Do Kyungsoo could feel his heart quicken as the photograph slowly comes to life, the color slowly seeping in and giving the image its due nature.  It is always like this when he starts developing the pictures he takes while on a trip, or on a stroll across the park.  Inside the black room, where he feels most comfortable, all emotions turn into tangible things; all he was and all that he is, and hopefully all that he will be are either slowly being dried, or carefully placed inside a black photo book he got as a gift some years ago.  Old pictures, dating back as far as the first time he took hold of a professional camera, are placed inside.  When he feels nostalgic or even just a little bit sentimental, he would open said book and scan through its pages.

Now was no different.  As the colors slowly emerge from the photograph, he could see the outlines of a tree, swaying softly in the light breeze they experienced earlier; and he could almost feel the moment, as if he were there right here, right now.  The breeze brought some leaves to detach from their branches, falling, falling to the ground.  Kyungsoo also captured the moment.  As the picture further developed, he could now see the luscious growth of grass, the trees making a huge shadow against the greenery as if making a shield against the light.  It was nothing short of majestic, and he could feel his heart swell with pride.

"Do Kyungsoo I know you're in there.  Come out!"  Baekhyun, his friend slash worst critique slash the man who gave him the contact information of the company he works for at the moment, bangs on the door.  Kyungsoo, emerging from the black room sweaty, opens the door and sees a party-ready Baekhyun dressed in tight-fitting maroon pants, loose sleeveless shirt and a jacket plus boots, complete with black glasses.

"Do you want me to cut up a portion of my curtains so you can at least cover up your sides?"  Kyungsoo says as a greeting, looking at the other from top to bottom.  Baekhyun lets out a cross between a snort and a scoff then proceeds to enter the room.  The owner of the apartment unit lets out a sigh and closes the door.  This is going to be one long night.

Kyungsoo's whole pad is immaculate.  The kitchen is scrubbed free from any dirt, as no one but Kyungsoo is allowed inside; not even his parents or his older sister.  Sofas are regularly vacuumed, pillows weekly bathed under the sun, blankets washed every two or three weeks— Kyungsoo could actually count the times he'd let the room run wild.  Baekhyun sat in the newly- vacuumed sofa and lifts his feet with no boot on, much to the relief a clean freak Kyungsoo.  If not for the job, he swore he could have killed Baekhyun there and then for barging inside.

No one could have missed the underlying tone of his friend when he said that the room "needed some time on its own to, you know, wreck havoc again."

"Where is it again this time, Baekhyun?  I'm busy processing pictures; it's pretty hard—"

"At 10 pm.  You're processing pictures at 10 pm for a deadline the day after tomorrow, at 5 pm.  Tell me, how many processed pictures are you submitting— fifty?"  Baekhyun says, raising a brow at the other. 

"Better early than late, and late than never."  Kyungsoo reasons out.  "Besides, it's not like it's the only company I'm taking orders from."  Although bound by a contract in the other company, he bargained for him to have 'artistic freedom' and work for projects outside provided the publishing company always comes first; like now.  

"You need to stop being workaholic for a moment, Soo."  Baekhyun sighs and gets to the point. "You need to enjoy too."

"I was actually enjoying in what I was doing until you so gracefully banged the life out of my door."

"That's it."  Baekhyun says, planting his feet on the carpeted floor, curling his toes for a moment before standing up and smiling mischievously, much to the horror of Kyungsoo.  "You're coming with me whether you like it or not.  I'm so done arguing with you."  Without further ado, he walks to Kyungsoo's room and opens the closet; a fuming mad, jaw agape and suddenly powerless Kyungsoo trailing behind.

Thirty minutes later, the photographer sees himself in a pair of white jeans whose existence in his closet was questionable, a blue shirt that he had not seen for the past years, and a black jacket (finally, Kyungsoo thought, something black) that was a gift from his father; ending with white sneakers.  Kyungsoo looks at his friend who wipes away one imaginary tear.

"Can I change?"  Kyungsoo says, hugging his jacket nearer his body.  Baekhyun answers it by grabbing Kyungsoo's keys which was on the table, closing the lights and dragging Kyungsoo out, and locking the door.  He then pockets the keys and smirks lightly as his friend proceeded to mutter a string of curses and frantically get his keys, to no avail.

"You're coming with me because I'm the only one who can open your door."  Baekhyun says, smiling.  Kyungsoo, resigning to his fate, walks to the stairs and starts walking down.  The other looks at the unit door and bites down a laugh, unlocking it again before chasing his friend into the night.

--

“Tell me: why are we here again?"  Kyungsoo shouts on Baekhyun's ear.  Before they even entered the bar, the vibrations from the music inside made Kyungsoo's head throb.  As they step inside, Baekhyun immediately becomes lost in the moment and shouts a "Have fun!" to a still bewildered Kyungsoo before sauntering to a couple of (obviously) gay men at the table across the bar.  Shaking his head, Kyungsoo goes on to grab a drink from the bar.

"One Singapore Sling, please."  Cocktails first before anything, Kyungsoo thinks.  Just so he could feel he was in a bar, left by a very bad excuse for a friend.  As the bartender mixes the drink, the customer looks around and sighs.

He has never stepped foot inside a bar for almost three years now following his breakup with a long-time partner.  Weird, but unlike other people who immediately go to the bar and drown their sorrows with beer or other liquor, Kyungsoo took it to himself to not do the same; instead he produced more pictures than usual.  He gave it a more realistic and darker approach— but still, he produced.  That was what was important.

“Sir, your drink’s done.”  The bartender says before shifting his attention to another customer who clearly isn’t as sober as Kyungsoo is.  He takes the glass, puts his payment and swivels, looking at the people dancing on the floor.   Sipping on the drink, he almost walks away when someone leans one elbow on the bar, facing him.

“You look like the guy from my dreams.  Can you kiss me once, to prove I’m not dreaming?”  The guy says, smirking lightly.  Kyungsoo looks—glares would be a better term—at the other and calmly sips his drink.  When he garners enough courage, he faces the other and replies.

“You don’t need a kiss.  I’m your worst nightmare, and your best dream.”  He smirks back.  For someone outside the flirting scene for quite some time now, he was a little bit rusty—but at least, it wasn’t stupidly bad.  The other guy chuckles, seemingly amused.  He places a bill on the counter and orders a shot of whiskey before retorting back.

“If you’re my worst nightmare, then I won’t mind dying in my sleep.”  To the bartender, he said: “Oh, and make that two shots.”

Kyungsoo smirks back and drinks his cocktail all in one gulp before facing back the bar.  “I don’t want you dying in your sleep, because then how would we meet again?”  Just then, the whiskey shots found its way in front of Kyungsoo and the other guy, making both their eyes wide in pleasant surprise.

“One shot for meeting?”  The other guy said, raising his shot glass.  Kyungsoo, smiling widely, raised his glass too.

“One shot for meeting.”

They clink their glasses and Kyungsoo slightly grimaces as the warm, quite sour liquid grazes his throat, leaving a burning sensation.  He clears his throat, feeling the warmth spread through his body which had this calming effect on him.  They simultaneously sigh in relief and laugh, now more comfortable with each other.   Kyungsoo looks at the guy he just had a shot of whiskey with, skin a little bit tanned but still nice to the eye, lips a plump pink and eyes that gazed the dance floor with such intensity.   They were a little close now, elbows touching each other and voices almost down to normal.

“Why don’t you go there; have some fun?”  Kyungsoo says after a quiet minute of looking at the dance floor and back to the guy beside him.   The guy smiles, a quite genuine smile at that, and looks back at him.

 “Well, let’s just say it’s because I don’t want to leave such a find like you here alone.  It would be my greatest regret.”   He responds, nodding.

“Do you think we won’t meet again?”  Kyungsoo pushes the question.

“Honestly?  That would be nice, but I doubt if life gives us the chance to meet again.  If I don’t keep you beside me now, I think I won’t get to keep you beside me for always.”   He looks at Kyungsoo with an expression that border being serious and joking.

“Meeting you was by chance, keeping you beside me by choice.”  Kyungsoo sums it up cleanly, and the other nods in consent. 

They go on like this for a while, throwing cheesy pick-up lines at each other, the photographer keeping a watchful eye on his friend who was now comfortably someone’s hair and being too close for comfort.  It was all he can do not to drag his friend out into the night

“Are you by any chance a book?”  When Kyungsoo answers why, the other continues.  “Well, because you’re something that’s easy to read, hard to understand—and even harder to forget.”  The recipient of the pick-up line cannot help it—he sputters on his drink and puts it down, laughing quite loudly.  Tanned guy laughs a little and drinks on his cocktail.

“Well,” Kyungsoo says when he regained his composure but not before a fit of light laughter ensuing first, “I sure am not a book, but can I ask you: are you my bed?”

“If I answer with a yes, will I get laid?”  The rather ridiculous answer makes Kyungsoo laugh again, shaking his head.  “Wow, you’re straightforward.”  He comments, eliciting a chuckle from the other guy. 

“The only way to go; isn’t it?  Why am I your bed again?” 

“Because at the end of the day, it’s being with you that makes everything worth it.”

A silent moment suddenly envelopes them then:  “Well damn that’s better.”

“Do I win now?”  Kyungsoo chuckles, looks at the guy again and smiles.

“You already won my heart, that’s something.”  There is a hint of seriousness in the other’s voice which made Kyungsoo’s heart stop for a minute.  Someone nudged his ribs and he suddenly feels relieved when he hears an “I’m kidding, hey” from the other person. 

“I really think height’s got to do with this.”  Visibly taller than Kyungsoo guy says. 

“Are you insulting my height?”  Kyungsoo says indignantly.  Yes, he is shorter than most males, but that doesn’t mean he’s ready to accept height jokes from someone he just met.   It was, is, and will always be his most sensitive topic to be discussed.

“No, no—no offense to your height, really, but I think that’s the main reason why you fitted quite perfectly in my heart.” 

“Good save on that answer.”  Kyungsoo downs the last of his cocktail and lets out a satisfied sound.  “If not, I would’ve pushed you out to the train tracks.  Which reminds me—are you quite possibly a race car driver?”

“I wish I was.  But why ask it?”  The other guy chuckles at the question, smiling slightly and shakes his head as an afterthought.

“My heart is technically over speeding now and it’s only you who can steer it back on track.”  Kyungsoo says, making his comrade laugh in response.

“Are you a photographer?”  The other asks before looking at Kyungsoo whose eyes slightly widen in alarm because how did this guy know?  Being the poker-faced person that he is (according to Baekhyun), though, he asks why.

“Because I’m not, but I can picture us together.   It looks perfect.”

Kyungsoo breathes a sigh of relief.  Just a pick-up line is all.  He looks around for Baekhyun and sees his friend comfortably sitting on the lap of someone he just met.  When he swivels his head to face the parking lot, just outside the door—

“May I invite you to a glass of beer somewhere not here?”  His new-found acquaintance asks. 

This is not going to be good.

Kyungsoo could see that someone was emerging from a pretty familiar car, with a very familiar posture and height.  Hell, everyone could literally see him coming.  It is Baekhyun’s recent ex and seeing the latter like this—wasted, drunk, and on the verge of going home with another boy after just two and a half months, was something Kyungsoo dreaded.

“I guess I can’t—I better go.”  Leaving a bill on the counter, Kyungsoo immediately stands up and pushes through the crowd, reaching Baekhyun in top speed and tugging on his arm.

Slurred words entered the consciousness of the small guy and he continued on tugging, shouting “He’s here!  We need to go, he’s here!”

“It’s not like stupidhead’s here, right?”  Baekhyun said, referring to the tall guy who was now walking towards the bar.  Kyungsoo nodded frantically. 

“He’s here, alright.”   When this reaches Baekhyun’s mind, small eyes suddenly widened and he almost spills the drink on hand when he tries to stand up properly.

Muttering curses, Kyungsoo looks at the door and sees the tall guy now looking around, as if finding someone—or a table, at least.  His horror suddenly turns real as they find a table directly beside Baekhyun’s.    

“Bye, boys, it was nice chatting with you.”  Baekhyun drawls as Kyungsoo drapes his jacket over the other boy’s head to keep him concealed.  Bowing both their heads, they maneuver around the dance floor, hoping not to have contact with the other party.  Luckily they make it past the dance floor unscathed and as they pass by the bar, Kyungsoo cannot help but take a look at the guy who just out the hidden cheese he never knew he had.  The guy was looking at him, face smirking a little but a hint of sadness in the eyes.  Mouthing a “see you”, Kyungsoo and the still woozy Baekhyun head out to the streets of Seoul.

“Well that was by far the most hellish situation I’ve been into.”  Baekhyun slurs as he walks beside a huffing Kyungsoo holding him for dear life.

“Thank you, Kyungsoo.  Oh, don’t mention it.”  Kyungsoo says like a monologue, thoughts going back to the guy at the bar.  The person beside him stumbles on some unseen crack on the sidewalk and thoughts go back to now.

Yes, Kyungsoo, thoughts should always be about now.

The smaller guy practically carries Baekhyun and walks all the way to his apartment.  Keys are usually found under the mat and Kyungsoo easily places Baekhyun down on the couch, now sleeping like a tired dog.  He also gets his keys back, so grabbing a pen and some sticky notes, he decides to play a prank.   He writes something on the piece of paper, chuckles and places it on Baekhyun’s forehead where the latter will see when he wakes up and goes to the bathroom, groggy and nauseous.  He will then be forced to barrage Kyungsoo who will not answer.

Your stupidhead saw you.

He goes back in his pad and Kyungsoo feels that there’s a tiny part of him that’s changed; like the Kyungsoo that left the pad is not the same as the Kyungsoo now.