Byun Baekhyun was never the type to plead for help - he preferred to deal with his struggles alone, and he found seeking for help quite bothersome most of the time. In fact, the last time he’d asked someone for help was a year ago, when Jongin and Kyungsoo, Baekhyun’s previous roommate, decided to find a place to settle together (not that he complained - he could finally stop worrying for his life). He offered to give up his apartment for the two in exchange for Kyungsoo finding somewhere else for him to stay. 

If Byun Baekhyun disliked asking for help, then why was he stood in front of Park Chanyeol’s apartment at three o’clock in the morning, dressed in thin pyjamas and holding a mop while shivering from the cold? 

Ever since Baekhyun moved into his new apartment, his next-door neighbour seemed to be doing everything in his power to convince the new tenant of finding a new place. In fairness, he probably would’ve done so, if only the place wasn’t semi-furnished with surprisingly low monthly rent payments. Whether it was ‘accidentally’ leaving any parcels that arrived when Baekhyun was working in the nearest trash can, or blasting the loudest songs from his speakers several hours before Baekhyun’s occasional nightshift (the er seemed to know exactly when that was), Park Chanyeol’s main aim always seemed to be making his next-door neighbour’s life a living nightmare, and possibly taking the first position on said neighbour’s hit list. 

Byun Baekhyun wouldn’t be seen standing on Park Chanyeol’s doorstep at three o’clock in the morning, dressed in thin pyjamas and holding a mop while shivering from the cold even if he was in a life-or-death situation is exactly what Chanyeol thought immediately after opening the door and looking his neighbour straight in the eyes. They both stood without movement - except Baekhyun’s constant shivering - sending awkward glances between each other, prior to Chanyeol deciding to break the silence. 

He cleared his throat and smirked at his neighbour. “I never thought I’d see Byun knocking on my door at this time. Or at any time, to be honest. It’s like Christmas came earlier.”

“It’s January, you tard. Christmas came three weeks ago. Now, don’t even think about saying another word. You,” Baekhyun pointed at his neighbour, “are going to follow me”. He then pointed at himself. 

Before Chanyeol could begin considering a question to ask Baekhyun, the latter grabbed his hand (which was almost twice the size of his tiny neighbour’s, Chanyeol noted with amusement) and began to drag him towards his own apartment. He quickly unlocked the door, pushing Chanyeol inside, entering as well, and finally locking the door once more. 

“Byun, you’re not my relative, my friend, or even my acquaintance. Care to explain, then, why you’ve dragged me to your apartment at three o’clock in the ing morning?”

Baekhyun grabbed Chanyeol’s arm again, dragging him from the narrow anteroom and through a slightly disorganised living room until they’ve reached the bathroom. There, Baekhyun pushed Chanyeol past the doorstep, twirled the mop held in his other hand, and pointed at the ceiling. The taller then spotted a small, black blemish - slightly larger than average, but nothing extraordinary - sat in the corner without any movement. 

Spiders. Who would’ve thought that the fearless Byun Baekhyun who threatened to fight Chanyeol on a daily basis, approximately three times a day; five with some exceptions, was afraid of a harmless spider. 

Chanyeol glanced back at Baekhyun, who eyed the spider with both fear and disgust, and he couldn’t help but laugh. 

“You’ve decided to wake me up at this time because you’re too much of a scaredy-cat to kill a small spider? Seriously, Byun, you’re being pathetic.” He snorted, “And here I thought that you wouldn’t ask for a favour even if your apartment caught on fire or got flooded.”

“Shut up, Park. We both know that I’m not exactly the tallest person around, and that you’re too tall for your own good. Short people have trouble with reaching such high places.” Baekhyun replied smugly. 

“Consider investing in a ladder.”

“Shut your mouth.”

“Why don’t you just leave it alone? Spiders don’t bite, and they surely don’t live forever. It won’t kill you, idiot.” Chanyeol pointed out, and Baekhyun frowned at him. 

“I don’t want to look at a spider when I’m minding my own business in the bathroom!”

Sighing at both Baekhyun’s immaturity and his pathetic excuse, Chanyeol snatched the mop from his neighbour’s hands and pressed it against the spider, waiting until the arachnid died and dropped to the white tiles. He then snatched several sheets of Baekhyun’s toilet paper to pick up the spider with. After he’d done so, he approached Baekhyun with the paper and chuckled as he watched the other wince in discomfort. 

“Not scared of spiders my ,” laughed Chanyeol, but he was merciful enough not to tease his neighbour even more. He threw the toilet paper that was wrapped around the spider into the toilet, flushing straight after (he made sure to look at Baekhyun’s face afterwards, and he wasn’t particularly surprised to see his expression change from tense to relaxed almost immediately). 

“By the way,” the taller decided to add as an afterthought. “aren’t you supposed to be thanking me? I dedicated…” he quickly left the bathroom and looked at the time displayed on Baekhyun’s clock. “…thirty precious minutes of my sleep to help you, and all you’re doing is standing and staring into nothingness.”

Baekhyun cocked his head towards the other man. “Excuse me? You haven’t saved anyone’s life, you overconfident giant. Stop being so full of yourself.”

“Manners, Byun. At least show some gratitude.” Replied Chanyeol, trying to remember the way back to Baekhyun’s front door. Seeing Baekhyun unleash his fear of spiders in front of him was amusing to watch, but the precious hours of his sleep were irreplaceable. Everything that’s fun has to end eventually. 

“Park, wait! Who do you think you are? Demanding gratitude and not even telling me how I should express it?” Baekhyun screamed after him, realising that it was the middle of the night and he’ll have to prepare for a good scolding from whoever lives in the apartment situated underneath his own. 

Chanyeol simply winked at his neighbour, genuinely smiling at him for the first time. “You can thank me by being free tomorrow. In the afternoon. And by meeting me in front of the nearest coffee shop. Until then, Byun!” Park Chanyeol was gone as quickly as he entered.

And Baekhyun stayed awake for another hour, contemplating whether it was normal for Chanyeol’s smile to make his heart beat slightly - just slightly - faster than usual.