Maybe Kind of Does...

It's not like Baekhyun liked Chanyeol or anything like that.

Sure, Chanyeol was handsome, and funny, and tall - maybe a little too tall - and he was a catch, he really was. But he was also Baekhyun's best friend.

So Baekhyun liked Chanyeol, sure, but he didn't like him.

"Baek!"

Baekhyun was snapped out of his reverie by said best friend, his other friends - Kyungsoo, Jongin, Sehun and Kris - in tow.

Baekhyun couldn't help the grin that bloomed on his face as Chanyeol bounded over and swooped him up into his arms, spinning Baekhyun on the spot without a care in the world.

They were both giggling by the time Chanyeol set Baekhyun back on his feet, "I missed you" Chanyeol whispered into Baekhyun's ear, so that no one else would hear. They'd have a field day teasing them over that one.

Baekhyun's returning smile was enough for Chanyeol to know that he'd missed him all the same.

Baekhyun had been away for a couple of weeks, visiting his Grandparents who had moved over to Japan some time ago, so it wasn't odd to find Baekhyun disappearing once and a while, but Chanyeol hated it when he left. And he knew Baekhyun hated it too.

Baekhyun loved to visit his family, but he hated to be away from his friends - mainly Chanyeol. Maybe he was a little dependent on the taller, but he knew that it worked both ways.

"Alright, you love birds can have your little kiss and cuddle later" Sehun rolled his eyes, "we want to see what you brought us back from Japan!"

Chanyeol rolled his eyes, throwing an arm around Baekhyun's shoulders as they began to walk out of the airport to the taxi waiting outside.

They all climbed in - Kris in the front to tell the driver where to go, Sehun, Jongin, and Kyungsoo in the middle, then Chanyeol and Baekhyun in the back, their hands linked subtly so not to let the other's see.

By the time they made it to Kris's house, Sehun was practically vibrating with glee, ready to see what Baekhyun had gotten him.

Baekhyun laughed at the pout on Chanyeol's face as Sehun and Jongin grabbed his hands and dragged him away.

"Jealous, much?" Kris teased, catching up to walk beside Chanyeol, watching as Kyungsoo chastised the maknaes for running in the house.

Chanyeol scoffed, "what do I have to be jealous of?"

"That you're not getting all of his attention for once" Kris smirked, throwing an arm over Chanyeol's shoulders, "we both know you're hot for him"

"It's not even like that" Chanyeol objected, "He's my best friend. That's it"

Kris hummed, obviously not believing the younger boy, "you keep telling yourself that"

Chanyeol didn't bother to dignify that with a response.

They joined the others in the living room of Kris's house. That was usually where they hung out, since Kris had the biggest house and his parents worked all day.

Sehun, Jongin, and Kyungsoo were on the floor playing with their gifts, whilst Baekhyun sat on the sofa watching them fondly.

He held out a small bag to Kris, who took it with a thank you before shooting Chanyeol a wink as he went to sit with the three on the floor.

Chanyeol rolled his eyes before plonking himself down next to Baekhyun.

"Where's mine?" He asked playfully. Honestly, he wouldn't care if he didn't get a gift, having Baekhyun back was more than enough for him.

Baekhyun smiled, leaning into Chanyeol's side as if it were the most natural thing in the world, "I left it in my suitcase, so mum took it home. Come mine tonight and I'll give it to you?"

Chanyeol tried not to blush at the suggestiveness of the words, "Yeah," he coughed, "yeah we can walk together from here if you want?"

"Awesome. If we leave a bit earlier than the others we can get dinner together. I can tell you all about this girl that was flirting with me" Baekhyun snorted out a laugh.

Chanyeol frowned, "flirting?"

"Well tried to. I was trying to be polite about the fact she wasn't my type... but I don't know. In the end I told her I had a boyfriend" Baekhyun snorted at the memory, "she didn't believe me, so I showed her pictures of me and you. It worked though, she left me alone after that"

"You told her I was your boyfriend?" Chanyeol asked, trying to push down the feeling of something stirring inside of him.

Baekhyun flushed slightly, "Well, we have the most pictures together... besides it kind of inspired a bit of your gift" he grinned.

Chanyeol chuckled, wrapped an arm around Baekhyun and pulling him closer, "You're so sappy" he grinned back.

"Says you" Baekhyun rolled his eyes, letting his hand come to rest on Chanyeol's thigh, "so... you're not mad, or weirded out or anything, right?"

Chanyeol's brows furrowed slightly, "why would I be?" He asked.

"I mean... I didn't know if you'd be okay with me using you as an escape clause, you know... since I had to say you were my... um... yeah" Baekhyun stammered nervously before burying his face in Chanyeol's arm out of embarrassment.

Chanyeol chuckled, bringing his free hand up to run it through Baekhyun's soft hair, "don't be stupid. Of course I don't mind. I'll be your fake boyfriend anytime you need me to"

"Hey!" Baekhyun grinned after a moment, "Maybe we should make this a thing. Like if we're ever in a situation we need to get out of, we could pretend to be the other's boyfriend. No questions asked, god knows I've needed an excuse before"

Chanyeol's grin matched Baekhyun's at the thought, "deal" he agreed enthusiastically.

In hindsight, that was probably the start of a long line of complicated feelings.

--

They made it back to Baekhyun's house for about ten pm, having had a late dinner at one of their favourite diners. Once they were there, they said their hellos to Baekhyun's parents before making their way up to Baekhyun's room.

"Okay," Baekhyun said, "they aren't great.... but I hope you like them anyway" he handed Chanyeol two paper bags, one larger than the other.

Chanyeol rolled his eyes and plopped down on the bed, patting the space beside him.

Baekhyun sat, watching nervously as Chanyeol opened the bigger one first. He couldn't help but roll his eyes at that. Trust Chanyeol to go for the bigger one first.

But the genuine smile on Chanyeol's face as he held the present in his hands was enough to make Baekhyun forget about teasing him. It kind of made his heart flutter. He'd always loved Chanyeol's soft smiles, that were pretty much reserved for only him. It wasn't like it meant anything much, it was just one of those bonds that best friends shared. Or at least he liked to tell himself so.

"Baek..." Chanyeol said softly, and Baekhyun half-wished that Chanyeol would just repeat his name like that over and over for the rest of time before he remembered that that wasn't something people thought about their friends.. "I love it!" He half squeaked, setting the present -which was a framed collage of photos of the two of them from over the years - to one side and diving on Baekhyun to pull him into a hug.

Baekhyun couldn't help but laugh as he wrapped his arms around Chanyeol, "Well I've been working on it for ages. I add more each time I visit my grandparents, and I finally finished it. So I thought you'd like that more than a crappy trinket. Although, I know you're fond of the crappy trinkets I buy you, so open the other one" he chuckled.

Chanyeol didn't let him go as he reached for the other bag.

He grabbed it pretty easily, before shifting so that he was laying on his back, pulling Baekhyun close so that the shorter boy had his head on Chanyeol's chest and an arm wrapped around his middle.

Chanyeol tipped the bag upside down, allowing a small charm to fall onto his stomach. He set the bag aside and lifted the charm.

It was cute, something he could attach to his keys. It was gold and purple, woven into a pair of letters, a C and a B, that were joined together by two small hearts.

Chanyeol bit his lip to stop from smiling too wide, "you're so sappy" he laughed, the fondness evident in his voice.

"You love it" Baekhyun shot back with a musical laugh that Chanyeol could listen to all day.

The taller boy nodded, reaching to fish his keys out of his pocket and attached the charm, "where'd you get this?" He asked, setting his keys down on Baekhyun's bedside table.

"I... uh" Baekhyun flushed, "I made it actually... I was taking a day course thing just to pass time. I didn't cheap out on you, I swear, I had to pay for it. It's just... I wanted your present to be special and not something that just anyone could have and I-"

He was cut off as Chanyeol pressed a quick kiss to his cheek. He'd never done that before. Sure he'd kissed Baekhyun’s hair, even his hand, but never anywhere that... meant.. Something.

"Thank you" Chanyeol smiled at Baekhyun's slightly shocked face, "I really, really like them, Baekhyun-ah"

Baekhyun smiled back at that, "I'm glad" he said before pulling out of Chanyeol's hold to stand up.

"Where are you going?" Chanyeol whined at the loss of heat.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes, picking up Chanyeol's photo and setting it on the desk to keep it safe, "getting ready for bed, doofus" he grinned, opening his closet and looking for a t-shirt to wear for bed. He nodded when his eyes settled on his favourite, then stripped out of his jeans and shirt, tossing them to one side. He grabbed the tee, not aware of Chanyeol watching him almost hungrily from the bed, and pulled it on. He raised a brow at Chanyeol, whose eyes were slightly darker than usual.

"What?"

"Not getting ready?" Baekhyun asked in amusement.

Chanyeol rolled his eyes before pulling off his t-shirt and throwing it on the floor, then shrugged out of his jeans, doing the same, leaving him in just his boxers and socks. "Hey! Isn't that my top?" He asked suddenly, recognising the faded band-tee that Baekhyun was wearing.

Baekhyun smirked, "it was" he said pointedly, "it's been my bedtime top for like a year now"

Chanyeol wanted to be annoyed. He really did, since he'd been looking for that tee, it was one of his favourites, but all he could think about was how... ing hot Baekhyun looked in it.

"Cute" he let out, making Baekhyun raise a confused brow at him, "I, uh... shut up and come to bed, will you?"

Baekhyun laughed softly before walking back over to the bed and crawling in beside Chanyeol, who automatically wrapped Baekhyun in a hug.

Chanyeol somehow reached over and flicked off the light, leaving the room in a warm darkness, as both of them settled down, finding comfort in the other's touch.

"Yeol... Have... Have you ever kissed anyone before?" Baekhyun asked out of the blue, thankful the darkness hid his blush.

"Um... once" Chanyeol admitted, "Kris got really drunk one time and kissed me. And I didn't stop him right away. It was weird" he laughed awkwardly, "have you?"

Baekhyun sighed, "No. I want to just... get it over with you know? My brother was teasing me about it when we were in Japan, since he and his girlfriend are practically joined and the s"

"I'll kiss you" Chanyeol offered, his voice earnest and understanding.

Baekhyun laughed, "You know that wasn't what I was getting at, right?"

"I know" Chanyeol smiled against Baekhyun's hair, "but I want your first kiss to be with someone that cares about you. And I care about you a lot, so.... offer's there" he shrugged, trying his best to be nonchalant.

Baekhyun paused for a moment, going over the pros and cons in his head. It wasn't like it would mean anything. It would just be a friend helping out a friend - which would become kind of a mantra for them in the near future.

"Kiss me then" he finally said, startling Chanyeol a little, since he'd been quiet for so long that the taller though he'd fallen asleep.

"You sure?"

"Mmm, just do it... Don't get weird on me though"

Chanyeol laughed, moving so that he was hovering over Baekhyun, almost concerned at how comfortable, how natural, it felt, "I think we're long past me not being weird" he said.

"Yeol" Baekhyun said pointedly, reaching up to grip the back of Chanyeol's neck and pull him closer, "just... come on" he whispered.

And so Chanyeol did. He leant forward and pressed his lips to Baekhyun's in a soft, slightly awkward kiss. They stayed still for a moment, until Baekhyun tentatively moved his lips, causing Chanyeol to follow. And then they were kissing. Really kissing, and although neither of them really had a clue what they were doing, it was nice and slightly addicting, and thinking back on it, that was when the feelings came into play fully. Though neither of them cared to admit it, since they were more confused about it all than anything.

--

It was a week later that the boyfriend deal came into play - and because of it, their second kiss.

--

Chanyeol grimaced as the girl pushed closer to him, "Look," he said, "You're a swell girl and all, Hyuna, but you're not.... my type"

"I'm everyone's type" Hyuna rolled her eyes, moving ever closer.

"Not mine," Chanyeol said pointedly, as he noticed someone walking towards them, "besides, I'm committed!"

Hyuna paused, "huh?"

"Yep. That's right committed. Have a boyfriend. Look, here he is now. BAEK!! BAEKHYUN-AH!!" He called, startling his short best friend somewhat.

Baekhyun frowned when he noticed Hyuna pressed to Chanyeol. She was nice enough, never mean to anyone despite being one of the most popular girls in school, yet she had a tendency to push hard for things she wanted, and lately, she'd had her eyes on Chanyeol.

"Chanyeol? What's going on?" Baekhyun asked as he stood beside his best friend, accepting the arm that Chanyeol wrapped around his shoulders.

"I was just telling Hyuna, here, that I'm a taken man" Chanyeol said, his eyes pleading Baekhyun to play along.

Baekhyun hummed, "Ah, I see"

"I don't believe it" Hyuna said after a moment, looking between the two boys.

"I know, it's a lot to take in" Chanyeol nodded, a small laugh leaving his lips.

"No," said Hyuna, "I literally don't believe it. How do I know you're not lying?"

Baekhyun rolled his eyes, "why would he lie to you? There'd be no point"

"Then kiss him" Hyuna raised a challenging brow, "prove it"

Baekhyun's brows furrowed, he had honestly not seen that coming. Before he could choke out a response, however, Chanyeol was answering for him.

"Fine" Chanyeol shrugged before rounding on Baekhyun, taking the elder's face in his hands and kissing him, oh so softly.

Baekhyun wasn't sure why he found it so easily to kiss his best friend back, his hands clutching Chanyeol's shirt as he did. He wasn't expecting what came next though, as Chanyeol nibbled on his lip, causing Baekhyun to gasp, before sliding his tongue into the shorter's mouth.

Baekhyun let out a soft whimper as Chanyeol continued to kiss him, not paying mind that Hyuna was watching them gleefully. His hands tightened on the material covering Chanyeol's chest, but then all too soon, Chanyeol was pulling away with a shy smile and flushed cheeks.

"Oh my god" Hyuna gasped, making the boys snap round in shock, remembering that she was still there, "that was.... hot. More power to you guys, go do you" she laughed, "sorry for hassling you, Chanyeol. I'll see you guys around" she waved before taking her leave.

Baekhyun started after her, still not really able to think straight as the feeling of Chanyeol's hands still lingered on his skin.

Chanyeol's eyes widened as he saw Hyuna whispering something to her friends before looking back at him and Baekhyun and giggling.

"..."

Baekhyun jumped slightly, "What?" He asked, not meeting Chanyeol's eye.

"The whole school is gonna think we're a thing by tomorrow" Chanyeol sighed, running a hand over his face, "so either we come clean and I get her all over me again, or..."

"Or I act like your boyfriend until she loses interest" Baekhyun finished off, "Jesus, Yeol.... this wasn't really what I had in mind when I said about the deal. I meant like a one off from time to time... this is... god..." he sighed, leaning back again the tree they happened to be stood in front of.

Chanyeol turned to face him, blocking Baekhyun from the view of the giggling girls, "You don't have to do it if you don't want to..." he said, sounding a little... was that disappointment Baekhyun heard in his voice.

"Well... it depends. What would I have to do?" Baekhyun asked.

Chanyeol quirked a lip up in a semi-smile, "Just what we usually do... hold hands, hug, be together a lot... only now... um, kissing and stuff too, I guess"

Baekhyun nodded to himself as he thought it through, "You're lucky you're my best friend, otherwise I'd leave your in the fire" he glared.

Chanyeol could only grin in return, "I knew you loved me!" He laughed, picking Baekhyun up and spinning them in a circle as they hugged, not paying enough attention to hear the excited squeals of the girls watching them.

Baekhyun didn't know what would come of him pretending to date his best friend. But a fan club dedicated to all things "BaekYeol" wasn't on the list of things he could see happening.

--

Their friends were a little dubious at first, thinking that they were dating in secret and just wanting to make an excuse, but after hearing them out, they were on board. Although, Kris kept smirking at them at every chance.

"I'm just saying, you guys do act like you're together" Kris said as they all sat down for lunch on the grassy field beside the school building.

Baekhyun rolled his eyes from where he was sat between Chanyeol's legs, leaning back into Chanyeol's chest as if it were second nature, "that's kind of the point, Kris"

"You know what I meant" Kris shot back.

Sehun sighed, "how long is this gonna go on for?" He asked, not pausing in his thumb war with Jongin.

"Long as it takes" Chanyeol said, lazily playing with Baekhyun's hair.

Kyungsoo frowned, "aren't you afraid that one of you will get hurt?" He asked softly, looking at the intimacy between the two, and seeing how it'd progressed to casual kisses and touches, even when there was nobody around - so it couldn't be for show.

"What do you mean?" Chanyeol asked in confusion, "How would we get hurt?"

Kyungsoo sighed, "If one of you actually does get feelings for the other. And it isn't reciprocated" he pointed out.

Chanyeol shifted a little uncomfortably as Baekhyun rolled his eyes at Kyungsoo.

"Soo," Baekhyun said, "we know what we're doing. Don't worry so much. She'll get over him and then we can stage a break up or something, it'll be fine"

Kyungsoo hummed, turning to look at Chanyeol again, "do you feel that way too?"

"Of course" Chanyeol replied, his voice oddly strained.

Baekhyun twisted in Chanyeol's hold, "are you okay? You're not getting sick are you?" He asked, placing his hands on Chanyeol's face softly.

Chanyeol closed his eyes, leaning into the touch, "I'm fine" he all but whispered, "just... I'm fine"

"Okay, if you're sure?" Baekhyun prompted, brushing Chanyeol's hair back from his face.

Chanyeol smiled down at his best friend, leaning forward to press his nose to Baekhyun's, "I'm sure" he promised.

"Platonic, my arse" Kris muttered to Kyungsoo.

Kyungsoo hummed in acknowledgement, "I'm worried about them. I don't want them to get hurt, or ruin their friendship over this"

Kris nodded, "well, they'll figure it out eventually. I mean, they both obviously feel something"

"Yeah... I know..." he sighed glancing at Jongin, "but sometimes it's hard to admit your feelings about someone so close to you"

Kris, noticing the glace, smiled slightly, "I hear you" he said before shuffling over to sit with the maknaes.

Kyungsoo watched as Kris whispered something into Jongin's ear, making the latter smile wide and happy. He nodded once before catching Kyungsoo's eye and sending him a cheeky wink.

Kyungsoo's eyes widened slightly as Jongin crawled over and sat beside him.

"They sure are something, huh?" He smiled at the elder, nodding towards where Baekhyun and Chanyeol were making out, at having noticed Hyuna and her friends sitting a little way away.

Kyungsoo hummed, "they sure are" he returned.

"I wanna ask you something" Jongin said abruptly, finding no point in beating around the bush.

Kyungsoo waited.

"Go out with me?" Jongin said easily.

Kyungsoo's eyes widened, "w-what?" He choked.

Jongin laughed, "You heard me" he said, "I know you want to. We've been dancing around each other for months. So just... go out with me"

Kyungsoo nodded slowly, taking in Jongin's words, "go out... as in..."

"Be my boyfriend"

Kyungsoo smiled shyly at that, "I... um... okay, yeah. Yeah, I'll go out with you"

"Awesome" Jongin beamed, leaning over and pecking Kyungsoo on the cheek, "I'll pick you up later and we'll go on a date."

Baekhyun pulled back from Chanyeol's lips long enough to see Jongin kissing Kyungsoo's pink cheek.

"Took them long enough" Chanyeol said, following Baekhyun's line of sight.

Baekhyun nodded, "You're telling me" he laughed, "by the way, he said, running a hand through Chanyeol's hair, his eyes coming to land on Chanyeol's plumped up lips, "Hyuna and her friends are watching us again"

"Careful Baek," Chanyeol teased, "I'll start thinking you're saying these things because you want me to kiss you"

Baekhyun grinned, ignoring the fluttering feeling inside him, "obviously" he rolled his eyes, "besides, you're the one that's always way too eager"

"Shut up, stupid" he growled playfully before taking Baekhyun's lips in another kiss.

--

Baekhyun and Chanyeol stood awkwardly in the middle of Chanyeol's room.

"So," Baekhyun said, "this is it then? She's got a boyfriend now. We can.... end it"

Chanyeol's eyes were glued to the floor, "I guess so" he said quietly. His heart pounding like a jackhammer.

"I... I don't really know what happens now...." Baekhyun admitted, his knees weak and palms sweaty. He could see how... sad... Chanyeol seemed that it was over, and honestly, he found that he was too.

He'd gotten used to having Chanyeol as his 'boyfriend' and he had to admit that he liked the touches, the hugs.... the kisses...

There were also other things too. Like when they were in private, it was like the two of them were in their own world, seeing how far they could push the boundaries of their friendship.

The first time it happened, it was an accident. They were play fighting on the floor, and Chanyeol had Baekhyun pinned down, Baekhyun's thighs spread as he was nestled between them. He lost his balance slightly and pushed down against Baekhyun, eliciting a low moan out of the shorter boy. They'd both froze before Chanyeol experimentally did it again, feeling Baekhyun starting to get hard beneath him, and making him hard in turn.

They'd just lost themselves in the moment, and the lack of experience had them in their pants not long after.

They didn't talk about it. But it happened a good few times more after that, though they'd pushed the boundaries more so the last time, by actually touching one another in intimate places.

Baekhyun pegged it down as friends helping out friends, because it was a lot easier than facing the fact that that wasn't what friends did. It wasn't just pretending anymore.

"Baek... I..." Chanyeol cut himself off, running a hand through his hair.

"Yeah?" Baekhyun asked hopefully.

Chanyeol took a deep breath before look up to face Baekhyun, "I don't want to stop..."

"What do you mean?" Baekhyun asked, though he had a fairly good idea.

"I mean," said Chanyeol, "that I like this. Whatever this is. I like being close with you. I like it when you hug me and run your hands through my hair. I like how warm you feel when we're pressed up together. I like seeing your face when we're doing... things..." he admitted, "I don't want to stop doing things with you. I want to keep kissing you, and holding you, and not letting anyone else have you. I... I want you, Baek. I want you to be my best friend, but I want you to be more than that too"

Baekhyun bit back a shy smile. The tips of his ears were red, and his cheeks were flushed as he looked up into the honest eyes of his tall best friend.

"I want that too" Baekhyun admitted. "I didn't know that I did... but I... I like you. I really do."

Chanyeol smiled, soft and genuine, "I'm gonna kiss you now, okay? For the first time... as your official boyfriend..."

Baekhyun's face bloomed into a grin as Chanyeol leant down to kiss him. And Baekhyun had never felt more at home.

It's not like Baekhyun liked Chanyeol or anything like that. Sure, Chanyeol was handsome, and funny, and tall - maybe a little too tall - and he was a catch, he really was. But he was also Baekhyun's best friend.

So Baekhyun liked Chanyeol, sure, but he didn't like him.

Except, he kind of did.

A/N: I don't even know... 
BaekYeol, though. Am I right? ^^