(for everyone) Bourbons, speeches, and other crises
For: everyone
Title: Bourbons, speeches, and other crises
Genre: Romance, fluff, ensemble
Rating: PG-15
Side Pairings (if any): Baekyeol
Warnings: [Click to view]Profanities
Word Count: 7.8K
Summary: Junmyeon picks them up from the Nice International airport with one of those vans that look like a metal cart on wheels.
Author's Note: To my recipient, this was so self-indulgent and hastily put together that I can’t even begin to apologize. I hope you enjoy, even if a little.
Junmyeon picks them up from the Nice International airport with one of those vans that look like a metal cart on wheels. Sehun positively blanches and Yixing has to awkwardly fold his legs to accommodate their luggage, haphazardly forced in from every direction. Kyungsoo’s practically sitting on Sehun and of course, Baekhyun has claimed shotgun.
Junmyeon struggles with the stick shift for only a moment before they get on the road, with the windows all rolled down for scenic appreciation. He simultaneously tries to talk over the whiplash of warm afternoon air and pausing to listen to the monotonous GPS give directions in a robotic French accent.
Baekhyun suffers this for about fifteen minutes before he reaches over from the front seat to jab his finger at the control panel on Junmyeon’s side, shutting all the windows, and effectively enclosing the vehicle in a muted silence.
“We’ll nearing Promenade des Anglais on the right soon. Up ahead, just there. I’ll take you all another day since you guys have arrived just in time for our location preview. You’ll get to see Minseok right away!”
Sehun pauses momentarily, then, “We’re not stopping by the hotel?”
Baekhyun whips his head back to mirror Sehun’s look of hopeless fatigue and agony.
Junmyeon deflects that easily with a “Where’s Jongin?” and peeks at the rearview mirror.
Kyungsoo is pulled from his trance of the passing view with a start. “He’s finishing up a few last minute classes. He’ll be on the flight tomorrow.”
Junmyeon nods and the car falls into a comfortable silence until they pull up to the destination an hour later.
It’s a private little bend carved out of a large public beachside. Sunny, with a classic Nice glow and undeniably romantic, the light deflecting off of the water to filter the place with warmth. Minseok is there, with his soon-to-be bride and mother-in-law, while a small team scatters about, sizing up the location with chairs and a few sample decorations. Junmyeon rushes to them immediately, taking out his tablet to confirm details and give instructions.
“You’re just missing the baguette.” Is Baekhyun’s comment when Jongdae greets them in the parking lot, hair swept up in a loose, beachy wave sort of man bun, dressed casual in a horizontal striped long sleeve tee and leather sandals.
Jongdae scoffs then kisses Baekhyun on the cheek, three times, the Southern bise, just to see Baekhyun roll his eyes with insufferable judgment and goes to hug the rest of them one by one.
“Where’s Jongin?” He pauses when he gets to Kyungsoo, and Kyungsoo responds with a slight flinch, his eyes glued to the sparkling water and little delicate white chairs.
The preview takes about an hour and they’re asked to give opinions on the location, the little lights they’re going to set up at the entrance, the card stock they’re going to put on the chairs with peoples’ names on it. When it’s all over, they’re sitting in a café, with Junmyeon and Minseok off to the side, and the rest of them exhausted and starving.
“I recall betting that Minseok would be the first to get married.” Yixing has an arm around Sehun, who blinks sleepily into his nape.
“Big surprise. He’s had marriage written on his life-goals calendar since he was thirteen.” Jongdae has his head buried in his notebook, on which he is furiously scribbling and scratching out from time to time.
“Unfathomable.” Baekhyun sips at his espresso like it’s rat poison. “The rest of us were still jerking off to Tarzan at that age.”
“That was definitely just you, Baekhyun.” Yixing slowly mutters with a distasteful frown, the same time as Sehun chokes on a cough that morphs into a disbelieving laugh. Kyungsoo chuckles along half-heartedly.
It feels bizarre already, sitting with half the gang from college, and will no doubt feel stranger when the rest of them get here. Kyungsoo has seen them at some point, in the six years since graduation, but never all together, and he sharply recognizes the familiarity in their group dynamic, and changes in their persons. It’s barely different, he concludes, sitting in a French café instead of their usual haunt in Sehun’s basement, now people with careers instead of exams, marriages instead of movie dates. He turns to his right to look at Jongin, only to realize he wasn’t there yet, and he wonders if Jongin will feel the same once he’s here. This particular brand of nostalgia.
Junmyeon suddenly appears in a panic, Minseok in tow, his eyes blown wide with worry and in the gravest tone, he delivers, “The rose dealer just called. The Old Garden Bourbons might not get here in time.” The way his voice nearly cracks suggest the sheer devastation of this news, and he waits for Minseok’s reaction.
Baekhyun beats him to it.
“For fuck’s sake! Not the Bourbons!”
✿
It’s evening when Kyungsoo wakes up from his nap. He groggily walks through the villa and spots Jongdae out on the veranda. He grabs two beers from the fridge and walks over, pausing for a bit to look at some sort of procession on the streets right below. A religious ceremony? Or maybe a festival. It’s lively, with lights and firework and people mingling about. Then, a touch away, is the sea, with the last orange hues of sunset streaming in. Seems quite surreal, and Kyungsoo watches on with wonder, a little lost in this foreign city.
Jongdae is still glaring at his notebook with some consternation.
“Finalizing the best man speech?” Kyungsoo passes him a beer, and Jongdae receives it with a grunt and a wipe over his face.
“I’ve been working on it for months. What do you say about a guy who used to wipe his boogers on your bunk bed and lift girls’ skirts together?”
Kyungsoo chuckles. “Going for a serious tone, then?”
Jongdae shrugs, “Can’t exactly stand up and toast to how Minseok used to piss on Cheung’s office window during winter so that it would be stuck until it either melted on it’s own, or -”
“Professor Cheung would blow dry it off himself.”
Jongdae and Kyungsoo both laugh into their beer bottles, and the sound is young and crisp.
“You could gift him a poem?” Kyungsoo is vaguely sure that is Jongdae’s career. Writer? Lyricist? Something that lets him strut around, confident and mysterious, with shoulder length permed hair and those round vintage glasses with no actual lenses.
“Baekhyun would have a field day.” Jongdae grimaces, “Besides, I was saving my newly penned sonnets for your wedding.” Kyungsoo can sense the wiggle in Jongdae’s brows even before he sees it.
“I -”
“Thought you planned to do it before March.”
Kyungsoo looks at him, agape. “How the hell do you know that?”
Jongdae blinks, “To be honest, I thought you guys got hitched junior year. What could you possibly be waiting for?”
Kyungsoo opens and closes his mouth like a fish. He’s been away from Jongdae for too long, enough to feel attacked by his bluntness. He tips his beer back and turns around when he hears the fridge open.
Baekhyun approaches with a beer in his hand, crossing onto the veranda with feline leisure. “What are we drinking to?”
Kyungsoo is rather uneasy that Jongdae will bring up Jongin in front of Baekhyun. If there were anyone who would assert themselves over personal affairs, it’d be successful, award-winning corporate-consultant-slash-motivation-extraordinaire Byun Baekhyun.
Thankfully, though, Jongdae frowns at Baekhyun’s low cut navy silk pajamas, showing off a pale slab of chest, “Why do you always look like you just had the most amazing sex?”
Baekhyun tears his lips from the beer bottle with a pop, and his laugh is loud and crystal.
“Thanks,” he ruffles his bed-roused hair some more, playing up his obvious charm. “Speaking of sex though, I hope you’re planning the bachelor party right. I want booze. Mediterranean food. A few of those hot guys we saw at the beach today.”
“Save it,” Jongdae scoffs. “Minseok wants tame and quiet.”
“Ugh, not even a moment of joyful abandon before servitude.”
“He is marrying a kindergarten teacher.” Kyungsoo reminds.
“So? I want the exciting Minseok! The Minseok when he proposed! You know, with all those rose petals and those little chubby kids holding up signs. The only thing missing from that was a goddamn film crew.”
Kyungsoo blanches. He whips to Jongdae. “That’s how he proposed?”
Jongdae looks up from the notepad, “Oh. Yeah.” Missing the slight distress on Kyungsoo’s face. Baekhyun carried on, recounting the experience as if it were his own, no doubt having squeezed it out of Minseok the moment he heard about the engagement.
Kyungsoo’s phone buzzes, and it’s Jongin, as if somehow he escaped the confines of Kyungsoo’s private thoughts and has materialized, on the other end of the call. He shoots the other two a look, and picks up.
“Hey. Yeah we’re settled in. Hmm. Don’t forget to pack shorts, and to check in online. Do you want me to call? Ok, don’t forget. Set two alarms just in case. Ok. Hmm. Me too.”
Kyungsoo turns and both of their eyes are on him; he blushes under their knowing gaze. He hates it, the way Baekhyun smiles but says nothing.
“When are their flights landing again?” Jongdae leads the three of them back in, shutting the veranda doors. It’s getting dark out.
“7pm.”
“And Chanyeol is catching the same flight right?” Jongdae throws the notebook on the couch and sits down along with it. “I’ll go get them. Wanna come with?” He tilts his head towards Baekhyun.
“Nah.” Baekhyun says, rather quiet, and strides away.
“I… think I’ll just wait here too. No point in taking up space in the van.” Kyungsoo mutters as he walks towards the stairs, and Jongdae frowns in confusion.
He’s left all alone, though, so his aggressive little, “Fine. Okay, then.” is said to no one in particular.
✿
The French, well perhaps the Niçois, especially, knows the secret to a good morning. A late morning, Baehyun muses, as he gets up at a time when only brunch is appropriate, feeling pleasantly well rested and languid.
He makes himself an Americano (diluting the espresso himself, since that’s all their machine seems to know how to make) and stirs in his sugar and milk while trying sprawled on the couch.
Sehun and Yixing are finishing up breakfast, with Yixing bent over a map while Sehun is browsing on his phone, no doubt looking up locations with good photo-op. It’s a free day today, until later this evening, when other two get here.
Baekhyun revels in the quiet. But not for long because Junmyeon struts in, looking like he hasn’t slept at all, his phone gripped in one hand and his tablet in the other.
“You look like shit.” Sehun looks up from his phone.
“The Bourbons are stuck in Morocco. Unfortunately there’s not enough time to get a chartered plane to pick up the delivery, so I had to get them to put the Bourbons on a truck, and hopefully they’ll drive them in time for the ceremony. They will definitely not make the rehearsals, and this really puts off the whole visual, the team will just have to - ”
“Breathe. You’ll be fine. The roses will be here.” Baekhyun watches him collapse on the couch.
“I have more bad news. Well this is nothing compared to the Bourbons, but, there’s a roof problem with the villa. City officials just contacted us and apparently last night some idiot threw a firecracker up there. They hadn’t found it so now for safety reasons no one’s allowed to be in the top two suites.”
“What?” Baekhyun is suddenly alert. Where is he going to stay, then?
Junmyeon looks apologetically at Baekhyun, then at Yixing. “Well, since Jongin and Kyungsoo are in one room already. I thought… why not have everyone in their old college rooming arrangements? A blast from the past!” Junmyeon says, inserting a little cheerfulness into his tired voice.
“So, Yixing, you’ll squeeze with Sehun.”
Yixing and Sehun both nod apathetically, not seeming to mind in the least.
“And Baekhyun - ”
“I’ll take the couch.” Baekhyun pats the cushion beside him firmly, a starchy smile pasted on.
“But why? The bed’ll fit you and -”
“I said I’ll take the couch.”
Junmyeon opens his mouth to say more, but the front door swings open and Kyungsoo walks in. Simultaneously, Jongdae slowly waddles down the stairs. There’s a pause before Junmyeon and Baekhyun both voice out confused,
“Where were you?” “I thought you were upstairs?”
“I was with Minseok.” Kyungsoo’s reply. “I was upstairs.” Jongdae’s reply.
There’s suddenly a cacophony of voices as the three of them talk over each other, and Kyungsoo interrupts with “Minseok needs to see you two.” He nods towards Jongdae and Junmyeon.
Junmyeon stands and leaves with an awkward, “Well, um, we’ll sort out the rooming later. Also remember, rehearsal’s tomorrow. In the morning.”
✿
Kyungsoo hears them pull up into the driveway and he’s weirdly nervous to see Jongin.
He hears Chanyeol’s laugh all the way from the door, and when he steps out, they already have their suitcases out of the car, with Jongin facing away from the entrance. It is almost sunset, and the sky’s a subdued violet and orange. The light plays on his soft brown hair for a split second before he turns around.
He turns and smiles, “Hey, you.”
“Hi.” Kyungsoo sighs; unable to suppress the tingles in his stomach whenever he sees him. Kyungsoo walks over, to help with the suitcase, before Jongin grabs him in a hug, arms encircling his waist to bring him in gently.
“Oh my god. It’s been what, 18 hours?” Jongdae groans from the side, and is ignored while Jongin mouths I missed you into Kyungsoo’s nape. It tickles. Kyungsoo laughs.
Kyungsoo pulls away when he hears a shutter click and sees Chanyeol’s camera pointed straight at them, the tall goof bent in an awkward position with one leg sticking out and the DSLR covering his entire face save those pointed ears.
Chanyeol looks up from the lens, his eyes bright with zero trace of travel fatigue, when his head whips over to the entrance.
“Baekhyunnie!”
Baekhyun leans on the doorframe, his arms crossed in front of him, when Chanyeol hops over like a bunny on speed, immediately grabbing him for a bear hug that lifts Baekhyun to his tiptoes.
“Put me the fuck down.” Baekhyun grumbles, smoothing his palms over his crisp white dress shirt after Chanyeol lets go of him with a grin.
“Where’s Minseok?” Chanyeol strides back to rolls his massive suitcase inside.
“You’ll see him tomorrow at rehearsal. They’re already in honeymoon mode.”
“Sehun and Xing?”
“Sightseeing? They’ll be back for dinner.”
“Awesome! Oh, this is going to be great! I haven’t seen everyone together in such a long time.” Chanyeol beams. “Especially you, Baekhyunnie.”
Baekhyun is silent, lagging behind with Kyungsoo and Jongin.
Jongin’s fingers latches with Kyungsoo’s, and they feel warm and steady, threading the empty spaces between Kyungsoo’s knuckles. Kyungsoo peeks at him from the side, and stares a little at the way his bangs sweep right above his eyes, and how his full lips stretch over his teeth when he laughs at something Jongdae said. He sees it often. And that thought makes his chest ache, makes him want to call his name.
So he does, just to see Jongin turn his eyes on him, with a little curious hum and a brief tightening of his fingers.
Kyungsoo leans over, and pecks his mouth.
Jongin’s smile is so smug. It makes Kyungsoo want to kiss him again.
Baekhyun frowns behind them, and pushes past Jongin to lazily stride towards the stairs with a yawn. They look after him inquiringly.
“He’s probably just hungry.” Jongdae says. Then to Chanyeol and Jongin, “Go change or wash up if you want to. We’re leaving for dinner after.”
✿
They all take a stroll after dinner, on the famous Promenade, and Junmyeon fully commits to his tour guide duties, starting with useful information on what year the street lamps were built, and how much they cost.
Sehun and Yixing stop frequently to take pictures of the glittering ocean. It’s dark, though, so Jongdae’s not really sure how much of the scenery they’ll capture, but with the poses they’re striking, he suspects they’re 80% selfies anyway.
There are performances, all along the walk, artists too, who lay out their paintings and creations on tarps. It’s jovial and animated in a calm, pleasant way, but Kyungsoo isn’t really paying attention.
The last time Kyungsoo and Jongin travelled to Europe, it was their senior year in college. Jongin surprised him with a ticket before spring break, whisking him away to Amsterdam, Paris, and Bruges for the week, simply because Kyungsoo had been miserable the entire semester, stressing out about his CPA certification. Kyungsoo had initially been revolted at the idea of spending a precious week of cramming time travelling, and couldn’t understand Jongin’s ‘drop-everything-and-go’ attitude. Jongin was contradictory that way, carefree, romantic, spontaneous. But so careful and sensitive. These clumsy grand gestures of love that he fills with delicate moments, with a subtle kindness that makes Kyungsoo’s head spin. Makes him want to give Jongin everything he deserves.
Jongin squeezes his hand and Kyungsoo looks up.
“What’s on your mind?” Jongin says, his eyes shimmering with the reflection of passing cars.
“Nothing.” Kyungsoo smiles and glances at some of the street artists they’re passing by, seemingly absorbed.
Jongin doesn’t press, and instead, just walks closer to Kyungsoo, sticking their wound hands into his jacket pocket.
It is getting rather chilly, seaside. It’s a surprise Baekhyun isn’t complaining, given his thin dress shirt and his abhorrence of the cold.
When Baekhyun visibly shivers, Chanyeol wrestles a moment with his thick hoodie before it’s off.
“Baekhyunnie, here.” His hoodie is offered in an outstretched hand accompanied by a wild grin, with all of his flawless teeth on display. An intimidating show of glee.
Baekhyun snorts, and walks on without a pause, latching his arm to Jongdae’s, and the latter looks at him with a raised brow.
“Even if I was dying from hypothermia, I would rather burn a hoodie to keep warm than wear it.” Baekhyun said to Jongdae, with a voice that carried over to the rest of them.
Chanyeol retracts his arm mechanically and puts his hoodie back on with a laugh. He picks up his pace, and when he strides past Baekhyun and catches up with Junmyeon at the front.
Jongdae stares at Baekhyun like he grew a second head but says nothing, choosing instead to glance at Chanyeol, who has his DSLR up now, occasionally taking pictures of the promenade, and occasionally, Junmyeon.
Junmyeon is relaxed, speaking about the lamps and how the promenade was originally built for the migrating beggars, when his phone rings, he picks up immediately after looking at the ID.
It’s not good news, apparently, as Junmyeon begins to spit vulgarities in French. At least Chanyeol thinks it’s French, as Junmyeon venomously rolls his r’s like he’s trying to growl.
Jongin is visibly confused and when Sehun leans over and whispers, like a curse, “It’s the Bourbons”, it doesn’t explain much.
Junmyeon hangs up with a rage. “The truck driver warned that they might get stopped at customs because local drug rings have a habit of secretly stowing narcotics in these smaller shipping trucks and if they do get stuck at the border, or if god forbid the roads get a little too bumpy, we’ll get a bunch of wilted or crushed petals!”
His voice rises with distress in a crescendo, but Baekhyun seems to be the one more frustrated by all this.
“Just forget about the roses, Junmyeon.” The annoyance in Baekhyun’s voice is somewhat eclipsed by his lips trembling from the cold. “They don’t matter.”
“They do.” Kyungsoo says, surprising everyone. But he’s resolute, and he stares at Junmyeon, determined. “They do. It should be perfect.”
✿
“Is something happening that I don’t know about?” Jongdae says to Sehun, when they get back to the villa. Everyone’s off to their own rooms, getting ready for sleep. They have an early day tomorrow and the bachelor party’s also in the evening.
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. They seem different. Or acting strange, a little.”
Sehun shrugs, bouncing onto couch face down and lying there, limp. “It’s the wedding. Everyone’s excited.”
“No, not everyone. Kyungsoo’s so out of it, and Ba-”
Jongdae hears someone coming down the stairs and he’s almost scared out of his skin to see Baekhyun, in an oversized tee covering about half his thighs, carrying a blanket and a pillow. And Jongdae watches Baekhyun walk over to the couch and dump his stuff down.
“Move.” He says to Sehun, who lifts a questioning head.
“This is my bed.” Baekhyun says, and Sehun shifts away so that Baekhyun can hastily pat some sheets down. Jongdae is rather confused.
Chanyeol appears on the top of the stairway, freshly out of shower with a towel dangling off his shoulders. “Baekhyunnie?”
Sehun tells Jongdae about the roof problem and new rooming arrangements while Chanyeol comes down the stairs. Jongdae’s not really listening, because something’s happening. And he’s witnessing it.
Baekhyun turns to Chanyeol and smiles. “You take the bed. I’ll just crash on the couch.”
“Why? Baekhyunnie, we could just share the bed.”
“You could use a good night’s sleep, Chanyeol, you’ve travelled and went out with us tonight.”
“But I…”
“You also kick, remember? It’s ok, I’ll just take the couch.” Finality is in his voice and Baekhyun pats Chanyeol on the side of his face with patronizing levity.
Chanyeol looks dejected, standing there with his bangs dripping onto his face and neck, and he opens his mouth as if to say something, but closes it instead, and mumbles a rather defeated “Goodnight, then.”
Jongdae narrows his eyes and drags Chanyeol off to the veranda, after he grabs two beers from the kitchen. Sehun joins them.
“Can’t wait to hear the speech.” Chanyeol is the first one to speak, peering at Jongdae with a renewed brightness.
“I haven’t written it.” Jongdae says.
Chanyeol stares at him in disbelief. “Jongdae, the rehearsal’s tomorrow and the wedding’s the day after.”
“You sound just like my editor.” Jongdae cringes at the thought. “Anyway, where have you been this past year?”
Sehun chimes in, “Africa this time? No wait, Antarctica.”
Chanyeol beams at Sehun, “Yes, with the penguins! I saw some great stuff up there. Do you want to see? I could grab my laptop!”
Jongdae laughs, “It’s okay, Chanyeol, we’ll just support you by getting the actual magazine when it comes out.”
“As if you own a single copy of the National Geographic.” Sehun snorts.
“Thanks, man.” Chanyeol says nonetheless. “Although I’m still miffed that Minseok didn’t ask me to be his best man.” He jokes, because it was Chanyeol who introduced Minseok to Jongdae, back then when six year olds from different kindergarten classes had to be introduced.
Jongdae chuckles. “Don’t worry, you’ll get to be Kyungsoo’s best man.”
“When he asks.” Chanyeol looks at Sehun coyly, and Sehun shrugs.
“I really thought he was going to do it in March.”
“Did Jongin think so too?” Jongdae asks.
Sehun shakes his head. “Nah, he’s clueless about this kind of stuff. He did bring it up once though.”
Both heads turn to him, curious.
“Not about proposing. Just mentioned Minseok’s engagement and choked on his own spit when I asked him where he would go for his wedding.”
Chanyeol smirks, “I wonder why they’re being such kids about it.”
“Speaking of being kids, what’s up with you and Baekhyun?”
Chanyeol almost spits, and Sehun scoffs with a “Nice segue.”
Chanyeol looks at Jongdae, and his offended look is half part betrayed, half part wounded. He softens though, almost immediately, and looks down into his beer.
“I honestly don’t know.” Chanyeol says, lightly. “I haven’t seen him in four years.”
“I know he’s been busy. And I have been too. But we just kind of lost contact after college and I-” He pauses. “I was looking forward to seeing him again.”
“What did you do?” Jongdae narrows his eyes.
“Nothing! I swear! It wasn’t me this time. At least it wasn’t anything I remember. God,” Chanyeol wipes a hand over his face, “it seems like he fucking hates me.”
Sehun pats Chanyeol on the shoulder. “No, he doesn’t hate you. He’s just in a bad mood. It’s Baekhyun, he’ll get over it tomorrow.”
“Can I suggest something?” Jongdae says. “Don’t… try to compensate and follow him like a puppy. It’ll just aggravate him more.”
Chanyeol frowns, looking genuinely pissed this time. “I wasn’t going to do that.”
Kyungsoo can hear their murmurs from the open window in his room and he shifts on the bed, eyes wide open.
Jongin stirs and Kyungsoo holds his breath, wishing he didn’t wake him.
“Can’t sleep?” Jongin mumbles, and Kyungsoo sighs apologetically into the darkness.
“Something’s on your mind.” It’s not a question this time.
“I’ve just been thinking,” Kyungsoo says, quiet, “about the past.”
Jongin moves and an arms snakes around Kyungsoo’s middle so Jongin can snuggle closer to him. He smells like familiar mint and their laundry detergent. Kyungsoo heart pounds and his mind whirrs.
“When we were all single and broke.” Kyungsoo finishes and it draws a sleepy chuckle from Jongin, deep and rumbly.
Kyungsoo turns onto his side and starts to trace Jongin’s face with his eyes. Kyungsoo is thinking about those two years, freshman and sophomore, before him and Jongin finally crossed the line and started dating. He can’t remember, for the life of him, what had happened. Had he confessed first? What on earth gave him the courage to tell that mysterious, hot dance major with the faraway look in his eyes how he’d felt? How on earth had Jongin said yes? He wants to ask, but he doesn’t. All he can seem to remember is their first date. All of the rain, and the cheap alcohol.
“Do you remember,” Kyungsoo starts, and Jongin hums after a pause, “how I went to grab a beer and then just came back empty handed and told you I might be in love with you?” He says, with no context.
Jongin smiles though, with his eyes shut and his voice is slightly cracked when he says, “Our first date.”
“You were still kind of bummed out because you had this elaborate night out in mind and then it started pouring and we had to go into that beat up Irish pub.”
“But then you cheered me right up.”
“Sometimes I wish it had gone differently though.” Kyungsoo brings himself a little closer, and finds Jongin’s fingers with his own.
“Why?” Jongin blinks awake now, and looks at him through clouded eyes.
“A little less drunk, maybe. A little less rowdy, less men trying to squeeze us out of the booth. Somewhere quiet, with flowers.”
Jongin smiles, and intertwines their hands under the blanket. “That sounds like what I had planned. But it was perfect, the way it was.”
Kyungsoo looks at him, at his sleepy grin, the way his cheek is squished into the blanket and it makes his grin slightly lopsided, and he imagines what his expression would have been on that day if Kyungsoo had told him he loved him, instead of yelled it at him in the pub. Kyungsoo can’t remember what his expression was. He was too drunk and his heart too fast to even hear Jongin’s response. But he had woken up in Jongin’s arms and it hadn’t mattered then.
“You nervous?” Jongin runs his thumb along Kyungsoo’s. “About tomorrow?”
“No.” Kyungsoo doesn’t lie.
“Hmm. It seems like everyone’s pretty strung up.”
“Jongdae’s going through a writer’s block. Junmyeon has a crisis with the roses, and Baekhyun, well, Baekhyun has things to sort out.”
Jongin doesn’t reply, and from the way his breath is evened out, he’s fallen asleep. He must have been exhausted from the flight and dinner.
“They just want it to be perfect.” Kyungsoo whispers, and takes one more longing glance at Jongin before he turns onto his back and stares at the ceiling.
✿
Junmyeon is pacing, his eyes bloodshot, as the small team is moving things around and Junmyeon’s assistant, a very efficient and cheerful man called Luhan, is having the small crowd of wedding guests practice the entrance and telling them where they’ll be seated. Jongdae puts a hand on his back, and it almost startles him enough to yelp, before he spins around and sees Jongdae in a similar tired state.
“How many cups of espresso have you had?” Jongdae asks.
“Five. You?”
“Don’t remember.”
Junmyeon doesn’t ask about the speech. Jongdae doesn’t mention the roses.
The weather is gorgeous, and the morning air is fresh with the salty tang of the sea. Minseok and Jisoo are being guided to stand under the arched trellis and Minseok looks devastatingly handsome in his wedding suit and his bride is glowing with happiness. Luhan stands beside them and goes over the choreography, and then once to the guests as well. It’s a quick run-through, he explains, just to practice the entrance, exit, places and timing.
Sehun only catches the part where they’ll serve lunch afterwards and Yixing’s asking a bunch of questions to Luhan, in what Jongin suspects is flirting. Chanyeol is all over the place, taking so many pictures already, and has managed to take Jongdae’s advice to keep away from Baekhyun. But Baekhyun is... more irritable than yesterday.
“The sand’s fucking everywhere.” He takes off his Louboutin oxfords and shakes them with annoyance.
“Focus on the European men over there. With those biceps.” Jongdae quips, and true to his word, Junmyeon’s little team is currently glistening under the sun with their black muscle shirts and tight jeans. But Baekhyun doesn’t take the bait.
“I hope to god the wedding isn’t going to be this early.” He grumbles, and Sehun shifts a seat down, sensing the ominous energy from Baekhyun’s demeanor.
“I’m sweating like a whore in church.” Baekhyun grabs at his tie and suddenly there’s a click, the sound magnified tenfold as Baekhyun tilt his head up.
Chanyeol’s standing there, slowly lowering his camera and Sehun gulps.
“You look great today, Baekhyun.” Chanyeol says, politely. Jongdae groans and covers his eyes with a hand.
“You would look even better with a smile.” Chanyeol shows Baekhyun the picture, but Baekhyun ignores the camera screen, “It’s Minseok’s happy day!”
“I didn’t ask for your advice.” Baekhyun bites out, cold, detached. “Why don’t you make yourself useful somewhere else?”
Chanyeol’s gaze shifts from surprised, to confused and wounded, and to frustrated in a matter of seconds. All there, displayed on his expressive face. Jongdae stands, as to physically cut the tension, and thankfully, Luhan’s voice calls out, right then, “Okay, everyone, we’re running through the ceremony!”
They resume their seats, and with that Chanyeol is gone, off with his camera. Jongdae eyes Sehun with a hard look to get him to shift one seat back, next to Baekhyun and Baekhyun looks on, emotionless. But there’s a firm set to the corners of his lips and his hands are clasped tightly in his lap. Restrained.
The mock ceremony starts and there’s music. Everyone turn their heads down the aisle where Jisoo’s in a beautiful white summery dress with bare feet and she’s clutching her dad’s hand as Luhan directs the pace of their walking to the music. Minseok’s face is about to crack from his smile and he stuffs his hands into his jean pockets to hide their slight tremble.
Kyungsoo is mesmerized. The sun is vivid with a clear luster and the sea reflects it with every calm wave washing in. The atmosphere is intimate and lighthearted, and Kyungsoo feels it, everyone’s genuine well wishes and delight for the couple. It’s like the real thing, on the real day, and Kyungsoo can see it. The rose petals on the sand, forming the aisle and how Jisoo’s train will catch on them, pooling them beneath her wedding dress and how the pink will peek underneath. Kyungsoo can see her coming down the aisle, as if he were Minseok, standing under the bridal arch, with a smile so wide it hurt, watching the love of his life walk towards him and towards the rest of their life together. Kyungsoo’s chest aches and he doesn’t dare to turn to look at Jongin. His breath fastens and he doesn’t realize he’s clenching his hands. All he can think about is how perfect this is. How wonderful. How it overwhelms him with want.
After the rehearsal, everyone’s shuffling from the beach to the lunch venue not far inland and Jongdae sees Baekhyun peel away.
“Baekhyun.” Jongdae calls after him and Baekhyun picks up his pace.
“Baekhyun!” He grabs him a little, just so Baekhyun stops and turns around. They stand, at a part where the sand fades into the road.
Baekhyun looks exhausted, more exhausted than Jongdae feels, having stayed up the night before, fretting over the speech, or lack thereof. Jongdae abandons what he was going to say. Baekhyun sees the concern in his eyes.
“I’m getting some air, Jongdae.” He says, as if he hadn’t spent the morning outdoors, in the brilliant sunshine and sea breeze.
Jongdae nods, with a little frown.
“The bachelor party’s at nine pm. Back here.”
“I’ll see you then.” Baekhyun says, and turns to go.
Jongdae sees Kyungsoo and Jongin lagging behind the group with Junmyeon. They seem to be comforting him, and Jongdae goes to them.
“I’ve placed an emergency side order for red Classics. They could only prepare 2000 with such notice and it’ll have to do.” Junmyeon says, sounding thoroughly defeated.
“There’s still a chance the Bourbons will get here in time.” Kyungsoo adds, looking anxious enough for all of them.
“Even if they don’t, it’s okay.” Jongin says. “It’s not the roses that make the wedding. If you saw how happy Minseok was today then you know, you’ve done a great job, and he will remember tomorrow as the happiest day, with or without the roses.”
Junmyeon smiles and ruffles Jongin’s hair with an affectionate hand, while Kyungsoo’s gaze lingers on Jongin long after, eyes swimming with warmth.
✿
In the end, the bachelor party does not live up to Baekhyun’s expectations. It is a gentle, cozy affair, with a beach bon fire and nine men with an ample supply of alcohol. Minseok insists that he is very happy with it, so eventually Baekhyun stops trying to goad him into chastising Jongdae for a ‘lazy, crappy effort’, and everyone tries to drink like teenagers.
“I’m at an age where I’m sleepy after my third beer.” As if to demonstrate his point, Yixing yawns and chugs the rest of his drink.
“We need shots.” Jongdae says and helpfully pours tequila into red solo cups that amusingly reminds him of younger days.
“How did we ever drink without food? I’d kill for some noodles right now.” Sehun rubs his stomach ruefully.
“Ugh, I miss home cooked meals. Haven’t had one in days.” Says Minseok, and Jongin laughs. “You’ll have your share after tomorrow, Minseok.” Junmyeon shakes his head and mumbles something about a ‘natural born family man’.
They all recount this morning’s rehearsal to Minseok with fondness, cutting out the parts with tension and crises.
“I hope you’re not writing an epic.” He says to Jongdae, since at the rehearsal today, when Luhan called on him to make the speech, or give a little preview of it at lunch, he had said he wanted to keep it as a surprise.
“Damn it,” Jongdae chuckles, a little weakly, “you should have told me before the hundred-thousand couplet.”
Minseok laughs too, good-naturedly, before his voice turns soft. “Good. I asked you because you were always the best at bullshitting. Like the way you wrote that literary journal’s top entry the night before on the toilet. Whatever it is, I’m sure it’ll be half poetic and half junk and I won’t be able to tell which is which. Don’t stress over it, Dae.”
Jongdae guffaws, this rich, high-pitched yodel, and they drink some more. And more.
Kyungsoo is quiet, and he’s not really focused on the party, the way he swishes his drink around and stares, dazed, into the fire. He feels a headache coming, from all of this thinking, and Jongin is worried. He stays quietly beside him.
Kyungsoo sees Junmyeon get up from the circle and take a call, and suddenly all of his frustration, his anxiety and apprehension culminate into a moment of decision. He stands, and grabs Jongin with him, and everybody looks at them in surprise.
Kyungsoo excuses him and Jongin, citing a headache, and Minseok only has to look at Kyungsoo briefly to nod understandingly, ignoring everybody’s pleas and complaints for them to stay. They take off, in the direction of the villa, and what is left is silence.
It would have been a comfortable silence except for the startling quiet of Baekhyun and Chanyeol, usually loquacious and rowdy, and it taints the atmosphere with awkward tension.
Baekhyun speaks first, “I think I might head in as well.”
Chanyeol perks up and before Jongdae can even see the challenge in his eyes, he says, “What happened to you?”
“What could you possibly be so pissed off about? That you walk around with this attitude. Being this bitter.”
Sehun’s eyes shift between them in panic. The circle is still, except for the crackling of the fire and distant gentle waves that surround them.
Baekhyun’s anger rises like magma. “Fuck off. You don’t fucking know me.”
Chanyeol stands and before Yixing can blink, his fist is in Baekhyun’s collar lifting him up and the impact makes them all scramble up.
“Then who are you?!” Chanyeol spits, his hands shaking Baekhyun and the expensive material of Baekhyun’s shirt crumbles into Chanyeol’s fist like paper.
Baekhyun punches him, and it’s clumsy because of the angle and their proximity so Chanyeol just ends up losing his grip and balance and falling, taking Baekhyun with him, in a heap of limbs and sand.
The five of them stand around like statutes, not knowing what to do, how to intervene. A part of Jongdae refuses to process that Chanyeol and Baekhyun is in a physical brawl.
“Get the fuck off me!” Comes Baekhyun’s enraged roar, and Chanyeol is on top of him, currently pressing Baekhyun’s swinging arms down with harsh hands and his cheek is already red and swelling when he yells back.
“Say it to my face Baekhyun and stop fucking with me!”
Baekhyun stops struggling. His hair is a mess and there’s sand in his mouth and under his shirt and pants. He looks Chanyeol dead in the eyes, and there’s hatred shining beneath.
“Don’t force me to stay friends with you, after you’ve rejected me.”
Chanyeol freezes, and he pulls back, his hands releasing Baekhyun from underneath him. Baekhyun shoves him away and they stumble up. Chanyeol looks like he’s been punched in the gut from the way he wobbles.
“What?” Chanyeol chokes out, voice small.
And suddenly Baekhyun is angry again, “Don’t pretend like it didn’t happen!” His voice is cracking with revulsion and desperation. “You knew. At the after-grad party.”
Chanyeol only pauses for a second before the memory twists his face into absurd incredulity. “What-”
“I threw myself at you!”
“We were both drunk out of our minds! You tried to blow me in Amber’s bathroom and you were shaking so hard you couldn’t even open my jeans!”
There’s suddenly a full silence, as their chests heave and the five people around them reel from the development.
“Holy fuck.” Jongdae whispers before he could stop himself.
That snaps Baekhyun out of it.
“Fuck you.” He spits, and turns to leave. He’s halfway off of the beachfront when Chanyeol snaps out of it too and sprints after him.
“Baekhyun, Baekhyun.” He calls, and Baekhyun’s running shadow in the night is a blurry blob under the moonlight. “Baekhyunnie!”
He finally grabs hold of his wrist and they stop, both gasping for breath.
“Baekhyun. I didn’t-, I never rejected you. If that’s what you think, I never rejected you.”
“Stop. I don’t need this from you.”
“Baekhyun.” Chanyeol lets go his wrist. “What do you want us to be? If you-whatever you felt back then, if you don’t feel it anymore. That’s ok. Just, just tell me, what do you want to do?”
A bitter smile twists Baekhyun’s features. “Don’t ask me to be friends with you Chanyeol.”
“I won’t. I don’t want that.” Chanyeol advances and crowds into Baekhyun’s space. He looks up defiantly at him. “I want to touch you.”
Baekhyun looks blank for a second before his face contorts, he tries to step away. Chanyeol grabs his wrist again, a little harder, to keep him in place. “I wanted to touch you back then. I wanted a lot more than that, too.”
Baekhyun’s face turns towards Chanyeol and before he can even take a look at him, Baekhyun wrenches Chanyeol’s head down and he’s kissing him, teeth biting at Chanyeol’s bottom lips for access. When he opens up, Baekhyun muffles a pained groan into his mouth and Chanyeol swallows it messily.
“I hope you’re sober enough to take off my jeans this time.” Chanyeol forcefully separates them and drags Baekhyun in the direction of the villa.
✿
The villa is empty and dark when Kyungsoo and Jongin step in, and Kyungsoo barely gets out a “Going to wash my face” before he runs upstairs and locks himself in the bathroom.
It might be the alcohol in his system, or watching the rehearsal, or being in this paradise of a city that makes him sick with anxiety. But Jongin beside him makes him light headed with giddiness. There’s a dreadful panic of wanting everything, wanting it to be perfect, wanting to be alone, surrounded by roses, wanting it to be picturesque so that he can burn that image of Jongin’s smile, a smile of getting all he deserves, into his brain forever. So that Kyungsoo can show him, how much he really loves him. But Kyungsoo’s so greedy. He wants to see it now, everyday, for the rest of his life.
So he bursts out of the bathroom, and sees Jongin sitting by the edge of their bed, fiddling with his hands, and he just steps into the doorframe, and says
“Marry me, Jongin.”
Jongin’s head whips up and Kyungsoo thinks he’s about to throw up from the rush of sudden panic up into his brain. What the fuck is he thinking? Sure, he didn’t know how to plan the perfect proposal and he was about to bust a nerve worrying over it, but this, this was the furthest thing from perfect. Not spontaneous and romantic, just random. Kyungsoo frowns hard, wondering how to suck all of his words back in.
“Shit.” Jongin whispers, and Kyungsoo momentarily extracts himself from his mental crucifixion.
“Well I uh-” Kyungsoo knows this is beyond salvage. He looks at Jongin’s slightly disbelieving and distressed face and his whole body tremors with fear. His hand that’s currently grasping the ring box in his coat pocket feels detached.
“I wanted to wait, until I planned the perfect way to ask you, but I’m horrible at this, as you can see, and I can’t really wait anymore. So I…” Kyungsoo’s voice is low and quivering, “Jongin, say something.”
Jongin stands up and walks over to Kyungsoo in the doorway, and just buries his head into Kyungsoo’s shoulder and laughs. A bubbling, transparent laugh that shakes his whole torso.
“Don’t be mad, but,” Jongin lifts his head and wraps one hand around Kyungsoo’s waist and one hand around his free hand, “I didn’t have extra classes on the day you left.”
Kyungsoo looks at him, confused. Jongin shakes his head, clearly still gleeful about something.
“I scattered all these fake flower petals on the floor, and left a trail of all the post-it notes you wrote for me to remind me of stuff, and in our bedroom I stuck them all over the wall.”
Kyungsoo stares, and Jongin doesn’t even wait for him to process before he leans in to peck his mouth. He lingers, and whispers his next words.
“It took me forever to spell out my proposal. But you took 0.3 seconds.” Jongin chuckles. His breath warm on Kyungsoo’s lips. “Yes. That’ll be a yes from me.”
✿
The wedding starts without a hitch. Junmyeon has his 2000 classic red roses scattered around the venue in an elegant manner and Jisoo is so touched she doesn’t recognize that they’re not Bourbons. Minseok doesn’t see anything but Jisoo, and everybody’s happy.
Jongdae’s speech is a success in that it managed to make Baekhyun cry, and gets something in Sehun’s eyes. Junmyeon says he did cry but kept the tears in because he has four layers of concealer under his eye and he can’t afford to ruin that effort. Yixing, Chanyeol and Jongin were gone before the speech even started, uninhibited with their joyful emotions and waterworks.
It is after the entire affair that Junmyeon stays behind with the clean up crew, and the happy couple. Jisoo’s off to collect some petals to press into her books and Minseok is there, patting Junmyeon’s back for the job well done.
“Do you… know what happened last night?” Junmyeon looks at Minseok, who shakes his head slowly.
“Well after we found out Baekhyun and Chanyeol had the hots for each other, and Yixing started making out with Luhan -”
“He what?” Junmyeon frowns, “I don’t even remember Luhan being on the beach.”
“He wasn’t, Jongdae moved the party indoors, said he was afraid of catching Baekhyun and Chanyeol behind a log or something.”
“Oh my god, I don’t remember any of that.”
“You said something about blowing the delivery guy if he showed up with the roses at all, and then you wept on me, apologizing.”
“Jesus H. Christ.” Junmyeon groans, his hangover coming back with a vengeance.
“Be glad you blacked out at the hotel. Sehun was the only one that went back to the villa.” Minseok grimaced, “He was quite traumatized.”
Junmyeon lifts his head, not really understanding.
“Anyway, looks like you’ll have two more weddings to plan.” Minseok pats him on the back jovially.
End.
Title: Bourbons, speeches, and other crises
Genre: Romance, fluff, ensemble
Rating: PG-15
Side Pairings (if any): Baekyeol
Warnings: [Click to view]Profanities
Word Count: 7.8K
Summary: Junmyeon picks them up from the Nice International airport with one of those vans that look like a metal cart on wheels.
Author's Note: To my recipient, this was so self-indulgent and hastily put together that I can’t even begin to apologize. I hope you enjoy, even if a little.
Junmyeon picks them up from the Nice International airport with one of those vans that look like a metal cart on wheels. Sehun positively blanches and Yixing has to awkwardly fold his legs to accommodate their luggage, haphazardly forced in from every direction. Kyungsoo’s practically sitting on Sehun and of course, Baekhyun has claimed shotgun.
Junmyeon struggles with the stick shift for only a moment before they get on the road, with the windows all rolled down for scenic appreciation. He simultaneously tries to talk over the whiplash of warm afternoon air and pausing to listen to the monotonous GPS give directions in a robotic French accent.
Baekhyun suffers this for about fifteen minutes before he reaches over from the front seat to jab his finger at the control panel on Junmyeon’s side, shutting all the windows, and effectively enclosing the vehicle in a muted silence.
“We’ll nearing Promenade des Anglais on the right soon. Up ahead, just there. I’ll take you all another day since you guys have arrived just in time for our location preview. You’ll get to see Minseok right away!”
Sehun pauses momentarily, then, “We’re not stopping by the hotel?”
Baekhyun whips his head back to mirror Sehun’s look of hopeless fatigue and agony.
Junmyeon deflects that easily with a “Where’s Jongin?” and peeks at the rearview mirror.
Kyungsoo is pulled from his trance of the passing view with a start. “He’s finishing up a few last minute classes. He’ll be on the flight tomorrow.”
Junmyeon nods and the car falls into a comfortable silence until they pull up to the destination an hour later.
It’s a private little bend carved out of a large public beachside. Sunny, with a classic Nice glow and undeniably romantic, the light deflecting off of the water to filter the place with warmth. Minseok is there, with his soon-to-be bride and mother-in-law, while a small team scatters about, sizing up the location with chairs and a few sample decorations. Junmyeon rushes to them immediately, taking out his tablet to confirm details and give instructions.
“You’re just missing the baguette.” Is Baekhyun’s comment when Jongdae greets them in the parking lot, hair swept up in a loose, beachy wave sort of man bun, dressed casual in a horizontal striped long sleeve tee and leather sandals.
Jongdae scoffs then kisses Baekhyun on the cheek, three times, the Southern bise, just to see Baekhyun roll his eyes with insufferable judgment and goes to hug the rest of them one by one.
“Where’s Jongin?” He pauses when he gets to Kyungsoo, and Kyungsoo responds with a slight flinch, his eyes glued to the sparkling water and little delicate white chairs.
The preview takes about an hour and they’re asked to give opinions on the location, the little lights they’re going to set up at the entrance, the card stock they’re going to put on the chairs with peoples’ names on it. When it’s all over, they’re sitting in a café, with Junmyeon and Minseok off to the side, and the rest of them exhausted and starving.
“I recall betting that Minseok would be the first to get married.” Yixing has an arm around Sehun, who blinks sleepily into his nape.
“Big surprise. He’s had marriage written on his life-goals calendar since he was thirteen.” Jongdae has his head buried in his notebook, on which he is furiously scribbling and scratching out from time to time.
“Unfathomable.” Baekhyun sips at his espresso like it’s rat poison. “The rest of us were still jerking off to Tarzan at that age.”
“That was definitely just you, Baekhyun.” Yixing slowly mutters with a distasteful frown, the same time as Sehun chokes on a cough that morphs into a disbelieving laugh. Kyungsoo chuckles along half-heartedly.
It feels bizarre already, sitting with half the gang from college, and will no doubt feel stranger when the rest of them get here. Kyungsoo has seen them at some point, in the six years since graduation, but never all together, and he sharply recognizes the familiarity in their group dynamic, and changes in their persons. It’s barely different, he concludes, sitting in a French café instead of their usual haunt in Sehun’s basement, now people with careers instead of exams, marriages instead of movie dates. He turns to his right to look at Jongin, only to realize he wasn’t there yet, and he wonders if Jongin will feel the same once he’s here. This particular brand of nostalgia.
Junmyeon suddenly appears in a panic, Minseok in tow, his eyes blown wide with worry and in the gravest tone, he delivers, “The rose dealer just called. The Old Garden Bourbons might not get here in time.” The way his voice nearly cracks suggest the sheer devastation of this news, and he waits for Minseok’s reaction.
Baekhyun beats him to it.
“For fuck’s sake! Not the Bourbons!”
✿
It’s evening when Kyungsoo wakes up from his nap. He groggily walks through the villa and spots Jongdae out on the veranda. He grabs two beers from the fridge and walks over, pausing for a bit to look at some sort of procession on the streets right below. A religious ceremony? Or maybe a festival. It’s lively, with lights and firework and people mingling about. Then, a touch away, is the sea, with the last orange hues of sunset streaming in. Seems quite surreal, and Kyungsoo watches on with wonder, a little lost in this foreign city.
Jongdae is still glaring at his notebook with some consternation.
“Finalizing the best man speech?” Kyungsoo passes him a beer, and Jongdae receives it with a grunt and a wipe over his face.
“I’ve been working on it for months. What do you say about a guy who used to wipe his boogers on your bunk bed and lift girls’ skirts together?”
Kyungsoo chuckles. “Going for a serious tone, then?”
Jongdae shrugs, “Can’t exactly stand up and toast to how Minseok used to piss on Cheung’s office window during winter so that it would be stuck until it either melted on it’s own, or -”
“Professor Cheung would blow dry it off himself.”
Jongdae and Kyungsoo both laugh into their beer bottles, and the sound is young and crisp.
“You could gift him a poem?” Kyungsoo is vaguely sure that is Jongdae’s career. Writer? Lyricist? Something that lets him strut around, confident and mysterious, with shoulder length permed hair and those round vintage glasses with no actual lenses.
“Baekhyun would have a field day.” Jongdae grimaces, “Besides, I was saving my newly penned sonnets for your wedding.” Kyungsoo can sense the wiggle in Jongdae’s brows even before he sees it.
“I -”
“Thought you planned to do it before March.”
Kyungsoo looks at him, agape. “How the hell do you know that?”
Jongdae blinks, “To be honest, I thought you guys got hitched junior year. What could you possibly be waiting for?”
Kyungsoo opens and closes his mouth like a fish. He’s been away from Jongdae for too long, enough to feel attacked by his bluntness. He tips his beer back and turns around when he hears the fridge open.
Baekhyun approaches with a beer in his hand, crossing onto the veranda with feline leisure. “What are we drinking to?”
Kyungsoo is rather uneasy that Jongdae will bring up Jongin in front of Baekhyun. If there were anyone who would assert themselves over personal affairs, it’d be successful, award-winning corporate-consultant-slash-motivation-extraordinaire Byun Baekhyun.
Thankfully, though, Jongdae frowns at Baekhyun’s low cut navy silk pajamas, showing off a pale slab of chest, “Why do you always look like you just had the most amazing sex?”
Baekhyun tears his lips from the beer bottle with a pop, and his laugh is loud and crystal.
“Thanks,” he ruffles his bed-roused hair some more, playing up his obvious charm. “Speaking of sex though, I hope you’re planning the bachelor party right. I want booze. Mediterranean food. A few of those hot guys we saw at the beach today.”
“Save it,” Jongdae scoffs. “Minseok wants tame and quiet.”
“Ugh, not even a moment of joyful abandon before servitude.”
“He is marrying a kindergarten teacher.” Kyungsoo reminds.
“So? I want the exciting Minseok! The Minseok when he proposed! You know, with all those rose petals and those little chubby kids holding up signs. The only thing missing from that was a goddamn film crew.”
Kyungsoo blanches. He whips to Jongdae. “That’s how he proposed?”
Jongdae looks up from the notepad, “Oh. Yeah.” Missing the slight distress on Kyungsoo’s face. Baekhyun carried on, recounting the experience as if it were his own, no doubt having squeezed it out of Minseok the moment he heard about the engagement.
Kyungsoo’s phone buzzes, and it’s Jongin, as if somehow he escaped the confines of Kyungsoo’s private thoughts and has materialized, on the other end of the call. He shoots the other two a look, and picks up.
“Hey. Yeah we’re settled in. Hmm. Don’t forget to pack shorts, and to check in online. Do you want me to call? Ok, don’t forget. Set two alarms just in case. Ok. Hmm. Me too.”
Kyungsoo turns and both of their eyes are on him; he blushes under their knowing gaze. He hates it, the way Baekhyun smiles but says nothing.
“When are their flights landing again?” Jongdae leads the three of them back in, shutting the veranda doors. It’s getting dark out.
“7pm.”
“And Chanyeol is catching the same flight right?” Jongdae throws the notebook on the couch and sits down along with it. “I’ll go get them. Wanna come with?” He tilts his head towards Baekhyun.
“Nah.” Baekhyun says, rather quiet, and strides away.
“I… think I’ll just wait here too. No point in taking up space in the van.” Kyungsoo mutters as he walks towards the stairs, and Jongdae frowns in confusion.
He’s left all alone, though, so his aggressive little, “Fine. Okay, then.” is said to no one in particular.
✿
The French, well perhaps the Niçois, especially, knows the secret to a good morning. A late morning, Baehyun muses, as he gets up at a time when only brunch is appropriate, feeling pleasantly well rested and languid.
He makes himself an Americano (diluting the espresso himself, since that’s all their machine seems to know how to make) and stirs in his sugar and milk while trying sprawled on the couch.
Sehun and Yixing are finishing up breakfast, with Yixing bent over a map while Sehun is browsing on his phone, no doubt looking up locations with good photo-op. It’s a free day today, until later this evening, when other two get here.
Baekhyun revels in the quiet. But not for long because Junmyeon struts in, looking like he hasn’t slept at all, his phone gripped in one hand and his tablet in the other.
“You look like shit.” Sehun looks up from his phone.
“The Bourbons are stuck in Morocco. Unfortunately there’s not enough time to get a chartered plane to pick up the delivery, so I had to get them to put the Bourbons on a truck, and hopefully they’ll drive them in time for the ceremony. They will definitely not make the rehearsals, and this really puts off the whole visual, the team will just have to - ”
“Breathe. You’ll be fine. The roses will be here.” Baekhyun watches him collapse on the couch.
“I have more bad news. Well this is nothing compared to the Bourbons, but, there’s a roof problem with the villa. City officials just contacted us and apparently last night some idiot threw a firecracker up there. They hadn’t found it so now for safety reasons no one’s allowed to be in the top two suites.”
“What?” Baekhyun is suddenly alert. Where is he going to stay, then?
Junmyeon looks apologetically at Baekhyun, then at Yixing. “Well, since Jongin and Kyungsoo are in one room already. I thought… why not have everyone in their old college rooming arrangements? A blast from the past!” Junmyeon says, inserting a little cheerfulness into his tired voice.
“So, Yixing, you’ll squeeze with Sehun.”
Yixing and Sehun both nod apathetically, not seeming to mind in the least.
“And Baekhyun - ”
“I’ll take the couch.” Baekhyun pats the cushion beside him firmly, a starchy smile pasted on.
“But why? The bed’ll fit you and -”
“I said I’ll take the couch.”
Junmyeon opens his mouth to say more, but the front door swings open and Kyungsoo walks in. Simultaneously, Jongdae slowly waddles down the stairs. There’s a pause before Junmyeon and Baekhyun both voice out confused,
“Where were you?” “I thought you were upstairs?”
“I was with Minseok.” Kyungsoo’s reply. “I was upstairs.” Jongdae’s reply.
There’s suddenly a cacophony of voices as the three of them talk over each other, and Kyungsoo interrupts with “Minseok needs to see you two.” He nods towards Jongdae and Junmyeon.
Junmyeon stands and leaves with an awkward, “Well, um, we’ll sort out the rooming later. Also remember, rehearsal’s tomorrow. In the morning.”
✿
Kyungsoo hears them pull up into the driveway and he’s weirdly nervous to see Jongin.
He hears Chanyeol’s laugh all the way from the door, and when he steps out, they already have their suitcases out of the car, with Jongin facing away from the entrance. It is almost sunset, and the sky’s a subdued violet and orange. The light plays on his soft brown hair for a split second before he turns around.
He turns and smiles, “Hey, you.”
“Hi.” Kyungsoo sighs; unable to suppress the tingles in his stomach whenever he sees him. Kyungsoo walks over, to help with the suitcase, before Jongin grabs him in a hug, arms encircling his waist to bring him in gently.
“Oh my god. It’s been what, 18 hours?” Jongdae groans from the side, and is ignored while Jongin mouths I missed you into Kyungsoo’s nape. It tickles. Kyungsoo laughs.
Kyungsoo pulls away when he hears a shutter click and sees Chanyeol’s camera pointed straight at them, the tall goof bent in an awkward position with one leg sticking out and the DSLR covering his entire face save those pointed ears.
Chanyeol looks up from the lens, his eyes bright with zero trace of travel fatigue, when his head whips over to the entrance.
“Baekhyunnie!”
Baekhyun leans on the doorframe, his arms crossed in front of him, when Chanyeol hops over like a bunny on speed, immediately grabbing him for a bear hug that lifts Baekhyun to his tiptoes.
“Put me the fuck down.” Baekhyun grumbles, smoothing his palms over his crisp white dress shirt after Chanyeol lets go of him with a grin.
“Where’s Minseok?” Chanyeol strides back to rolls his massive suitcase inside.
“You’ll see him tomorrow at rehearsal. They’re already in honeymoon mode.”
“Sehun and Xing?”
“Sightseeing? They’ll be back for dinner.”
“Awesome! Oh, this is going to be great! I haven’t seen everyone together in such a long time.” Chanyeol beams. “Especially you, Baekhyunnie.”
Baekhyun is silent, lagging behind with Kyungsoo and Jongin.
Jongin’s fingers latches with Kyungsoo’s, and they feel warm and steady, threading the empty spaces between Kyungsoo’s knuckles. Kyungsoo peeks at him from the side, and stares a little at the way his bangs sweep right above his eyes, and how his full lips stretch over his teeth when he laughs at something Jongdae said. He sees it often. And that thought makes his chest ache, makes him want to call his name.
So he does, just to see Jongin turn his eyes on him, with a little curious hum and a brief tightening of his fingers.
Kyungsoo leans over, and pecks his mouth.
Jongin’s smile is so smug. It makes Kyungsoo want to kiss him again.
Baekhyun frowns behind them, and pushes past Jongin to lazily stride towards the stairs with a yawn. They look after him inquiringly.
“He’s probably just hungry.” Jongdae says. Then to Chanyeol and Jongin, “Go change or wash up if you want to. We’re leaving for dinner after.”
✿
They all take a stroll after dinner, on the famous Promenade, and Junmyeon fully commits to his tour guide duties, starting with useful information on what year the street lamps were built, and how much they cost.
Sehun and Yixing stop frequently to take pictures of the glittering ocean. It’s dark, though, so Jongdae’s not really sure how much of the scenery they’ll capture, but with the poses they’re striking, he suspects they’re 80% selfies anyway.
There are performances, all along the walk, artists too, who lay out their paintings and creations on tarps. It’s jovial and animated in a calm, pleasant way, but Kyungsoo isn’t really paying attention.
The last time Kyungsoo and Jongin travelled to Europe, it was their senior year in college. Jongin surprised him with a ticket before spring break, whisking him away to Amsterdam, Paris, and Bruges for the week, simply because Kyungsoo had been miserable the entire semester, stressing out about his CPA certification. Kyungsoo had initially been revolted at the idea of spending a precious week of cramming time travelling, and couldn’t understand Jongin’s ‘drop-everything-and-go’ attitude. Jongin was contradictory that way, carefree, romantic, spontaneous. But so careful and sensitive. These clumsy grand gestures of love that he fills with delicate moments, with a subtle kindness that makes Kyungsoo’s head spin. Makes him want to give Jongin everything he deserves.
Jongin squeezes his hand and Kyungsoo looks up.
“What’s on your mind?” Jongin says, his eyes shimmering with the reflection of passing cars.
“Nothing.” Kyungsoo smiles and glances at some of the street artists they’re passing by, seemingly absorbed.
Jongin doesn’t press, and instead, just walks closer to Kyungsoo, sticking their wound hands into his jacket pocket.
It is getting rather chilly, seaside. It’s a surprise Baekhyun isn’t complaining, given his thin dress shirt and his abhorrence of the cold.
When Baekhyun visibly shivers, Chanyeol wrestles a moment with his thick hoodie before it’s off.
“Baekhyunnie, here.” His hoodie is offered in an outstretched hand accompanied by a wild grin, with all of his flawless teeth on display. An intimidating show of glee.
Baekhyun snorts, and walks on without a pause, latching his arm to Jongdae’s, and the latter looks at him with a raised brow.
“Even if I was dying from hypothermia, I would rather burn a hoodie to keep warm than wear it.” Baekhyun said to Jongdae, with a voice that carried over to the rest of them.
Chanyeol retracts his arm mechanically and puts his hoodie back on with a laugh. He picks up his pace, and when he strides past Baekhyun and catches up with Junmyeon at the front.
Jongdae stares at Baekhyun like he grew a second head but says nothing, choosing instead to glance at Chanyeol, who has his DSLR up now, occasionally taking pictures of the promenade, and occasionally, Junmyeon.
Junmyeon is relaxed, speaking about the lamps and how the promenade was originally built for the migrating beggars, when his phone rings, he picks up immediately after looking at the ID.
It’s not good news, apparently, as Junmyeon begins to spit vulgarities in French. At least Chanyeol thinks it’s French, as Junmyeon venomously rolls his r’s like he’s trying to growl.
Jongin is visibly confused and when Sehun leans over and whispers, like a curse, “It’s the Bourbons”, it doesn’t explain much.
Junmyeon hangs up with a rage. “The truck driver warned that they might get stopped at customs because local drug rings have a habit of secretly stowing narcotics in these smaller shipping trucks and if they do get stuck at the border, or if god forbid the roads get a little too bumpy, we’ll get a bunch of wilted or crushed petals!”
His voice rises with distress in a crescendo, but Baekhyun seems to be the one more frustrated by all this.
“Just forget about the roses, Junmyeon.” The annoyance in Baekhyun’s voice is somewhat eclipsed by his lips trembling from the cold. “They don’t matter.”
“They do.” Kyungsoo says, surprising everyone. But he’s resolute, and he stares at Junmyeon, determined. “They do. It should be perfect.”
✿
“Is something happening that I don’t know about?” Jongdae says to Sehun, when they get back to the villa. Everyone’s off to their own rooms, getting ready for sleep. They have an early day tomorrow and the bachelor party’s also in the evening.
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know. They seem different. Or acting strange, a little.”
Sehun shrugs, bouncing onto couch face down and lying there, limp. “It’s the wedding. Everyone’s excited.”
“No, not everyone. Kyungsoo’s so out of it, and Ba-”
Jongdae hears someone coming down the stairs and he’s almost scared out of his skin to see Baekhyun, in an oversized tee covering about half his thighs, carrying a blanket and a pillow. And Jongdae watches Baekhyun walk over to the couch and dump his stuff down.
“Move.” He says to Sehun, who lifts a questioning head.
“This is my bed.” Baekhyun says, and Sehun shifts away so that Baekhyun can hastily pat some sheets down. Jongdae is rather confused.
Chanyeol appears on the top of the stairway, freshly out of shower with a towel dangling off his shoulders. “Baekhyunnie?”
Sehun tells Jongdae about the roof problem and new rooming arrangements while Chanyeol comes down the stairs. Jongdae’s not really listening, because something’s happening. And he’s witnessing it.
Baekhyun turns to Chanyeol and smiles. “You take the bed. I’ll just crash on the couch.”
“Why? Baekhyunnie, we could just share the bed.”
“You could use a good night’s sleep, Chanyeol, you’ve travelled and went out with us tonight.”
“But I…”
“You also kick, remember? It’s ok, I’ll just take the couch.” Finality is in his voice and Baekhyun pats Chanyeol on the side of his face with patronizing levity.
Chanyeol looks dejected, standing there with his bangs dripping onto his face and neck, and he opens his mouth as if to say something, but closes it instead, and mumbles a rather defeated “Goodnight, then.”
Jongdae narrows his eyes and drags Chanyeol off to the veranda, after he grabs two beers from the kitchen. Sehun joins them.
“Can’t wait to hear the speech.” Chanyeol is the first one to speak, peering at Jongdae with a renewed brightness.
“I haven’t written it.” Jongdae says.
Chanyeol stares at him in disbelief. “Jongdae, the rehearsal’s tomorrow and the wedding’s the day after.”
“You sound just like my editor.” Jongdae cringes at the thought. “Anyway, where have you been this past year?”
Sehun chimes in, “Africa this time? No wait, Antarctica.”
Chanyeol beams at Sehun, “Yes, with the penguins! I saw some great stuff up there. Do you want to see? I could grab my laptop!”
Jongdae laughs, “It’s okay, Chanyeol, we’ll just support you by getting the actual magazine when it comes out.”
“As if you own a single copy of the National Geographic.” Sehun snorts.
“Thanks, man.” Chanyeol says nonetheless. “Although I’m still miffed that Minseok didn’t ask me to be his best man.” He jokes, because it was Chanyeol who introduced Minseok to Jongdae, back then when six year olds from different kindergarten classes had to be introduced.
Jongdae chuckles. “Don’t worry, you’ll get to be Kyungsoo’s best man.”
“When he asks.” Chanyeol looks at Sehun coyly, and Sehun shrugs.
“I really thought he was going to do it in March.”
“Did Jongin think so too?” Jongdae asks.
Sehun shakes his head. “Nah, he’s clueless about this kind of stuff. He did bring it up once though.”
Both heads turn to him, curious.
“Not about proposing. Just mentioned Minseok’s engagement and choked on his own spit when I asked him where he would go for his wedding.”
Chanyeol smirks, “I wonder why they’re being such kids about it.”
“Speaking of being kids, what’s up with you and Baekhyun?”
Chanyeol almost spits, and Sehun scoffs with a “Nice segue.”
Chanyeol looks at Jongdae, and his offended look is half part betrayed, half part wounded. He softens though, almost immediately, and looks down into his beer.
“I honestly don’t know.” Chanyeol says, lightly. “I haven’t seen him in four years.”
“I know he’s been busy. And I have been too. But we just kind of lost contact after college and I-” He pauses. “I was looking forward to seeing him again.”
“What did you do?” Jongdae narrows his eyes.
“Nothing! I swear! It wasn’t me this time. At least it wasn’t anything I remember. God,” Chanyeol wipes a hand over his face, “it seems like he fucking hates me.”
Sehun pats Chanyeol on the shoulder. “No, he doesn’t hate you. He’s just in a bad mood. It’s Baekhyun, he’ll get over it tomorrow.”
“Can I suggest something?” Jongdae says. “Don’t… try to compensate and follow him like a puppy. It’ll just aggravate him more.”
Chanyeol frowns, looking genuinely pissed this time. “I wasn’t going to do that.”
Kyungsoo can hear their murmurs from the open window in his room and he shifts on the bed, eyes wide open.
Jongin stirs and Kyungsoo holds his breath, wishing he didn’t wake him.
“Can’t sleep?” Jongin mumbles, and Kyungsoo sighs apologetically into the darkness.
“Something’s on your mind.” It’s not a question this time.
“I’ve just been thinking,” Kyungsoo says, quiet, “about the past.”
Jongin moves and an arms snakes around Kyungsoo’s middle so Jongin can snuggle closer to him. He smells like familiar mint and their laundry detergent. Kyungsoo heart pounds and his mind whirrs.
“When we were all single and broke.” Kyungsoo finishes and it draws a sleepy chuckle from Jongin, deep and rumbly.
Kyungsoo turns onto his side and starts to trace Jongin’s face with his eyes. Kyungsoo is thinking about those two years, freshman and sophomore, before him and Jongin finally crossed the line and started dating. He can’t remember, for the life of him, what had happened. Had he confessed first? What on earth gave him the courage to tell that mysterious, hot dance major with the faraway look in his eyes how he’d felt? How on earth had Jongin said yes? He wants to ask, but he doesn’t. All he can seem to remember is their first date. All of the rain, and the cheap alcohol.
“Do you remember,” Kyungsoo starts, and Jongin hums after a pause, “how I went to grab a beer and then just came back empty handed and told you I might be in love with you?” He says, with no context.
Jongin smiles though, with his eyes shut and his voice is slightly cracked when he says, “Our first date.”
“You were still kind of bummed out because you had this elaborate night out in mind and then it started pouring and we had to go into that beat up Irish pub.”
“But then you cheered me right up.”
“Sometimes I wish it had gone differently though.” Kyungsoo brings himself a little closer, and finds Jongin’s fingers with his own.
“Why?” Jongin blinks awake now, and looks at him through clouded eyes.
“A little less drunk, maybe. A little less rowdy, less men trying to squeeze us out of the booth. Somewhere quiet, with flowers.”
Jongin smiles, and intertwines their hands under the blanket. “That sounds like what I had planned. But it was perfect, the way it was.”
Kyungsoo looks at him, at his sleepy grin, the way his cheek is squished into the blanket and it makes his grin slightly lopsided, and he imagines what his expression would have been on that day if Kyungsoo had told him he loved him, instead of yelled it at him in the pub. Kyungsoo can’t remember what his expression was. He was too drunk and his heart too fast to even hear Jongin’s response. But he had woken up in Jongin’s arms and it hadn’t mattered then.
“You nervous?” Jongin runs his thumb along Kyungsoo’s. “About tomorrow?”
“No.” Kyungsoo doesn’t lie.
“Hmm. It seems like everyone’s pretty strung up.”
“Jongdae’s going through a writer’s block. Junmyeon has a crisis with the roses, and Baekhyun, well, Baekhyun has things to sort out.”
Jongin doesn’t reply, and from the way his breath is evened out, he’s fallen asleep. He must have been exhausted from the flight and dinner.
“They just want it to be perfect.” Kyungsoo whispers, and takes one more longing glance at Jongin before he turns onto his back and stares at the ceiling.
✿
Junmyeon is pacing, his eyes bloodshot, as the small team is moving things around and Junmyeon’s assistant, a very efficient and cheerful man called Luhan, is having the small crowd of wedding guests practice the entrance and telling them where they’ll be seated. Jongdae puts a hand on his back, and it almost startles him enough to yelp, before he spins around and sees Jongdae in a similar tired state.
“How many cups of espresso have you had?” Jongdae asks.
“Five. You?”
“Don’t remember.”
Junmyeon doesn’t ask about the speech. Jongdae doesn’t mention the roses.
The weather is gorgeous, and the morning air is fresh with the salty tang of the sea. Minseok and Jisoo are being guided to stand under the arched trellis and Minseok looks devastatingly handsome in his wedding suit and his bride is glowing with happiness. Luhan stands beside them and goes over the choreography, and then once to the guests as well. It’s a quick run-through, he explains, just to practice the entrance, exit, places and timing.
Sehun only catches the part where they’ll serve lunch afterwards and Yixing’s asking a bunch of questions to Luhan, in what Jongin suspects is flirting. Chanyeol is all over the place, taking so many pictures already, and has managed to take Jongdae’s advice to keep away from Baekhyun. But Baekhyun is... more irritable than yesterday.
“The sand’s fucking everywhere.” He takes off his Louboutin oxfords and shakes them with annoyance.
“Focus on the European men over there. With those biceps.” Jongdae quips, and true to his word, Junmyeon’s little team is currently glistening under the sun with their black muscle shirts and tight jeans. But Baekhyun doesn’t take the bait.
“I hope to god the wedding isn’t going to be this early.” He grumbles, and Sehun shifts a seat down, sensing the ominous energy from Baekhyun’s demeanor.
“I’m sweating like a whore in church.” Baekhyun grabs at his tie and suddenly there’s a click, the sound magnified tenfold as Baekhyun tilt his head up.
Chanyeol’s standing there, slowly lowering his camera and Sehun gulps.
“You look great today, Baekhyun.” Chanyeol says, politely. Jongdae groans and covers his eyes with a hand.
“You would look even better with a smile.” Chanyeol shows Baekhyun the picture, but Baekhyun ignores the camera screen, “It’s Minseok’s happy day!”
“I didn’t ask for your advice.” Baekhyun bites out, cold, detached. “Why don’t you make yourself useful somewhere else?”
Chanyeol’s gaze shifts from surprised, to confused and wounded, and to frustrated in a matter of seconds. All there, displayed on his expressive face. Jongdae stands, as to physically cut the tension, and thankfully, Luhan’s voice calls out, right then, “Okay, everyone, we’re running through the ceremony!”
They resume their seats, and with that Chanyeol is gone, off with his camera. Jongdae eyes Sehun with a hard look to get him to shift one seat back, next to Baekhyun and Baekhyun looks on, emotionless. But there’s a firm set to the corners of his lips and his hands are clasped tightly in his lap. Restrained.
The mock ceremony starts and there’s music. Everyone turn their heads down the aisle where Jisoo’s in a beautiful white summery dress with bare feet and she’s clutching her dad’s hand as Luhan directs the pace of their walking to the music. Minseok’s face is about to crack from his smile and he stuffs his hands into his jean pockets to hide their slight tremble.
Kyungsoo is mesmerized. The sun is vivid with a clear luster and the sea reflects it with every calm wave washing in. The atmosphere is intimate and lighthearted, and Kyungsoo feels it, everyone’s genuine well wishes and delight for the couple. It’s like the real thing, on the real day, and Kyungsoo can see it. The rose petals on the sand, forming the aisle and how Jisoo’s train will catch on them, pooling them beneath her wedding dress and how the pink will peek underneath. Kyungsoo can see her coming down the aisle, as if he were Minseok, standing under the bridal arch, with a smile so wide it hurt, watching the love of his life walk towards him and towards the rest of their life together. Kyungsoo’s chest aches and he doesn’t dare to turn to look at Jongin. His breath fastens and he doesn’t realize he’s clenching his hands. All he can think about is how perfect this is. How wonderful. How it overwhelms him with want.
After the rehearsal, everyone’s shuffling from the beach to the lunch venue not far inland and Jongdae sees Baekhyun peel away.
“Baekhyun.” Jongdae calls after him and Baekhyun picks up his pace.
“Baekhyun!” He grabs him a little, just so Baekhyun stops and turns around. They stand, at a part where the sand fades into the road.
Baekhyun looks exhausted, more exhausted than Jongdae feels, having stayed up the night before, fretting over the speech, or lack thereof. Jongdae abandons what he was going to say. Baekhyun sees the concern in his eyes.
“I’m getting some air, Jongdae.” He says, as if he hadn’t spent the morning outdoors, in the brilliant sunshine and sea breeze.
Jongdae nods, with a little frown.
“The bachelor party’s at nine pm. Back here.”
“I’ll see you then.” Baekhyun says, and turns to go.
Jongdae sees Kyungsoo and Jongin lagging behind the group with Junmyeon. They seem to be comforting him, and Jongdae goes to them.
“I’ve placed an emergency side order for red Classics. They could only prepare 2000 with such notice and it’ll have to do.” Junmyeon says, sounding thoroughly defeated.
“There’s still a chance the Bourbons will get here in time.” Kyungsoo adds, looking anxious enough for all of them.
“Even if they don’t, it’s okay.” Jongin says. “It’s not the roses that make the wedding. If you saw how happy Minseok was today then you know, you’ve done a great job, and he will remember tomorrow as the happiest day, with or without the roses.”
Junmyeon smiles and ruffles Jongin’s hair with an affectionate hand, while Kyungsoo’s gaze lingers on Jongin long after, eyes swimming with warmth.
✿
In the end, the bachelor party does not live up to Baekhyun’s expectations. It is a gentle, cozy affair, with a beach bon fire and nine men with an ample supply of alcohol. Minseok insists that he is very happy with it, so eventually Baekhyun stops trying to goad him into chastising Jongdae for a ‘lazy, crappy effort’, and everyone tries to drink like teenagers.
“I’m at an age where I’m sleepy after my third beer.” As if to demonstrate his point, Yixing yawns and chugs the rest of his drink.
“We need shots.” Jongdae says and helpfully pours tequila into red solo cups that amusingly reminds him of younger days.
“How did we ever drink without food? I’d kill for some noodles right now.” Sehun rubs his stomach ruefully.
“Ugh, I miss home cooked meals. Haven’t had one in days.” Says Minseok, and Jongin laughs. “You’ll have your share after tomorrow, Minseok.” Junmyeon shakes his head and mumbles something about a ‘natural born family man’.
They all recount this morning’s rehearsal to Minseok with fondness, cutting out the parts with tension and crises.
“I hope you’re not writing an epic.” He says to Jongdae, since at the rehearsal today, when Luhan called on him to make the speech, or give a little preview of it at lunch, he had said he wanted to keep it as a surprise.
“Damn it,” Jongdae chuckles, a little weakly, “you should have told me before the hundred-thousand couplet.”
Minseok laughs too, good-naturedly, before his voice turns soft. “Good. I asked you because you were always the best at bullshitting. Like the way you wrote that literary journal’s top entry the night before on the toilet. Whatever it is, I’m sure it’ll be half poetic and half junk and I won’t be able to tell which is which. Don’t stress over it, Dae.”
Jongdae guffaws, this rich, high-pitched yodel, and they drink some more. And more.
Kyungsoo is quiet, and he’s not really focused on the party, the way he swishes his drink around and stares, dazed, into the fire. He feels a headache coming, from all of this thinking, and Jongin is worried. He stays quietly beside him.
Kyungsoo sees Junmyeon get up from the circle and take a call, and suddenly all of his frustration, his anxiety and apprehension culminate into a moment of decision. He stands, and grabs Jongin with him, and everybody looks at them in surprise.
Kyungsoo excuses him and Jongin, citing a headache, and Minseok only has to look at Kyungsoo briefly to nod understandingly, ignoring everybody’s pleas and complaints for them to stay. They take off, in the direction of the villa, and what is left is silence.
It would have been a comfortable silence except for the startling quiet of Baekhyun and Chanyeol, usually loquacious and rowdy, and it taints the atmosphere with awkward tension.
Baekhyun speaks first, “I think I might head in as well.”
Chanyeol perks up and before Jongdae can even see the challenge in his eyes, he says, “What happened to you?”
“What could you possibly be so pissed off about? That you walk around with this attitude. Being this bitter.”
Sehun’s eyes shift between them in panic. The circle is still, except for the crackling of the fire and distant gentle waves that surround them.
Baekhyun’s anger rises like magma. “Fuck off. You don’t fucking know me.”
Chanyeol stands and before Yixing can blink, his fist is in Baekhyun’s collar lifting him up and the impact makes them all scramble up.
“Then who are you?!” Chanyeol spits, his hands shaking Baekhyun and the expensive material of Baekhyun’s shirt crumbles into Chanyeol’s fist like paper.
Baekhyun punches him, and it’s clumsy because of the angle and their proximity so Chanyeol just ends up losing his grip and balance and falling, taking Baekhyun with him, in a heap of limbs and sand.
The five of them stand around like statutes, not knowing what to do, how to intervene. A part of Jongdae refuses to process that Chanyeol and Baekhyun is in a physical brawl.
“Get the fuck off me!” Comes Baekhyun’s enraged roar, and Chanyeol is on top of him, currently pressing Baekhyun’s swinging arms down with harsh hands and his cheek is already red and swelling when he yells back.
“Say it to my face Baekhyun and stop fucking with me!”
Baekhyun stops struggling. His hair is a mess and there’s sand in his mouth and under his shirt and pants. He looks Chanyeol dead in the eyes, and there’s hatred shining beneath.
“Don’t force me to stay friends with you, after you’ve rejected me.”
Chanyeol freezes, and he pulls back, his hands releasing Baekhyun from underneath him. Baekhyun shoves him away and they stumble up. Chanyeol looks like he’s been punched in the gut from the way he wobbles.
“What?” Chanyeol chokes out, voice small.
And suddenly Baekhyun is angry again, “Don’t pretend like it didn’t happen!” His voice is cracking with revulsion and desperation. “You knew. At the after-grad party.”
Chanyeol only pauses for a second before the memory twists his face into absurd incredulity. “What-”
“I threw myself at you!”
“We were both drunk out of our minds! You tried to blow me in Amber’s bathroom and you were shaking so hard you couldn’t even open my jeans!”
There’s suddenly a full silence, as their chests heave and the five people around them reel from the development.
“Holy fuck.” Jongdae whispers before he could stop himself.
That snaps Baekhyun out of it.
“Fuck you.” He spits, and turns to leave. He’s halfway off of the beachfront when Chanyeol snaps out of it too and sprints after him.
“Baekhyun, Baekhyun.” He calls, and Baekhyun’s running shadow in the night is a blurry blob under the moonlight. “Baekhyunnie!”
He finally grabs hold of his wrist and they stop, both gasping for breath.
“Baekhyun. I didn’t-, I never rejected you. If that’s what you think, I never rejected you.”
“Stop. I don’t need this from you.”
“Baekhyun.” Chanyeol lets go his wrist. “What do you want us to be? If you-whatever you felt back then, if you don’t feel it anymore. That’s ok. Just, just tell me, what do you want to do?”
A bitter smile twists Baekhyun’s features. “Don’t ask me to be friends with you Chanyeol.”
“I won’t. I don’t want that.” Chanyeol advances and crowds into Baekhyun’s space. He looks up defiantly at him. “I want to touch you.”
Baekhyun looks blank for a second before his face contorts, he tries to step away. Chanyeol grabs his wrist again, a little harder, to keep him in place. “I wanted to touch you back then. I wanted a lot more than that, too.”
Baekhyun’s face turns towards Chanyeol and before he can even take a look at him, Baekhyun wrenches Chanyeol’s head down and he’s kissing him, teeth biting at Chanyeol’s bottom lips for access. When he opens up, Baekhyun muffles a pained groan into his mouth and Chanyeol swallows it messily.
“I hope you’re sober enough to take off my jeans this time.” Chanyeol forcefully separates them and drags Baekhyun in the direction of the villa.
✿
The villa is empty and dark when Kyungsoo and Jongin step in, and Kyungsoo barely gets out a “Going to wash my face” before he runs upstairs and locks himself in the bathroom.
It might be the alcohol in his system, or watching the rehearsal, or being in this paradise of a city that makes him sick with anxiety. But Jongin beside him makes him light headed with giddiness. There’s a dreadful panic of wanting everything, wanting it to be perfect, wanting to be alone, surrounded by roses, wanting it to be picturesque so that he can burn that image of Jongin’s smile, a smile of getting all he deserves, into his brain forever. So that Kyungsoo can show him, how much he really loves him. But Kyungsoo’s so greedy. He wants to see it now, everyday, for the rest of his life.
So he bursts out of the bathroom, and sees Jongin sitting by the edge of their bed, fiddling with his hands, and he just steps into the doorframe, and says
“Marry me, Jongin.”
Jongin’s head whips up and Kyungsoo thinks he’s about to throw up from the rush of sudden panic up into his brain. What the fuck is he thinking? Sure, he didn’t know how to plan the perfect proposal and he was about to bust a nerve worrying over it, but this, this was the furthest thing from perfect. Not spontaneous and romantic, just random. Kyungsoo frowns hard, wondering how to suck all of his words back in.
“Shit.” Jongin whispers, and Kyungsoo momentarily extracts himself from his mental crucifixion.
“Well I uh-” Kyungsoo knows this is beyond salvage. He looks at Jongin’s slightly disbelieving and distressed face and his whole body tremors with fear. His hand that’s currently grasping the ring box in his coat pocket feels detached.
“I wanted to wait, until I planned the perfect way to ask you, but I’m horrible at this, as you can see, and I can’t really wait anymore. So I…” Kyungsoo’s voice is low and quivering, “Jongin, say something.”
Jongin stands up and walks over to Kyungsoo in the doorway, and just buries his head into Kyungsoo’s shoulder and laughs. A bubbling, transparent laugh that shakes his whole torso.
“Don’t be mad, but,” Jongin lifts his head and wraps one hand around Kyungsoo’s waist and one hand around his free hand, “I didn’t have extra classes on the day you left.”
Kyungsoo looks at him, confused. Jongin shakes his head, clearly still gleeful about something.
“I scattered all these fake flower petals on the floor, and left a trail of all the post-it notes you wrote for me to remind me of stuff, and in our bedroom I stuck them all over the wall.”
Kyungsoo stares, and Jongin doesn’t even wait for him to process before he leans in to peck his mouth. He lingers, and whispers his next words.
“It took me forever to spell out my proposal. But you took 0.3 seconds.” Jongin chuckles. His breath warm on Kyungsoo’s lips. “Yes. That’ll be a yes from me.”
✿
The wedding starts without a hitch. Junmyeon has his 2000 classic red roses scattered around the venue in an elegant manner and Jisoo is so touched she doesn’t recognize that they’re not Bourbons. Minseok doesn’t see anything but Jisoo, and everybody’s happy.
Jongdae’s speech is a success in that it managed to make Baekhyun cry, and gets something in Sehun’s eyes. Junmyeon says he did cry but kept the tears in because he has four layers of concealer under his eye and he can’t afford to ruin that effort. Yixing, Chanyeol and Jongin were gone before the speech even started, uninhibited with their joyful emotions and waterworks.
It is after the entire affair that Junmyeon stays behind with the clean up crew, and the happy couple. Jisoo’s off to collect some petals to press into her books and Minseok is there, patting Junmyeon’s back for the job well done.
“Do you… know what happened last night?” Junmyeon looks at Minseok, who shakes his head slowly.
“Well after we found out Baekhyun and Chanyeol had the hots for each other, and Yixing started making out with Luhan -”
“He what?” Junmyeon frowns, “I don’t even remember Luhan being on the beach.”
“He wasn’t, Jongdae moved the party indoors, said he was afraid of catching Baekhyun and Chanyeol behind a log or something.”
“Oh my god, I don’t remember any of that.”
“You said something about blowing the delivery guy if he showed up with the roses at all, and then you wept on me, apologizing.”
“Jesus H. Christ.” Junmyeon groans, his hangover coming back with a vengeance.
“Be glad you blacked out at the hotel. Sehun was the only one that went back to the villa.” Minseok grimaced, “He was quite traumatized.”
Junmyeon lifts his head, not really understanding.
“Anyway, looks like you’ll have two more weddings to plan.” Minseok pats him on the back jovially.
End.