, bristling. His irritation faltered a little when Chanyeol’s shoulders sagged. “Please, Baekhyun? Just trust me, okay?” Baekhyun let out a small sigh, leaning down to grab the duffle bag, making his way to the door. Chanyeol trailed behind, locking the door before they made their way down to the parking garage under the apartment complex. The younger took the bag he had tossed at Baekhyun, putting it in the trunk while Baekhyun settled in the passenger seat. Once Chanyeol joined him in the car and started the vehicle Baekhyun leaned against his door as much as he could, resting his head against the window as he boredly watched the scenery pass by the car.

Baekhyun checked the time on his mobile every now and again, frowning a little when an hour passed and Chanyeol had yet to explain anything about where they were going or why they were going on a random trip. He glanced over at the black haired male, watching the way his head nodded along with the song drifting out from the speakers, thumbs tapping a beat on the steering wheel, the older’s shoulders relaxing. He shifted so he wasn’t lying against the window as if dragged along against his will, even if that how the situation had started, leaning back against his seat as he let his eyes close, starting to hum along with the next song that started playing. He felt Chanyeol look over at him when he did, keeping his eyes closed as he was sure the younger was starting to crack a smile before he joined Baekhyun, singing along with the radio.

For the first time in a long time, everything felt… right.

“Baek, we’re here,” came Chanyeol’s voice and the brunet felt a slight shake of his shoulder. He had started to feel the light numb feeling of his body before he was pulled from the edge of sleep and he  let out a faint grumble, his head lolling to the other side as if that would change the fact that Chanyeol was trying to wake him up. He heard the other’s chuckle before the other’s lips brushed against his forehead and Baekhyun’s eyes finally opened again, blinking Chanyeol into focus.

“Are you finally going to tell me where ‘here’ is?” he asked, and the other looked out his window, pointing.

“Take a look for yourself,” the other replied, Baekhyun’s eyes closing again long enough for him to stretch a little in his seat. When he opened his eyes again they widened when he read the sign on the building they were parked outside of, attention flashing to Chanyeol as the younger got out of the car. He followed suit, half expecting for Chanyeol to walk past the main door as if they was a joke, slowing a little when Chanyeol made his way into the lobby of the hotel building.

“We have a reservation, under Park Chanyeol,” the younger said to the brightly smiling desk clerk who offered a nod before he moved to the computer and started typing. He pulled out some piece of paper, highlighting a couple of lines before offering it and a pen to Chanyeol, asking for signatures on the lines, exchanging the paper for a pair of room keys once the black haired male had done as he was told.

“Let us know if there’s anything we can do to make your stay more pleasant,” the clerk said before Chanyeol turned to Baekhyun, who still felt confused as to why they were there while he trailed behind the younger to retrieve their things from the back of the car.

“Are you ever going to get around to telling me why we’re here?” Baekhyun asked, earning a shrug from the other. “What’s wrong with the apartment we live at? Why did we have to drive almost an hour and a half to stay at some hotel?” Baekhyun asked as Chanyeol pressed the call button on the elevator before shifting his attention to the brunet.

“Why not?” Chanyeol asked, Baekhyun’s face scrunching up in a small pout.

“That’s not good enough of an answer,” Baekhyun mumbled as he got into the elevator with the other who offered no further comment. The elevator eventually came to a stop, the doors opening with a ding, and they made a couple of turns as they walked through the hall they were let out on. Baekhyun almost walked into Chanyeol when he came to a sudden stop outside one of the doors, unlocking it and holding the door open for Baekhyun to enter first. When he did, he only got a few steps into the room before the duffle bag slipped from his shoulder, his mouth hanging open in awe. 

From the beige striped carpet to the perfectly matching wall paper, the peaceful scent from the fresh flowers on the side table beside a black sectional couch that was scooted back against a full wall mirror. Fully stocked kitchen with a regularly sized fridge rather than the mini one most hotels came with. A bed that Baekhyun was sure wouldn’t have been able to fit in their small room back at the apartment, a deep and long bathtub that looked like Chanyeol would actually fit in if he wanted to take a bath...

“You… this had to have cost a fortune. How did you…” Baekhyun stared at the other as words were unable to describe the room, as well as his shock, and he earned another shrug from Chanyeol, watching one of the other’s hands coming up to rub the back of his neck.

“I didn’t really go out and do much after we broke up… And now that we’re back together I only paid half as much in rent as I did for a while… We’ve both been really busy… So the spare money that I used to use on going out to eat has just been saving up…” he started, looking to Baekhyun as the older closed most of the distance between the two of them. “I can see it… I can feel it, too, the way you’ve slowly been getting more and more stressed, but I never seem to know what to say to help you relax… When I try I only seem to make it worse and then you disappear for an hour before you come home and pass out. So I thought, why not take him to the beach? How can anyone be stressed when they feel the sun against their skin and the waves washing over their feet?”

“Chanyeol, that sounds great and all, but what about, you know, my job? I’m supposed to be at work the next three days.”

“I took care of that.” Baekhyun stared at him for a moment.

“You did what?”

“I went in and talked to Jei. She said she would cover your shifts,” Chanyeol replied, Baekhyun shaking his head.

“So you just walked in when I wasn’t there and told her about this trip you planned and she agreed without any complaint?” he asked, earning a small nod.

“She still feels bad about spraying you with perfume… she believes that she’s the cause of the fight that broke us up, so she thought this would be her way of making it up to us,” the younger explained, Baekhyun wrapping his arms tightly around his own waist.

“That wasn’t her fault, we both know that I’m the one who exploded instead of just explaining why I smelt like perfume,” Baekhyun said softly, tensing a little when Chanyeol pulled him against his chest before relaxing in the younger’s arms.

“I told her that neither of us blamed her, and she said she wanted to make things right so she covered your shifts,” he explained, earning a nod from the brunet. “Now, come on, let’s go get something to eat,” Chanyeol suggested, running one hand down the other’s arm to take his hand, leading him from the hotel.

They had a light dinner at one of the restaurants that was directly on the beach, Chanyeol noticing the way that Baekhyun kept staring out the window they were seated beside, watching the tide come in and go back out. When he suggested walking along the beach after they were done eating he noticed the older perk up and try to hide a smile before nodding, pulling a smile across Chanyeol’s lips in the process.

“It’s cold!” Baekhyun whined as the first wave rushed over his bare feet, causing him to almost drop his shoes into the water as Chanyeol chuckled.

“The sun’s setting soon, so that’s probably part of it,” he reasoned. “We can come back tomorrow when it’s warmer if you want,” he offered, watching the way Baekhyun pouted as another wave rolled over his feet, and he made his way over to the other, placing a hand on his shoulder to pull him close. “We don’t have to leave until the day after tomorrow, so we’ll have plenty of time to explore and hang out on the beach, okay? The last thing I want to come from this trip is for you to get sick because I dragged you out into the water when it’s cold.”

“I think this is why people go to beaches in the summer and not the beginning of spring,” Baekhyun pointed out, earning a shrug from Chanyeol.

“I didn’t want to wait that long. You needed a break from the stresses of the real world. I guess we’ll just have to come back in the summer, huh?” he asked. Baekhyun opened his mouth to answer, though it just came out as a squeak as Chanyeol picked him up bridal style, Baekhyun’s arms instinctively wrapping around the black haired male’s neck.