open your heart, love is on the way
open your heart, love is on the way
kris/chanyeol; tao/instagram
6,710 words; pg-13
warning: tao is a hipster
geniune thanks to this page for teaching me the ways of the hipster. also tao is a hipster. anyway, this is scylladakylla's very late birthday present. and in my defense, at least this time i didn't post your fic a) a year late, and b) on my birthday. enjoy!
the blaring of his phone's alarm clock has kris groaning into his pillow. he lets out a noise of discontent when his phone is still blasting some awful rendition of ludacris and rolls of bed. he picks it up, and an extremely unattractive self-taken picture of zitao winking and making a peace sign greets him. he blinks at it, disoriented, before the chanting of how low can you go, how low can you go becomes too headache inducing for him to bare.
he shuts it off and heads to the bathroom, still not exactly sure why his phone is ringing at 10am on a saturday. he’s awake now, though, so he might as well get up and make an attempt to be productive.
“duizhang,” a surprised voice says, and kris turns around to see zitao in front of his door, toweling his hair. “you’re actually awake.”
kris grunts in annoyance and opens the bathroom door. “why am i awake?”
zitao looks at him like he punched a baby in the face. kris knows he probably hasn’t done anything deserving of that expression, but it’s hard not to feel guilty regardless. “you said you’d come with me to choose yixing’s cake for his birthday.”
yixing doesn’t even know when yixing’s birthday is, so kris doesn’t know exactly how he was supposed to know, but zitao still has that last-living-panda-on-earth pout, so kris just sighs and shuts the bathroom door. “i need a new roommate,” he mumbles.
three hours and half of kris’ wallet later, tao is sipping on his third pumpkin spice latte and kris is trying to figure out how much he’s going to have to starve for zitao’s apparently insatiable stomach. they haven’t even entered the bakery yet.
“do you think he’d want an ice cream cake?”
“what if we went to bakery and took a look?”
zitao makes a face at him and takes a sip. “your funmeter is starting to fall, duizhang. this is why you’re still single.”
kris scoffs at him, slightly offended. “you’re still single. that makes no sense.”
zitao sighs dreamily and looks out the window. “duizhang,” he says, completely serious, “how am i supposed to love someone else if i haven’t learned to love myself unconditionally yet?”
“did you get that from tumblr?”
“weheartit.”
kris sighs.
“hey,” zitao suddenly says, turning to face kris. “my profile looked really good there, right? can you take a picture for me? it’s for my instagram.”
kris sighs again.
small victories, kris reminds himself. he’s finally managed to get zitao into the bakery shop they were supposed to be at two hours ago. maybe if he expects nothing, he’ll be pleasantly surprised when anything happens. right now he’s silently hoping for the apocalypse.
“duizhang, do you think this looks good in a lo-fi or toaster filter?”
“did you just set those macaroons on fire?” kris asks when zitao selects the toaster filter.
zitao gives him an incredulous look. “don’t be stupid duizhang; it’s symbolic, y’know? the sweetest thing can burn you the most in the end.”
“i really hope you’re talking about calories.”
“you’re too focused on the unimportant things in life, duizhang.”
kris decides to ignore him this time. “so do you think yixing would want a chocolate cake or an ice cream cake?”
zitao is too busy trying to think up a life changing caption to answer, so kris decides to head over to the cashier to see if there’s anything better in the front. there’s no one behind the desk, so he takes it upon himself to look around and thoroughly inspect each cake and its calorie count.
dammit, zitao.
he’s leaning over the countertop to get a better look at the little cake pamphlet next to the scanner when he sees a flash of bright orange and his world is suddenly going out of focus. he registers a sharp pain in his head, and then the sound of someone else groaning.
“duizhang!” zitao shouts, suddenly by his side, “are you okay? are you hurt anywhere?”
“oh god,” an unfamiliar voice says. “i’m so sorry. did i hurt you? i swear i didn’t mean to - i didn’t see you, oh god i’m so sorry.”
kris rubs at his head and looks up to see bright orange hair and big, brown eyes peering down at him. kris is about to reply until - wait, peering down?
he hadn’t even realized that he fell onto the floor until he pushes himself back onto his feet, and even then, it’s a weird feeling because bright orange hair and big brown eyes is almost the same height as him.
bright orange hair and big brown eyes turns out to be the cashier - kris imagines he was probably behind the desk, somehow. he and zitao are both staring at him though, waiting for some type of reaction, so kris awkwardly brushes his hands on his pants and pretends to be fixing his shirt. “it’s fine,” he says gruffly. “didn’t see you.”
zitao snickers. “if it helps, that was the most graceful fall i’ve ever seen. jongin’s pirouettes had nothing on that.”
“are you sure you’re not hurt anywhere?” the cashier asks, and now that kris has gotten a good look at his face, he comes to the conclusion that the boy’s face and voice do not match. at all. he stares at bright orange hair and big brown eyes for a long moment while zitao looks between them curiously. “um,” he continues, waving a hand cautiously. “hello?” he looks at zitao helplessly. “do you think he’s having a concussion? heat stroke?”
“it’s ten degrees outside,” zitao retorts. “maybe he’s in a comatose state.”
“i would still be smarter than you in a coma,” kris says, suddenly regaining thought process. he’s realized two things: a) the cashier is really pretty, and b) his voice is like negative degrees, holy shit. “sorry,” he says. “i blanked for a second.”
“oh, okay,” he says, smiling. “and, really, really sorry about that. well, i guess... let me know if you need anything. my name is chanyeol.”
“kris,” he says, then realizes chanyeol probably doesn't care.
he stands awkwardly for a moment before zitao grabs his arms and tugs. “come on, ge, let’s go see the cakes over in the back.” kris gives chanyeol one last look before he follows zitao away. “so,” zitao says when they’re out of earshot. “that’s your type? cute.”
“shut up, hipster,” kris snorts. he reads over the label of a few cakes before he realizes he doesn’t give a fuck about cakes or sweets or whatever. zitao, on the other hand, is excited enough for the both of them.
“what do you think, red velvet or chocolate?”
“i don’t care,” kris mumbles.
“what?”
“red velvet, i said,” kris says, sighing. “i’m going to go buy coffee or something. this is way too early for me to be awake.”
“it’s like two in the afternoon, ge.”
“exactly,” kris replies and heads to the front. “take your time.” he approaches the counter hesitantly and glances around for chanyeol again. he isn't anywhere in sight, however, so kris is resigned to just staring at the menu.
“i,” someone says dangerously close to kris’ ear, “really recommend the caramel delight.”
kris tries his best not to look like he’s about to jump and scream bloody murder. “w-what?” he asks, taking a step or two backwards.
chanyeol gives him a wide smile. “you were looking for a while.”
“uh,” kris mumbles. “sure? yeah, okay - one of that.”
it doesn’t hit kris until he’s handed a cup that caramel probably means sweet, and kris hates sweet. “what kind of cake would you recommend, anyway?” he asks casually, hoping to stall as much as he can so the coffee gets cold and he has a reason not to drink it. “i don’t really trust my friend back there.”
"um," chanyeol says, thoughtful. "well, i could show you what the bakery favorites are. most people really like the double chocolate cake. and then there's ice cream cake... what is this for?"
"birthday; i bet chocolate cake will be too mainstream for zitao," kris frowns. "what's your personal favorite? if you don't mind me asking."
"strawberry!" chanyeol says, grinning. "most people don't like strawberry cake."
"most people don't know that exists," kris deadpans. "i didn't know that existed. zitao would be proud of you."
chanyeol blinks at him. "zitao?" he asks, pointing at said boy, who was still mulling around the back of the store. "also, are you going to drink that?"
"uh," kris mumbles, staring down at his coffee. "yeah, i just don't like it too hot. uh, hold on." he turns around calls for zitao, who immediately turns around at the mention of his name and practically skips over. "strawberry cake, he says," kris tells zitao. "your opinion?"
"what's strawberry cake?" zitao asks. "like, strawberry shortcake?"
"no," chanyeol interjects. "it's just strawberry cake."
zitao turns towards kris for an answer, who just shrugs his shoulders. "no idea."
"dude," zitao says, staring at chanyeol. "high five. you're officially part of the brotherhood."
"uh," chanyeol mumbles, and stares at kris helplessly. kris shrugs. "oh, okay then. cool."
"let's get it," zitao says and nudges kris in the side. "i leave you to the whole money part; i don’t have my wallet with me."
"wait, what-" kris starts to say, but zitao is already halfway across the cafe when he sighs and turns back to chanyeol. "sorry about him."
"it's okay," chanyeol says. "also, i didn't just like join a gang or something, did i? he looks kind of scary."
kris blinks, not completely registering what he said. he looks between zitao and and chanyeol and tries to connect the word scary to either one of them. the result is a loud guffaw of laughter that has both zitao and chanyeol looking at him with very concerned expressions. “i,” he pants, still trying to get the idea of zitao being scary out of his head, “sorry. it’s just that - you get so used to zitao being zitao that he’s... the farthest thing from scary you can think of. newborn kittens are more frightening than he is.”
chanyeol looks at kris for a second inquisitively, and his face contorts into a way kris can only think of as wow, attractive even though his face probably looks like a twisted pigeon to normal people. he blames zitao. “are you two dating?”
kris blinks, not expecting that question, and then surveys the situation in his head. it probably does look like they’re dating - what two guys go out shopping for a cake? and at this point, kris may as well be zitao’s sugar daddy. “no!” he says quickly. “i mean, i don’t even know if zitao’s into guys.”
chanyeol purses his lips, and kris wonders if maybe he’s somehow sexually frustrated or if his lack of sleep is somehow just making him more horny than usual. “are you?” chanyeol asks, then stops, face flushing. “oh god, sorry, i shouldn’t be asking these questions at all. anyway, um! so do you want to see some strawberry cakes? how big should it be? i can bring a few out to the the counter if you want to see--”
“it’s fine,” kris says, smiling. “yeah, i’m into guys. and uh, probably large. god knows how many people zitao is going to invite.”
“do you want to try a piece?” chanyeol asks. “i mean, you haven’t even seen what it looks like.”
“i... don’t do sweets,” kris says and tries to hold back a sheepish smile at chanyeol’s expression.
“oh, you should’ve said so earlier, then,” chanyeol frowns. “no wonder you haven’t tried your coffee yet. now i feel bad. oh and - hold on, i’ll be back.”
kris watches as chanyeol disappears into the back room and stares at his coffee. maybe he should try it, for chanyeol’s sake, at least. he picks it up slowly and brings the cup to his lips, taking a long drag. he then immediately slams it back down onto the counter, sputtering.
it’s cold.
sweet and cold. two things kris hates the most.
“woah, hey! are you okay?” chanyeol is suddenly next to him - kris wonders when that happened, and he coughs one last time before turning his head to look at chanyeol.
the first thing kris thinks is wow, we really are the same height.
“i - yeah, i’m fine,” kris says quickly, taking a step back from chanyeol. “it was cold, is all.”
“oh,” chanyeol replies. “i thought you were choking for a second.” he takes a step back as well, then makes his way back to the other side of the counter. “well, i brought the cake out. is this okay?”
kris looks at it. truthfully, he just wants to buy it and leave - he doesn’t care about what it looks or tastes like.
“that’s perfect,” zitao says from next to him, and they both stare at him. “what?”
“where did you even come from,” kris asks.
“duizhang, it’s okay. love blinds one from the rest of the world.”
chanyeol coughs very loudly as kris blanches.
“oh shit, was i not supposed to say that aloud?”
kris has to physically stop himself from slamming his head into the countertop. “just go stand over there as i pay.”
tao shuffles away like a kicked puppy; kris sighs and turns to face chanyeol. “sorry,” he mumbles, opening out his wallet. “how much is it?”
“uh, thirty thousand won.”
kris opens his wallet and stares at the contents. fuck. he only has twenty five thousand. the rest zitao probably ate up from his ridiculous amount of pumpkins spice lattes. he opens his mouth to call for zitao when he remembers zitao not having his wallet with him. god damn it. he sighs loudly, and almost feels bad when he remembers chanyeol is still there, watching him curiously. “i’m sorry,” he says, and thinks of multiple ways he can set the world on fire. damn zitao. damn yixing. “i’ll just...”
“that’s okay,”chanyeol says, smiling. “i’ll cover for you.”
“what?” kris says before he realizes it, and the surprise probably shows on his face.
chanyeol grins and scans the box of cake. “i’ll cover up the rest if you promise to take me out for coffee.” he doesn’t miss the look on kris’ face before continuing, “and we can get something that’s not sweet, too. if you want.”
kris glances to the side to see if zitao is out of earshot before smirking back at chanyeol. “you call the shots,” he replies as chanyeol slides a piece of paper towards him. kris takes one look at it before scribbling his phone number down.
kris sits at the corner of a cafe he frequently visits a little bit off of campus. he and chanyeol had texted a bit before meeting, but to be honest, he’s still nervous. he’s never been one to do anything as impromptu as this, and if it wasn’t for zitao blatantly shouting their interest for each other, this date probably would have never happened. still, he taps his foot and drums his fingers on the table, a mixture of eagerness and nervousness making him jittery.
“oh thank god,” someone says from behind him, and kris turns around to see chanyeol, clad in a giant sweater and bright red scarf. they stare at each for a moment, unsure of what they’re supposed to do. “hi,” chanyeol says after a pause.
“hi.”
“i wasn’t sure if i was supposed to dress up or something. but it was really cold, and it’s supposed to be below freezing tomorrow.”
kris cracks a smile. “it’s fine; did you want to go buy something to drink? i actually have money this time.”
chanyeol laughs. “i was kidding, you don’t actually have to buy me anything. it was just a poor excuse to ask you out on a date.”
kris laughs as he stands up. now that there isn’t a counter separating them, kris realizes that chanyeol has a similarly built frame as him, on top of being similar heights. the only difference is their very contrasting personalities, as far as he can tell. he wonder if chanyeol is just like this in the beginning, or if he really is as hyper as he seems. “i want to,” he insists, and steps ahead of chanyeol towards the front counter. “is there anything specific you want?” after a momentary pause, he adds, “caramel delight?”
chanyeol doesn’t even try to hide his grin, and before he knows it he’s right next to kris. normally, kris would find this a little too close for comfort, but chanyeol’s eyes show nothing but childish enthusiasm, and for some reason, he doesn’t really mind. “y’know,” he says, “i thought of a really cheesy and lame thing to say, but i’ll spare you the embarrassment. maybe your friend would appreciate it.”
“zitao?” he asks, and raises an eyebrow. “you can’t say that and not tell me.”
the tips of chanyeol’s ears turn red and he shakes his head. “no, it’s actually really embarrassing. like, embarrassing even for me.”
“i still want to hear,” kris presses as they reach the counter. “one... caramel latte, and a coffee, black, please.”
“ew, black coffee. are you human? are you secretly a fifty year old businessman in disguise?”
kris laughs again, and thinks that, for the first five minutes of a date, this is actually going pretty well. hopefully he hasn’t jinxed it. “don’t change the subject.”
“i’m onto you, fifty year old businessman!”
“caramel delight,” kris repeats, and the red tinge spreads to rest of chanyeol’s face.
“you’rethedelightinmylife,” he mumbles, almost so that kris doesn’t catch it.
“the what?”
“delight.”
“what?”
“in my life,” chanyeol states, looking everywhere but at kris. “that was the cheesy line.”
it takes a moment for kris to process it, but when he does, he laughs so hard he needs to grab the counter for support. “not even zitao would appreciate that. wow that was so cheesy.”
“well, i said,” chanyeol mutters. the cashier hands chanyeol their drinks as kris pays, and they make their way back to their table slowly.
“so what do you do?” chanyeol asks after they’ve settled down. “i’m just a university student who works part time.”
kris shrugs. “just a student. what’s your major?”
the beginning of the conversation reminds him of his freshman year in college, where everything was small talk and kris had no idea how to get close to people. but chanyeol is a bit different, he thinks. realistically, he’s completely different from kris, loud and giddy, but they have similar tastes in humor, and just about everything else. chanyeol tells him about the time he was in a band in high school, and kris talks about the time he almost auditioned for a modelling company.
it feels more like he’s making a new friend, rather than gaining a potential boyfriend. that thought doesn’t hit him until they’ve both finished their drinks, but neither of them want to leave, because it was kind of fun.
“you should come to the bakery more often,” chanyeol says. “i’ll make you something that isn’t going to burn holes in your teeth.”
“what can you get in a bakery that doesn’t do that?”
chanyeol actually has to think that over. “well, you should come over anyway,” chanyeol finally decides. “my boss won’t care.”
“i’d like that,” kris says, smiling. Chanyeol smiles back.
he runs into chanyeol when he’s studying with baekhyun and lu han. then again, studying is their codename for “stare at people from the back of the library”. at least they’ve managed to grab the big, comfy armchairs in the far back, kris thinks with a forlorn sigh.
“she’s pretty,” baekhyun says, pointing at an oblivious girl in the science section.
lu han shrugs. “not my style. she’s cute though,” he says, motioning in the direction of the girl a few seats down from them.
“dude,” baekhyun says, “that’s jinri, a freshman, you cradle robber.”
“also taken,” kris adds, and idly flips to the next page in his textbook. “by minho.”
“of course,” lu han says, sighing. “soccer player. is senior year too late to join the soccer team?”
“just a bit,” baekhyun replies, and leans over to steal one of kris’ chips. kris glares at him. he looks over kris’ shoulder, then pauses. “hey, isn’t that chanyeol?”
“chanyeol?” kris says a little too quickly, and turns around. “you know chanyeol?”
“you know chanyeol?” baekhyun asks. “he’s in my sociology class. we had bio together last semester, too. he was the one who nearly set me on fire. in biology. he’s a bro.”
“what?”
“hey!” baekhyun calls, in a voice much too loud for the library, “over here!” as soon as he puts his hand up in the air to wave, he pauses and faces kris. “how do you know chanyeol?”
“i went on a date with him,” kris hisses, and baekhyun let’s out a small oh.
it’s not really awkward that kris meets chanyeol again. it’s awkward that baekhyun and lu han are there, because they are the worst people to meet your boyfriend in the works.
boyfriend in the works. kris swallows uncomfortably, unsure if he’s okay with that or not. they’ve only met twice, after all.
“hi,” chanyeol greets them, grinning. he’s pulled down by baekhyun for some type of bro hug, and pats lu han on the back. he turns to kris and gives him a shy smile, leaning on baekhyun’s chair.
“wait,” kris says, pausing. “am i the only one who didn’t know who chanyeol was?”
baekhyun shrugs. “you didn’t take biology with us last year.”
kris looks at lu han, who feigns innocence. “him and sehun were good friends in high school.”
“you really don’t want to be in a class with chanyeol,” baekhyun says with a smile, ignoring chanyeol’s small hey!, “he’s the worst possible classmate you can have. if it’s in the morning, he’s asleep. and he snores. if it’s in the afternoon, he’s ridiculously hyper.”
they both laugh at chanyeol’s horrified face as lu han adds, “and there’s no in between. you should see him at parties. he--”
“i don’t party--”
kris watches, amused, as a flustered chanyeol launches himself towards lu han.
“so yeah,” baekhyun finishes, “that’s chanyeol for you. you’ve really picked the worst person to go on a date with.”
“that’s not true!” chanyeol yelps from where he’s trying to strangle lu han. “you could be dating jongin, or jongdae-- and besides, i asked him out.”
“is that true?” baekhyun asks, looking at kris curiously. “i’m so sorry. you know it’s okay to tell him no. he’ll only sulk for a day or two, then he’ll start smiling so bright you’ll wonder why he isn’t providing light for people in alaska.”
“that’s also a lie,” chanyeol snaps.
lu han shrugs. “only half a lie. you could light up alaska.”
“that’s a compliment, right?” kris half asks.
baekhyun snorts, but chanyeol looks at him with the biggest smile he’s ever seen and if kris’ life was a drama there would be hearts and sparkles and bubbles forming around chanyeol’s face and the next scene would be the two of them frolicking in a meadow while the sun smiles down at them.
but it’s not so instead kris just gives him an awkward smile back and changes his posture.
“anyway,” chanyeol says, clearing his throat, “you guys were studying. i’m supposed to be studying. so i’ll see you guys around?”
“yeah man,” baekhyun replies, grinning, and lu han claps chanyeol on the back. “text me.”
chanyeol nods and turns to kris, who holds out his hand. “me too,” kris says, “we need to hang out more.”
chanyeol grabs it, and kris pulls him down for a half hug, catching chanyeol off guard. he tumbles into kris’ chest, sputtering as baekhyun and lu han howl with laughter.
it takes them both a second to find out how to use their own limbs again, and kris would be lying if he didn’t use that time to stare at chanyeol’s face. he has huge, puppy-like eyes with short eyelashes, and soft, pink lips.
“sorry,” chanyeol squeaks out, and stumbles back onto his feet. “yeah, i’ll... yeah. see you!”
the moment chanyeol is gone, lu han and baekhyun turn to kris with matching grins. “i totally saw what you did there.”
“i didn’t--”
“i hope you at least copped a feel,” lu han says, turning the page in his textbook.
kris sighs and focuses his attention on his econ book.
“you’re kidding,” kris breathes out as he sees chanyeol and kyungsoo exit the lecture hall next to his.
“kris!” chanyeol greets, beaming. kyungsoo looks between them with wide eyes, the question you know each other? hanging in the air.
“do you just know everyone i know?” kris asks. “this is weird.”
“i know a lot of people,” chanyeol says. “it’s all a part of my charm.”
“oh yeah,” kyungsoo replies dryly. “charm. you should see his charm in class. ‘if christianity was a gateway for other religions, does that make jesus, like, the original dr dre?’”
chanyeol’s face turns bright red as kris stares. “what class is this?”
"influence of western religions," chanyeol says, grinning. "yeezy he laid beats."
"pretty sure that's kanye west," kris replies.
"2chainz."
"pretty sure kanye west makes up like ninety percent of 2chainz."
"oh my god," kyungsoo groans. "just date already and leave me to die."
chanyeol howls with laughter as kris pats kyungsoo’s head with an amused smile. “it’s better if you don’t know.”
kyungsoo glares at him. “well now i do know, and wow i don’t know who i feel more sorry for.”
“you don’t really mean that,” chanyeol says, beaming, as he links arms with kris.
“i don’t,” kyungsoo replies. “i do know i feel more sorry for - myself.”
kris lets himself be pulled along by chanyeol, who’s following kyungsoo down to the hall. “that’s a lie and you know it,” chanyeol says. “isn’t that right, kris?”
“what? oh - yeah,” kris says absentmindedly. “where are we going?”
“the cafeteria!” chanyeol announces, then turns his head to look at kris. “unless you have something else to do?”
chanyeol looks likes a kicked puppy. kris is almost tempted to say no just so he can continue to look at that face, because, fuck, it’s really cute. instead he says, “no, i’m free,” and decides he likes the face chanyeol makes here better - face scrunched up into a smile, eyes sparkling unrealistically, the gums of his teeth showing.
chanyeol grabs his hand and tugs. “then, let’s go!”
kyungsoo takes a step back to raise an eyebrow at kris. “are you two actually dating?”
“um,” kris hesitates. “not really?”
“not really?”
“sort of? it’s hard to explain.”
“but it’s not a no,” kyungsoo clarifies.
“i’m not sure,” kris mumbles.
“we’ll figure it out,” chanyeol replies, still beaming, and kris realizes he might be falling for chanyeol too easily.
so he does like chanyeol, he decides. this isn’t too bad of a feeling, considering the turn of events. he still doesn’t know if this constitutes them as boyfriend and boyfriend, or if they’re still in that awkward are-we-friends-or-are-we-dating stage. it doesn’t help that chanyeol acts just as giddy around him as he acts around everyone else.
it also doesn’t help that chanyeol literally does know every single person kris knows, with the exception of zitao and yixing.
that changes, of course, when they’re eating out together and kris has been set to the supposedly easy task of telling yixing about his surprise party, without actually telling him about his surprise party. this is all zitao’s fault.
(this is crazy,” kris says. “and really dumb. he’ll never believe me. i don’t believe me.”
“duizhang,” zitao replies, very slowly, and kris just knows he’s going to spout one of his life changing hipster quotes. “we’re all a little crazy inside.”)
“yeah, so lu han’s inviting some of the guys over to his apartment on friday.”
“i thought he said he had to clean everything out? wasn’t he supposed to be moving around or something?”
“well,” kris says, frowning, “he needs help with that? are you busy?”
yixing looks vaguely deep in thought; kris feels bad for not mentioning his birthday at all, until he sees a flash of orange out of the corner of his eyes and before he gets a chance to brace himself, he finds himself face down on the seat of the booth, with a giant, human-sized teddy bear on top of him.
“yifan?”
“chanyeol, please.”
“who’s yifan?”
“who are you?”
“i’m chanyeol, hi! are you yifan?”
“no, that’s yifan.”
“chanyeol,” kris repeats, groaning, “please get off.” he pushes himself back onto his elbows, and sighs in relief when chanyeol slides off of his back. he’s still half sitting on his thigh though, and kris just takes all the half victories he can get and lets him. “yifan’s my chinese name. that’s yixing. yixing, this is chanyeol, the guy i went on a date with.”
“you’re chanyeol? i didn’t realize you were yifan’s type.”
chanyeol shrugs. “i’m not, really. and oh! yixing! kris mentioned you at the bakery. aren’t you--”
kris realizes where this is going and clamps his hand over chanyeol’s mouth. “it’s a surprise,” he whispers behind chanyeol’s neck, so yixing doesn’t see him, and gives the best smile he can muster at yixing. it isn’t very good. “zitao mentioned you at the bakery where chanyeol works.”
“you two are close,” yixing quips, eyebrows raised.
“oh,” chanyeol mumbles, and turns his head back to look at kris. “should i get off? sorry.”
“if you want,” kris replies pathetically. “it doesn’t bother me.”
he sits down next to kris, and smiles at him expectantly.
“do you know lu han?” yixing asks chanyeol, looking surprisingly interested in the newcomer.
chanyeol nods. “we have class together.”
“he’s also coming,” kris says quickly - his best attempt to salvage the situation. “on friday. aren’t you, chanyeol?”
“am i?” chanyeol asks, then pauses. “oh! is this about--”
kris pinches his thigh under the table; chanyeol whimpers. yixing raises an eyebrow.
“i’m sure lu han wouldn’t mind if you came. so you should also come, yixing.”
“well, i don’t think i’m doing anything on friday, so sure,” yixing says slowly. “also i’m actually... really late to my class. so i should go. i’ll see you two later?”
chanyeol beams at him and holds out his hand. “nice meeting you!”
“you... too,” yixing says and shakes his hand while giving kris a curious look. “i’ll see you both later, then.”
once yixing is gone, kris slumps against the booth and sighs. he really hates his life.
“did i do something wrong?” chanyeol asks, face drawn into an unceremonious pout.
“no, of course not,” kris says, patting down a few stray hairs on the side of chanyeol’s head before he realizes what he’s doing and pulls away. “this would be a good time to ask you something, actually.”
“hm?”
kris hesitates, debating whether he should wait a bit before asking or just ask right now and get a clear answer. the words tumble out of his mouth before he can decide. “what are we?”
chanyeol doesn’t seem the slightest bit fazed as he mulls over the question in his head, and for the first time, kris envies chanyeol for being so comfortable with the whole situation. “i don’t know,” he says. “what do you want us to be?”
“i don’t know,” kris admits. “i’m not sure.”
“well, i like you,” chanyeol says. “but if you don’t like me, then it’s-”
“it’s not that i don’t like you,” kris replies, cutting him off, “it’s just that we’ve sort of just met and i don’t know if this is how things work or if i should wait a while longer.”
kris hates having this sort of conversation, but this is all so new and very confusing for him. he needs to know what he’s supposed to do so that he’s able to do it. chanyeol doesn’t look too opposed to having this conversation, though, and kris isn’t too opposed with being with chanyeol.
maybe that’s all he really needs.
“i don’t know how things usually work either,” chanyeol says, “but maybe we just need to hang out with each other more? like right now - right now is nice, even though i almost ruined your surprise.”
kris laughs. “you didn’t ruin it. i’m sure if i told yixing to his face he had a surprise party he still wouldn’t realize that there’s a surprise party for him.”
“oh,” chanyeol mumbles. “well. he sounds nice.”
“i guess,” kris says, then raises an eyebrow at chanyeol. “but you are coming on friday, right? i wasn’t kidding when i said that.”
chanyeol blinks up at him like he wasn’t expecting that, but then he smiles wide at kris, the same smile kris has learned to adore, and says, “yeah. yeah, of course.”
“so that’s the guy you like?” yixing asks later, when they’re in calculus together. “chanyeol? i have to admit, i wasn’t expecting him.”
“it’s not what you think,” kris says mindlessly, copying down one of the questions on the board.
“and you know what i think?”
kris sighs and puts his pencil down. “i know you think he doesn’t match me at all, or that he’s a bit weird and loud, and he is, but he’s nice and fun to be around, albeit too hyperactive, but i like him for exactly that.”
there’s a gap of silence in which kris regrets saying every single word he’s just said, but yixing looks legitimately impressed. then he grins in that mischievous way that makes kris want to stab himself in the eyeball with his pencil.
“wu yifan,” he says, clicking his tongue, “you have fallen very hard, my friend.”
kris says nothing after that, a bit flabbergasted, a bit embarrassed, and a little bit speechless. he opts for turning his attention back to the board and copying down the rest of the notes as yixing laughs beside him.
chanyeol and kris meet up again after chanyeol’s literature class, and kris comes to the rather nice realization that even though chanyeol is very loud and talkative himself, he is just as much a patient and attentive listener. kris doesn’t talk as often, so when he does, it’s nice that he knows someone is paying attention.
this time, they bond over chanyeol’s ipod, and find out that they, more or less, listen to the same music.
they’re uncomfortably shoved next to each other, far too much in each other’s personal space, even though there’s no reason for them to be that way, and kris is glad that neither of them is pointing this out.
“have you seen the music video for this song?” chanyeol asks, and kris shakes his head. “it’s really cool - really meaningful, too. let me show you!”
kris lets him, even though he’s not really paying too much attention. instead, his mind drifts to chanyeol, and the way chanyeol holds up his phone at an angle so that kris gets a much better view of the video than he does, and thinks that maybe you don’t need to know someone for a long time to mean so much to them. sometimes things just fit together, like a puzzle, or the gaps between their hands, the time suspended in between each breath. some things are meant to be inhaled too quickly, so that the exhale is slow and steady. lasting.
“what’d you think?” chanyeol asks, after the video has ended. “pretty cool, right?”
“i think,” kris says, then pauses, deep in thought as chanyeol looks at him patiently. “i think i want to kiss you.”
chanyeol’s eyes widen, mouth parting a little, but he doesn’t say anything, even as kris cups his face with a hand.
“can i kiss you?”
chanyeol blinks, swallows, and then nods, and that’s all the confirmation he needs before kris is leaning in and pressing his lips against chanyeol’s.
chanyeol’s lips feel just as soft as they look, and it isn’t long before chanyeol is kissing back, tilting his head so that he can tangle one of his hands in kris’ hair. he nips at kris’ bottom lip, and kris is laughing softly as he pulls away. “we’re still in public,” he says quietly, forehead resting against chanyeol’s.
“i thought i was supposed to be the spontaneous one,” chanyeol whines, hand still playing with the collar of kris’ shirt.
“you’re in for a pleasant surprise,” kris says, and chanyeol pouts at him.
“you lie,” chanyeol replies, “this empty space is not pleasant.”
kris takes a quick glance around the room to find it empty, and turns back to chanyeol. “that can be remedied.”
yixing’s surprise goes surprisingly well. he blinks in confusion even after everyone yells surprise in his face and needs confirmation that this is really for him. at least the final result is a giant smile that has him laughing in delight and trying to gather everyone he possibly can into a hug.
it isn’t really a party with lu han until the alcohol is broken out, and while kris knows he’ll probably end up breaking sooner or later and drinking, for now he wants to stay sober to tell chanyeol what he’s been waiting to tell him all week. chanyeol seems content with that, and according to him, he doesn’t drink alcohol all the often anyway.
they escape to the balcony and revel in the view from lu han’s apartment building. it’s a high rise apartment building in the middle of seoul, and at night the lights bring life to the city.
“so i wanted to ask you something,” kris says, a little nervous, even though he already knows the answer. it’s a bit stupid for him to even be asking this, but he wants to make everything they’ve done so far clear - to give it a definition, so he can keep that stability. “even if it’s a little stupid. are you ready?”
chanyeol looks understandably confused, but he nods anyway, mentally preparing himself.
“park chanyeol,” kris starts, and suddenly feels extremely ridiculous for doing it this way, but it’s too late to back out now, so he continues to say, “will you officially be my boyfriend?”
chanyeol’s mouth opens a little, but they quickly turn up in that same smile kris has grown to become addicted to - teeth showing, nose scrunched up, eyes twinkling. “i’m so tempted to say no, just to see your face,” he says, and kris looks visibly wounded, but instead chanyeol grabs fistfuls of kris’ shirt and pulls him close, “but this time i’ll spare you the mortification and say yes.”
this, kris thinks, is familiar territory - chanyeol’s lips, chanyeol’s hands, but as kris drags his fingers across chanyeol’s waist, and as he opens his mouth for chanyeol, there comes the realization that he has only grazed the tip of the iceberg, and he grins into the kiss as he discovers that he is more than happy to explore the rest.
DELETED SCENE:
("so why do you call him 'duizhang' anyway," chanyeol asks, when he's visiting at the bakery. he's done zitao the gracious favor of letting him use the bakery as a backdrop for his pictures.
"oh," zitao says. "that. it's a long story. but, shortened, duizhang taught me that it was okay to live my life with all my soul. that even the smallest things in life can mean the most to someone."
"he - what?"
"he used to be the captain of the basketball team in high school, okay," zitao says, sniffing. "nationals meant a lot to us. now shut up and tell me what filter looks best.")
kris/chanyeol; tao/instagram
6,710 words; pg-13
warning: tao is a hipster
geniune thanks to this page for teaching me the ways of the hipster. also tao is a hipster. anyway, this is scylladakylla's very late birthday present. and in my defense, at least this time i didn't post your fic a) a year late, and b) on my birthday. enjoy!
the blaring of his phone's alarm clock has kris groaning into his pillow. he lets out a noise of discontent when his phone is still blasting some awful rendition of ludacris and rolls of bed. he picks it up, and an extremely unattractive self-taken picture of zitao winking and making a peace sign greets him. he blinks at it, disoriented, before the chanting of how low can you go, how low can you go becomes too headache inducing for him to bare.
he shuts it off and heads to the bathroom, still not exactly sure why his phone is ringing at 10am on a saturday. he’s awake now, though, so he might as well get up and make an attempt to be productive.
“duizhang,” a surprised voice says, and kris turns around to see zitao in front of his door, toweling his hair. “you’re actually awake.”
kris grunts in annoyance and opens the bathroom door. “why am i awake?”
zitao looks at him like he punched a baby in the face. kris knows he probably hasn’t done anything deserving of that expression, but it’s hard not to feel guilty regardless. “you said you’d come with me to choose yixing’s cake for his birthday.”
yixing doesn’t even know when yixing’s birthday is, so kris doesn’t know exactly how he was supposed to know, but zitao still has that last-living-panda-on-earth pout, so kris just sighs and shuts the bathroom door. “i need a new roommate,” he mumbles.
three hours and half of kris’ wallet later, tao is sipping on his third pumpkin spice latte and kris is trying to figure out how much he’s going to have to starve for zitao’s apparently insatiable stomach. they haven’t even entered the bakery yet.
“do you think he’d want an ice cream cake?”
“what if we went to bakery and took a look?”
zitao makes a face at him and takes a sip. “your funmeter is starting to fall, duizhang. this is why you’re still single.”
kris scoffs at him, slightly offended. “you’re still single. that makes no sense.”
zitao sighs dreamily and looks out the window. “duizhang,” he says, completely serious, “how am i supposed to love someone else if i haven’t learned to love myself unconditionally yet?”
“did you get that from tumblr?”
“weheartit.”
kris sighs.
“hey,” zitao suddenly says, turning to face kris. “my profile looked really good there, right? can you take a picture for me? it’s for my instagram.”
kris sighs again.
small victories, kris reminds himself. he’s finally managed to get zitao into the bakery shop they were supposed to be at two hours ago. maybe if he expects nothing, he’ll be pleasantly surprised when anything happens. right now he’s silently hoping for the apocalypse.
“duizhang, do you think this looks good in a lo-fi or toaster filter?”
“did you just set those macaroons on fire?” kris asks when zitao selects the toaster filter.
zitao gives him an incredulous look. “don’t be stupid duizhang; it’s symbolic, y’know? the sweetest thing can burn you the most in the end.”
“i really hope you’re talking about calories.”
“you’re too focused on the unimportant things in life, duizhang.”
kris decides to ignore him this time. “so do you think yixing would want a chocolate cake or an ice cream cake?”
zitao is too busy trying to think up a life changing caption to answer, so kris decides to head over to the cashier to see if there’s anything better in the front. there’s no one behind the desk, so he takes it upon himself to look around and thoroughly inspect each cake and its calorie count.
dammit, zitao.
he’s leaning over the countertop to get a better look at the little cake pamphlet next to the scanner when he sees a flash of bright orange and his world is suddenly going out of focus. he registers a sharp pain in his head, and then the sound of someone else groaning.
“duizhang!” zitao shouts, suddenly by his side, “are you okay? are you hurt anywhere?”
“oh god,” an unfamiliar voice says. “i’m so sorry. did i hurt you? i swear i didn’t mean to - i didn’t see you, oh god i’m so sorry.”
kris rubs at his head and looks up to see bright orange hair and big, brown eyes peering down at him. kris is about to reply until - wait, peering down?
he hadn’t even realized that he fell onto the floor until he pushes himself back onto his feet, and even then, it’s a weird feeling because bright orange hair and big brown eyes is almost the same height as him.
bright orange hair and big brown eyes turns out to be the cashier - kris imagines he was probably behind the desk, somehow. he and zitao are both staring at him though, waiting for some type of reaction, so kris awkwardly brushes his hands on his pants and pretends to be fixing his shirt. “it’s fine,” he says gruffly. “didn’t see you.”
zitao snickers. “if it helps, that was the most graceful fall i’ve ever seen. jongin’s pirouettes had nothing on that.”
“are you sure you’re not hurt anywhere?” the cashier asks, and now that kris has gotten a good look at his face, he comes to the conclusion that the boy’s face and voice do not match. at all. he stares at bright orange hair and big brown eyes for a long moment while zitao looks between them curiously. “um,” he continues, waving a hand cautiously. “hello?” he looks at zitao helplessly. “do you think he’s having a concussion? heat stroke?”
“it’s ten degrees outside,” zitao retorts. “maybe he’s in a comatose state.”
“i would still be smarter than you in a coma,” kris says, suddenly regaining thought process. he’s realized two things: a) the cashier is really pretty, and b) his voice is like negative degrees, holy shit. “sorry,” he says. “i blanked for a second.”
“oh, okay,” he says, smiling. “and, really, really sorry about that. well, i guess... let me know if you need anything. my name is chanyeol.”
“kris,” he says, then realizes chanyeol probably doesn't care.
he stands awkwardly for a moment before zitao grabs his arms and tugs. “come on, ge, let’s go see the cakes over in the back.” kris gives chanyeol one last look before he follows zitao away. “so,” zitao says when they’re out of earshot. “that’s your type? cute.”
“shut up, hipster,” kris snorts. he reads over the label of a few cakes before he realizes he doesn’t give a fuck about cakes or sweets or whatever. zitao, on the other hand, is excited enough for the both of them.
“what do you think, red velvet or chocolate?”
“i don’t care,” kris mumbles.
“what?”
“red velvet, i said,” kris says, sighing. “i’m going to go buy coffee or something. this is way too early for me to be awake.”
“it’s like two in the afternoon, ge.”
“exactly,” kris replies and heads to the front. “take your time.” he approaches the counter hesitantly and glances around for chanyeol again. he isn't anywhere in sight, however, so kris is resigned to just staring at the menu.
“i,” someone says dangerously close to kris’ ear, “really recommend the caramel delight.”
kris tries his best not to look like he’s about to jump and scream bloody murder. “w-what?” he asks, taking a step or two backwards.
chanyeol gives him a wide smile. “you were looking for a while.”
“uh,” kris mumbles. “sure? yeah, okay - one of that.”
it doesn’t hit kris until he’s handed a cup that caramel probably means sweet, and kris hates sweet. “what kind of cake would you recommend, anyway?” he asks casually, hoping to stall as much as he can so the coffee gets cold and he has a reason not to drink it. “i don’t really trust my friend back there.”
"um," chanyeol says, thoughtful. "well, i could show you what the bakery favorites are. most people really like the double chocolate cake. and then there's ice cream cake... what is this for?"
"birthday; i bet chocolate cake will be too mainstream for zitao," kris frowns. "what's your personal favorite? if you don't mind me asking."
"strawberry!" chanyeol says, grinning. "most people don't like strawberry cake."
"most people don't know that exists," kris deadpans. "i didn't know that existed. zitao would be proud of you."
chanyeol blinks at him. "zitao?" he asks, pointing at said boy, who was still mulling around the back of the store. "also, are you going to drink that?"
"uh," kris mumbles, staring down at his coffee. "yeah, i just don't like it too hot. uh, hold on." he turns around calls for zitao, who immediately turns around at the mention of his name and practically skips over. "strawberry cake, he says," kris tells zitao. "your opinion?"
"what's strawberry cake?" zitao asks. "like, strawberry shortcake?"
"no," chanyeol interjects. "it's just strawberry cake."
zitao turns towards kris for an answer, who just shrugs his shoulders. "no idea."
"dude," zitao says, staring at chanyeol. "high five. you're officially part of the brotherhood."
"uh," chanyeol mumbles, and stares at kris helplessly. kris shrugs. "oh, okay then. cool."
"let's get it," zitao says and nudges kris in the side. "i leave you to the whole money part; i don’t have my wallet with me."
"wait, what-" kris starts to say, but zitao is already halfway across the cafe when he sighs and turns back to chanyeol. "sorry about him."
"it's okay," chanyeol says. "also, i didn't just like join a gang or something, did i? he looks kind of scary."
kris blinks, not completely registering what he said. he looks between zitao and and chanyeol and tries to connect the word scary to either one of them. the result is a loud guffaw of laughter that has both zitao and chanyeol looking at him with very concerned expressions. “i,” he pants, still trying to get the idea of zitao being scary out of his head, “sorry. it’s just that - you get so used to zitao being zitao that he’s... the farthest thing from scary you can think of. newborn kittens are more frightening than he is.”
chanyeol looks at kris for a second inquisitively, and his face contorts into a way kris can only think of as wow, attractive even though his face probably looks like a twisted pigeon to normal people. he blames zitao. “are you two dating?”
kris blinks, not expecting that question, and then surveys the situation in his head. it probably does look like they’re dating - what two guys go out shopping for a cake? and at this point, kris may as well be zitao’s sugar daddy. “no!” he says quickly. “i mean, i don’t even know if zitao’s into guys.”
chanyeol purses his lips, and kris wonders if maybe he’s somehow sexually frustrated or if his lack of sleep is somehow just making him more horny than usual. “are you?” chanyeol asks, then stops, face flushing. “oh god, sorry, i shouldn’t be asking these questions at all. anyway, um! so do you want to see some strawberry cakes? how big should it be? i can bring a few out to the the counter if you want to see--”
“it’s fine,” kris says, smiling. “yeah, i’m into guys. and uh, probably large. god knows how many people zitao is going to invite.”
“do you want to try a piece?” chanyeol asks. “i mean, you haven’t even seen what it looks like.”
“i... don’t do sweets,” kris says and tries to hold back a sheepish smile at chanyeol’s expression.
“oh, you should’ve said so earlier, then,” chanyeol frowns. “no wonder you haven’t tried your coffee yet. now i feel bad. oh and - hold on, i’ll be back.”
kris watches as chanyeol disappears into the back room and stares at his coffee. maybe he should try it, for chanyeol’s sake, at least. he picks it up slowly and brings the cup to his lips, taking a long drag. he then immediately slams it back down onto the counter, sputtering.
it’s cold.
sweet and cold. two things kris hates the most.
“woah, hey! are you okay?” chanyeol is suddenly next to him - kris wonders when that happened, and he coughs one last time before turning his head to look at chanyeol.
the first thing kris thinks is wow, we really are the same height.
“i - yeah, i’m fine,” kris says quickly, taking a step back from chanyeol. “it was cold, is all.”
“oh,” chanyeol replies. “i thought you were choking for a second.” he takes a step back as well, then makes his way back to the other side of the counter. “well, i brought the cake out. is this okay?”
kris looks at it. truthfully, he just wants to buy it and leave - he doesn’t care about what it looks or tastes like.
“that’s perfect,” zitao says from next to him, and they both stare at him. “what?”
“where did you even come from,” kris asks.
“duizhang, it’s okay. love blinds one from the rest of the world.”
chanyeol coughs very loudly as kris blanches.
“oh shit, was i not supposed to say that aloud?”
kris has to physically stop himself from slamming his head into the countertop. “just go stand over there as i pay.”
tao shuffles away like a kicked puppy; kris sighs and turns to face chanyeol. “sorry,” he mumbles, opening out his wallet. “how much is it?”
“uh, thirty thousand won.”
kris opens his wallet and stares at the contents. fuck. he only has twenty five thousand. the rest zitao probably ate up from his ridiculous amount of pumpkins spice lattes. he opens his mouth to call for zitao when he remembers zitao not having his wallet with him. god damn it. he sighs loudly, and almost feels bad when he remembers chanyeol is still there, watching him curiously. “i’m sorry,” he says, and thinks of multiple ways he can set the world on fire. damn zitao. damn yixing. “i’ll just...”
“that’s okay,”chanyeol says, smiling. “i’ll cover for you.”
“what?” kris says before he realizes it, and the surprise probably shows on his face.
chanyeol grins and scans the box of cake. “i’ll cover up the rest if you promise to take me out for coffee.” he doesn’t miss the look on kris’ face before continuing, “and we can get something that’s not sweet, too. if you want.”
kris glances to the side to see if zitao is out of earshot before smirking back at chanyeol. “you call the shots,” he replies as chanyeol slides a piece of paper towards him. kris takes one look at it before scribbling his phone number down.
kris sits at the corner of a cafe he frequently visits a little bit off of campus. he and chanyeol had texted a bit before meeting, but to be honest, he’s still nervous. he’s never been one to do anything as impromptu as this, and if it wasn’t for zitao blatantly shouting their interest for each other, this date probably would have never happened. still, he taps his foot and drums his fingers on the table, a mixture of eagerness and nervousness making him jittery.
“oh thank god,” someone says from behind him, and kris turns around to see chanyeol, clad in a giant sweater and bright red scarf. they stare at each for a moment, unsure of what they’re supposed to do. “hi,” chanyeol says after a pause.
“hi.”
“i wasn’t sure if i was supposed to dress up or something. but it was really cold, and it’s supposed to be below freezing tomorrow.”
kris cracks a smile. “it’s fine; did you want to go buy something to drink? i actually have money this time.”
chanyeol laughs. “i was kidding, you don’t actually have to buy me anything. it was just a poor excuse to ask you out on a date.”
kris laughs as he stands up. now that there isn’t a counter separating them, kris realizes that chanyeol has a similarly built frame as him, on top of being similar heights. the only difference is their very contrasting personalities, as far as he can tell. he wonder if chanyeol is just like this in the beginning, or if he really is as hyper as he seems. “i want to,” he insists, and steps ahead of chanyeol towards the front counter. “is there anything specific you want?” after a momentary pause, he adds, “caramel delight?”
chanyeol doesn’t even try to hide his grin, and before he knows it he’s right next to kris. normally, kris would find this a little too close for comfort, but chanyeol’s eyes show nothing but childish enthusiasm, and for some reason, he doesn’t really mind. “y’know,” he says, “i thought of a really cheesy and lame thing to say, but i’ll spare you the embarrassment. maybe your friend would appreciate it.”
“zitao?” he asks, and raises an eyebrow. “you can’t say that and not tell me.”
the tips of chanyeol’s ears turn red and he shakes his head. “no, it’s actually really embarrassing. like, embarrassing even for me.”
“i still want to hear,” kris presses as they reach the counter. “one... caramel latte, and a coffee, black, please.”
“ew, black coffee. are you human? are you secretly a fifty year old businessman in disguise?”
kris laughs again, and thinks that, for the first five minutes of a date, this is actually going pretty well. hopefully he hasn’t jinxed it. “don’t change the subject.”
“i’m onto you, fifty year old businessman!”
“caramel delight,” kris repeats, and the red tinge spreads to rest of chanyeol’s face.
“you’rethedelightinmylife,” he mumbles, almost so that kris doesn’t catch it.
“the what?”
“delight.”
“what?”
“in my life,” chanyeol states, looking everywhere but at kris. “that was the cheesy line.”
it takes a moment for kris to process it, but when he does, he laughs so hard he needs to grab the counter for support. “not even zitao would appreciate that. wow that was so cheesy.”
“well, i said,” chanyeol mutters. the cashier hands chanyeol their drinks as kris pays, and they make their way back to their table slowly.
“so what do you do?” chanyeol asks after they’ve settled down. “i’m just a university student who works part time.”
kris shrugs. “just a student. what’s your major?”
the beginning of the conversation reminds him of his freshman year in college, where everything was small talk and kris had no idea how to get close to people. but chanyeol is a bit different, he thinks. realistically, he’s completely different from kris, loud and giddy, but they have similar tastes in humor, and just about everything else. chanyeol tells him about the time he was in a band in high school, and kris talks about the time he almost auditioned for a modelling company.
it feels more like he’s making a new friend, rather than gaining a potential boyfriend. that thought doesn’t hit him until they’ve both finished their drinks, but neither of them want to leave, because it was kind of fun.
“you should come to the bakery more often,” chanyeol says. “i’ll make you something that isn’t going to burn holes in your teeth.”
“what can you get in a bakery that doesn’t do that?”
chanyeol actually has to think that over. “well, you should come over anyway,” chanyeol finally decides. “my boss won’t care.”
“i’d like that,” kris says, smiling. Chanyeol smiles back.
he runs into chanyeol when he’s studying with baekhyun and lu han. then again, studying is their codename for “stare at people from the back of the library”. at least they’ve managed to grab the big, comfy armchairs in the far back, kris thinks with a forlorn sigh.
“she’s pretty,” baekhyun says, pointing at an oblivious girl in the science section.
lu han shrugs. “not my style. she’s cute though,” he says, motioning in the direction of the girl a few seats down from them.
“dude,” baekhyun says, “that’s jinri, a freshman, you cradle robber.”
“also taken,” kris adds, and idly flips to the next page in his textbook. “by minho.”
“of course,” lu han says, sighing. “soccer player. is senior year too late to join the soccer team?”
“just a bit,” baekhyun replies, and leans over to steal one of kris’ chips. kris glares at him. he looks over kris’ shoulder, then pauses. “hey, isn’t that chanyeol?”
“chanyeol?” kris says a little too quickly, and turns around. “you know chanyeol?”
“you know chanyeol?” baekhyun asks. “he’s in my sociology class. we had bio together last semester, too. he was the one who nearly set me on fire. in biology. he’s a bro.”
“what?”
“hey!” baekhyun calls, in a voice much too loud for the library, “over here!” as soon as he puts his hand up in the air to wave, he pauses and faces kris. “how do you know chanyeol?”
“i went on a date with him,” kris hisses, and baekhyun let’s out a small oh.
it’s not really awkward that kris meets chanyeol again. it’s awkward that baekhyun and lu han are there, because they are the worst people to meet your boyfriend in the works.
boyfriend in the works. kris swallows uncomfortably, unsure if he’s okay with that or not. they’ve only met twice, after all.
“hi,” chanyeol greets them, grinning. he’s pulled down by baekhyun for some type of bro hug, and pats lu han on the back. he turns to kris and gives him a shy smile, leaning on baekhyun’s chair.
“wait,” kris says, pausing. “am i the only one who didn’t know who chanyeol was?”
baekhyun shrugs. “you didn’t take biology with us last year.”
kris looks at lu han, who feigns innocence. “him and sehun were good friends in high school.”
“you really don’t want to be in a class with chanyeol,” baekhyun says with a smile, ignoring chanyeol’s small hey!, “he’s the worst possible classmate you can have. if it’s in the morning, he’s asleep. and he snores. if it’s in the afternoon, he’s ridiculously hyper.”
they both laugh at chanyeol’s horrified face as lu han adds, “and there’s no in between. you should see him at parties. he--”
“i don’t party--”
kris watches, amused, as a flustered chanyeol launches himself towards lu han.
“so yeah,” baekhyun finishes, “that’s chanyeol for you. you’ve really picked the worst person to go on a date with.”
“that’s not true!” chanyeol yelps from where he’s trying to strangle lu han. “you could be dating jongin, or jongdae-- and besides, i asked him out.”
“is that true?” baekhyun asks, looking at kris curiously. “i’m so sorry. you know it’s okay to tell him no. he’ll only sulk for a day or two, then he’ll start smiling so bright you’ll wonder why he isn’t providing light for people in alaska.”
“that’s also a lie,” chanyeol snaps.
lu han shrugs. “only half a lie. you could light up alaska.”
“that’s a compliment, right?” kris half asks.
baekhyun snorts, but chanyeol looks at him with the biggest smile he’s ever seen and if kris’ life was a drama there would be hearts and sparkles and bubbles forming around chanyeol’s face and the next scene would be the two of them frolicking in a meadow while the sun smiles down at them.
but it’s not so instead kris just gives him an awkward smile back and changes his posture.
“anyway,” chanyeol says, clearing his throat, “you guys were studying. i’m supposed to be studying. so i’ll see you guys around?”
“yeah man,” baekhyun replies, grinning, and lu han claps chanyeol on the back. “text me.”
chanyeol nods and turns to kris, who holds out his hand. “me too,” kris says, “we need to hang out more.”
chanyeol grabs it, and kris pulls him down for a half hug, catching chanyeol off guard. he tumbles into kris’ chest, sputtering as baekhyun and lu han howl with laughter.
it takes them both a second to find out how to use their own limbs again, and kris would be lying if he didn’t use that time to stare at chanyeol’s face. he has huge, puppy-like eyes with short eyelashes, and soft, pink lips.
“sorry,” chanyeol squeaks out, and stumbles back onto his feet. “yeah, i’ll... yeah. see you!”
the moment chanyeol is gone, lu han and baekhyun turn to kris with matching grins. “i totally saw what you did there.”
“i didn’t--”
“i hope you at least copped a feel,” lu han says, turning the page in his textbook.
kris sighs and focuses his attention on his econ book.
“you’re kidding,” kris breathes out as he sees chanyeol and kyungsoo exit the lecture hall next to his.
“kris!” chanyeol greets, beaming. kyungsoo looks between them with wide eyes, the question you know each other? hanging in the air.
“do you just know everyone i know?” kris asks. “this is weird.”
“i know a lot of people,” chanyeol says. “it’s all a part of my charm.”
“oh yeah,” kyungsoo replies dryly. “charm. you should see his charm in class. ‘if christianity was a gateway for other religions, does that make jesus, like, the original dr dre?’”
chanyeol’s face turns bright red as kris stares. “what class is this?”
"influence of western religions," chanyeol says, grinning. "yeezy he laid beats."
"pretty sure that's kanye west," kris replies.
"2chainz."
"pretty sure kanye west makes up like ninety percent of 2chainz."
"oh my god," kyungsoo groans. "just date already and leave me to die."
chanyeol howls with laughter as kris pats kyungsoo’s head with an amused smile. “it’s better if you don’t know.”
kyungsoo glares at him. “well now i do know, and wow i don’t know who i feel more sorry for.”
“you don’t really mean that,” chanyeol says, beaming, as he links arms with kris.
“i don’t,” kyungsoo replies. “i do know i feel more sorry for - myself.”
kris lets himself be pulled along by chanyeol, who’s following kyungsoo down to the hall. “that’s a lie and you know it,” chanyeol says. “isn’t that right, kris?”
“what? oh - yeah,” kris says absentmindedly. “where are we going?”
“the cafeteria!” chanyeol announces, then turns his head to look at kris. “unless you have something else to do?”
chanyeol looks likes a kicked puppy. kris is almost tempted to say no just so he can continue to look at that face, because, fuck, it’s really cute. instead he says, “no, i’m free,” and decides he likes the face chanyeol makes here better - face scrunched up into a smile, eyes sparkling unrealistically, the gums of his teeth showing.
chanyeol grabs his hand and tugs. “then, let’s go!”
kyungsoo takes a step back to raise an eyebrow at kris. “are you two actually dating?”
“um,” kris hesitates. “not really?”
“not really?”
“sort of? it’s hard to explain.”
“but it’s not a no,” kyungsoo clarifies.
“i’m not sure,” kris mumbles.
“we’ll figure it out,” chanyeol replies, still beaming, and kris realizes he might be falling for chanyeol too easily.
so he does like chanyeol, he decides. this isn’t too bad of a feeling, considering the turn of events. he still doesn’t know if this constitutes them as boyfriend and boyfriend, or if they’re still in that awkward are-we-friends-or-are-we-dating stage. it doesn’t help that chanyeol acts just as giddy around him as he acts around everyone else.
it also doesn’t help that chanyeol literally does know every single person kris knows, with the exception of zitao and yixing.
that changes, of course, when they’re eating out together and kris has been set to the supposedly easy task of telling yixing about his surprise party, without actually telling him about his surprise party. this is all zitao’s fault.
(this is crazy,” kris says. “and really dumb. he’ll never believe me. i don’t believe me.”
“duizhang,” zitao replies, very slowly, and kris just knows he’s going to spout one of his life changing hipster quotes. “we’re all a little crazy inside.”)
“yeah, so lu han’s inviting some of the guys over to his apartment on friday.”
“i thought he said he had to clean everything out? wasn’t he supposed to be moving around or something?”
“well,” kris says, frowning, “he needs help with that? are you busy?”
yixing looks vaguely deep in thought; kris feels bad for not mentioning his birthday at all, until he sees a flash of orange out of the corner of his eyes and before he gets a chance to brace himself, he finds himself face down on the seat of the booth, with a giant, human-sized teddy bear on top of him.
“yifan?”
“chanyeol, please.”
“who’s yifan?”
“who are you?”
“i’m chanyeol, hi! are you yifan?”
“no, that’s yifan.”
“chanyeol,” kris repeats, groaning, “please get off.” he pushes himself back onto his elbows, and sighs in relief when chanyeol slides off of his back. he’s still half sitting on his thigh though, and kris just takes all the half victories he can get and lets him. “yifan’s my chinese name. that’s yixing. yixing, this is chanyeol, the guy i went on a date with.”
“you’re chanyeol? i didn’t realize you were yifan’s type.”
chanyeol shrugs. “i’m not, really. and oh! yixing! kris mentioned you at the bakery. aren’t you--”
kris realizes where this is going and clamps his hand over chanyeol’s mouth. “it’s a surprise,” he whispers behind chanyeol’s neck, so yixing doesn’t see him, and gives the best smile he can muster at yixing. it isn’t very good. “zitao mentioned you at the bakery where chanyeol works.”
“you two are close,” yixing quips, eyebrows raised.
“oh,” chanyeol mumbles, and turns his head back to look at kris. “should i get off? sorry.”
“if you want,” kris replies pathetically. “it doesn’t bother me.”
he sits down next to kris, and smiles at him expectantly.
“do you know lu han?” yixing asks chanyeol, looking surprisingly interested in the newcomer.
chanyeol nods. “we have class together.”
“he’s also coming,” kris says quickly - his best attempt to salvage the situation. “on friday. aren’t you, chanyeol?”
“am i?” chanyeol asks, then pauses. “oh! is this about--”
kris pinches his thigh under the table; chanyeol whimpers. yixing raises an eyebrow.
“i’m sure lu han wouldn’t mind if you came. so you should also come, yixing.”
“well, i don’t think i’m doing anything on friday, so sure,” yixing says slowly. “also i’m actually... really late to my class. so i should go. i’ll see you two later?”
chanyeol beams at him and holds out his hand. “nice meeting you!”
“you... too,” yixing says and shakes his hand while giving kris a curious look. “i’ll see you both later, then.”
once yixing is gone, kris slumps against the booth and sighs. he really hates his life.
“did i do something wrong?” chanyeol asks, face drawn into an unceremonious pout.
“no, of course not,” kris says, patting down a few stray hairs on the side of chanyeol’s head before he realizes what he’s doing and pulls away. “this would be a good time to ask you something, actually.”
“hm?”
kris hesitates, debating whether he should wait a bit before asking or just ask right now and get a clear answer. the words tumble out of his mouth before he can decide. “what are we?”
chanyeol doesn’t seem the slightest bit fazed as he mulls over the question in his head, and for the first time, kris envies chanyeol for being so comfortable with the whole situation. “i don’t know,” he says. “what do you want us to be?”
“i don’t know,” kris admits. “i’m not sure.”
“well, i like you,” chanyeol says. “but if you don’t like me, then it’s-”
“it’s not that i don’t like you,” kris replies, cutting him off, “it’s just that we’ve sort of just met and i don’t know if this is how things work or if i should wait a while longer.”
kris hates having this sort of conversation, but this is all so new and very confusing for him. he needs to know what he’s supposed to do so that he’s able to do it. chanyeol doesn’t look too opposed to having this conversation, though, and kris isn’t too opposed with being with chanyeol.
maybe that’s all he really needs.
“i don’t know how things usually work either,” chanyeol says, “but maybe we just need to hang out with each other more? like right now - right now is nice, even though i almost ruined your surprise.”
kris laughs. “you didn’t ruin it. i’m sure if i told yixing to his face he had a surprise party he still wouldn’t realize that there’s a surprise party for him.”
“oh,” chanyeol mumbles. “well. he sounds nice.”
“i guess,” kris says, then raises an eyebrow at chanyeol. “but you are coming on friday, right? i wasn’t kidding when i said that.”
chanyeol blinks up at him like he wasn’t expecting that, but then he smiles wide at kris, the same smile kris has learned to adore, and says, “yeah. yeah, of course.”
“so that’s the guy you like?” yixing asks later, when they’re in calculus together. “chanyeol? i have to admit, i wasn’t expecting him.”
“it’s not what you think,” kris says mindlessly, copying down one of the questions on the board.
“and you know what i think?”
kris sighs and puts his pencil down. “i know you think he doesn’t match me at all, or that he’s a bit weird and loud, and he is, but he’s nice and fun to be around, albeit too hyperactive, but i like him for exactly that.”
there’s a gap of silence in which kris regrets saying every single word he’s just said, but yixing looks legitimately impressed. then he grins in that mischievous way that makes kris want to stab himself in the eyeball with his pencil.
“wu yifan,” he says, clicking his tongue, “you have fallen very hard, my friend.”
kris says nothing after that, a bit flabbergasted, a bit embarrassed, and a little bit speechless. he opts for turning his attention back to the board and copying down the rest of the notes as yixing laughs beside him.
chanyeol and kris meet up again after chanyeol’s literature class, and kris comes to the rather nice realization that even though chanyeol is very loud and talkative himself, he is just as much a patient and attentive listener. kris doesn’t talk as often, so when he does, it’s nice that he knows someone is paying attention.
this time, they bond over chanyeol’s ipod, and find out that they, more or less, listen to the same music.
they’re uncomfortably shoved next to each other, far too much in each other’s personal space, even though there’s no reason for them to be that way, and kris is glad that neither of them is pointing this out.
“have you seen the music video for this song?” chanyeol asks, and kris shakes his head. “it’s really cool - really meaningful, too. let me show you!”
kris lets him, even though he’s not really paying too much attention. instead, his mind drifts to chanyeol, and the way chanyeol holds up his phone at an angle so that kris gets a much better view of the video than he does, and thinks that maybe you don’t need to know someone for a long time to mean so much to them. sometimes things just fit together, like a puzzle, or the gaps between their hands, the time suspended in between each breath. some things are meant to be inhaled too quickly, so that the exhale is slow and steady. lasting.
“what’d you think?” chanyeol asks, after the video has ended. “pretty cool, right?”
“i think,” kris says, then pauses, deep in thought as chanyeol looks at him patiently. “i think i want to kiss you.”
chanyeol’s eyes widen, mouth parting a little, but he doesn’t say anything, even as kris cups his face with a hand.
“can i kiss you?”
chanyeol blinks, swallows, and then nods, and that’s all the confirmation he needs before kris is leaning in and pressing his lips against chanyeol’s.
chanyeol’s lips feel just as soft as they look, and it isn’t long before chanyeol is kissing back, tilting his head so that he can tangle one of his hands in kris’ hair. he nips at kris’ bottom lip, and kris is laughing softly as he pulls away. “we’re still in public,” he says quietly, forehead resting against chanyeol’s.
“i thought i was supposed to be the spontaneous one,” chanyeol whines, hand still playing with the collar of kris’ shirt.
“you’re in for a pleasant surprise,” kris says, and chanyeol pouts at him.
“you lie,” chanyeol replies, “this empty space is not pleasant.”
kris takes a quick glance around the room to find it empty, and turns back to chanyeol. “that can be remedied.”
yixing’s surprise goes surprisingly well. he blinks in confusion even after everyone yells surprise in his face and needs confirmation that this is really for him. at least the final result is a giant smile that has him laughing in delight and trying to gather everyone he possibly can into a hug.
it isn’t really a party with lu han until the alcohol is broken out, and while kris knows he’ll probably end up breaking sooner or later and drinking, for now he wants to stay sober to tell chanyeol what he’s been waiting to tell him all week. chanyeol seems content with that, and according to him, he doesn’t drink alcohol all the often anyway.
they escape to the balcony and revel in the view from lu han’s apartment building. it’s a high rise apartment building in the middle of seoul, and at night the lights bring life to the city.
“so i wanted to ask you something,” kris says, a little nervous, even though he already knows the answer. it’s a bit stupid for him to even be asking this, but he wants to make everything they’ve done so far clear - to give it a definition, so he can keep that stability. “even if it’s a little stupid. are you ready?”
chanyeol looks understandably confused, but he nods anyway, mentally preparing himself.
“park chanyeol,” kris starts, and suddenly feels extremely ridiculous for doing it this way, but it’s too late to back out now, so he continues to say, “will you officially be my boyfriend?”
chanyeol’s mouth opens a little, but they quickly turn up in that same smile kris has grown to become addicted to - teeth showing, nose scrunched up, eyes twinkling. “i’m so tempted to say no, just to see your face,” he says, and kris looks visibly wounded, but instead chanyeol grabs fistfuls of kris’ shirt and pulls him close, “but this time i’ll spare you the mortification and say yes.”
this, kris thinks, is familiar territory - chanyeol’s lips, chanyeol’s hands, but as kris drags his fingers across chanyeol’s waist, and as he opens his mouth for chanyeol, there comes the realization that he has only grazed the tip of the iceberg, and he grins into the kiss as he discovers that he is more than happy to explore the rest.
DELETED SCENE:
("so why do you call him 'duizhang' anyway," chanyeol asks, when he's visiting at the bakery. he's done zitao the gracious favor of letting him use the bakery as a backdrop for his pictures.
"oh," zitao says. "that. it's a long story. but, shortened, duizhang taught me that it was okay to live my life with all my soul. that even the smallest things in life can mean the most to someone."
"he - what?"
"he used to be the captain of the basketball team in high school, okay," zitao says, sniffing. "nationals meant a lot to us. now shut up and tell me what filter looks best.")