skipping heartbeats into tomorrow [2/3]

[lababoreine]

Two

The last hour flew by and the next thing Kris knew, he and Baekhyun were walking Taeyeon, Tiffany, and Jessica to the door for the last time.

“We’ll come back,” Tiffany said with a cheery smile. “We had a great time so you definitely found some new regulars.”

“Thank you for picking us,” Kris said, bowing. Baekhyun echoed his words and actions, dipping his head down respectfully. “Please request us anytime you want to. We would be happy to serve you again.”

They said their goodbyes, and Kris and Baekhyun watched as the three girls walked away, colorful clothes just barely discernable from between the black suits of the bodyguards. Kris felt a little sad seeing them go. While it was tiring, he’d truly enjoyed the time they spent together.

Baekhyun sighed and turned to go clean up the room. After a beat, Kris followed after him.

The buzz of the alcohol had gradually left his system during the performance, leaving him feeling coherent and reasonable enough to know he needed some water. He poured himself some from the leftover pitcher in the room, and without a second thought poured one more glass to offer it to Baekhyun.

At least his hand was calm and steady, Kris thought as Baekhyun stared at it. The room was completely silent as he waited for Baekhyun to take cup. However, Baekhyun wasn’t taking it. All he did was stare.

Just when Kris was about to put down the cup in defeat, Baekhyun reached out to take it from him. Kris watched his throat work as he swallowed the water, and felt his mouth dry. He looked away, scratching at the back of his neck before pulling at his tie. He was feeling the slightest bit hot.

When Baekhyun finished, his upper lip glistened with moisture from the water as he handed the cup back to Kris. Kris stared and nearly started when Baekhyun smiled at him.

“Thanks,” Baekhyun said, his cheeks still slightly flushed from all the alcohol he’d consumed. Kris couldn’t stop staring. He’d never seen Baekhyun smile like that. Baekhyun had smiled at him before, but it hadn’t looked like this at all. This was... amazing. This smile made all of his painful pining worth it.

When he realized that he hadn’t replied, he nodded mutely, still stunned that Baekhyun was actually smiling a real smile at him. He took the cup back in a daze.

Wow.

“Are you going out with anyone?” Kris asked, and blinked. Wait a second. Had it been him who had asked that? Why was his mouth moving on its on? He panicked and said, “I mean, not that I-”

“I’m not,” Baekhyun replied, looking far too amused to Kris’ liking. Kris made a face, scratching at his cheeks with a finger. His face felt hot.

“Hm,” Kris said, and cleared his throat. Time to change the subject. He gestured toward the table. “Well, let’s clean this up, yeah? That way we can go home.”

He hurriedly collected the plates and trash, trying to ignore the way Baekhyun’s stare burned into the valley between his shoulder blades. Kris stumbled and nearly stubbed his toe against the frame of the door, but he hastily jerked from it and walked away.

Kris paused once he’d put the dishes in the sink, his face completely red.

What a disaster.

He’d almost asked Baekhyun out like a loser.

÷

When Kris got up the next day, his hangover was surprisingly not all that bad. He’d slept through noon, so that might have been a reason why his head wasn’t pounding, but Kris decided not to question it too much. One did not look into the face of good fortune least they see something they didn’t want to see.

Kris took a pain pill for the mild headache tap dancing at his temples and drummed his fingers against the counter, wondering what he had to take care of before he went to buy some food at five. Maybe a light workout, followed by a shower and a snack. He probably had to call some of his clients, too, to apologize for not being available the past three nights and make sure they’d come in tonight.

He sighed and rubbed at the back of his nape. He would’ve enjoyed having a massage right about now, but it wasn’t an option. Though he definitely had enough money to indulge in those sort of things now, he had some sensitive spots on his back that he felt would make for very awkward moments if he let some strangers touch them.

He debated working out, too, but decided against it. He wasn’t in a sweaty-type mood.

Instead, he went to take a long, hot shower, and let the steam relax his tense muscles. He washed himself, starting from his hair and working his way down, until he felt clean enough to stop the stream and step out.

(It was only through sheer luck that he didn’t pop wood on one of the numerous occasions he thought of Baekhyun while in the shower.)

As he went to call his clients, he munched on some celery and carrots. The light snack would hold him over until later when he went to go get some food for dinner. The calls were pleasant enough, and some he even had some genuine chats with. By the time he finished with his last one and hung up, time had already passed by and four o’clock was quickly approaching.

He made a face at the clock. He’d gotten carried away and had spent nearly three hours talking to his clients.

Kris shrugged. He’d just get ready early, get some food, and head over to the club. And who knew? Maybe Baekhyun would already be there, waiting.

He laughed at his own anxious, enthusiastic thoughts.

Baekhyun already had him wrapped around his pretty little fingers, and he didn’t even know it!

How fucking fantastic.

÷

No one was at the club except for the managers, Key and Xiumin, along with the owners, Suho and Onew. Kris felt only a little (read: a lot) disappointed that Baekhyun wasn’t there, but it was easy enough to shrug off. After all, the official time staff was supposed to come in was at six anyway. The club itself didn’t open until seven, either.

After waving to the owners and the managers, Kris went into the staff lounge and sat down with his food. The television in the corner was on, so he grabbed the remote and turned the volume up to listen to the news. The weather was getting colder with winter approaching, and snow was expected to start falling on Monday, according to the forecasters. Kris grimaced slightly. He hated snow.

Internally whining to himself, he was so engrossed with the TV screen that he jumped when the door to the lounge opened. Baekhyun walked in with an annoyed face, slightly rumpled from the wind and looking all around adorable with a scarf wrapped around his neck. His expression changed to one of surprise when he caught sight of Kris.

“You’re here early,” Kris said, albeit uselessly as he floundered for words. Baekhyun shrugged, lips twitching into a half-smile as he made his way over to the table.

“I’m normally here around this time,” Baekhyun told him, sitting down and placing his food in front of him. He paused and revised that statement. “Unless I have something to take care of.”

“Oh,” Kris said, caught off guard. That would’ve been good to know earlier. “Why didn’t you tell me?”

Baekhyun didn’t even pause from pulling out his food before he answered, “I didn’t think it mattered.”

But it did matter. It mattered to Kris, at least. Here he’d been scrambling for ways to approach Baekhyun when all this time, he could’ve just come an hour earlier and found a way to talk to the quiet host.

He held in a sigh and pulled out one of his favorite fruit snacks. Well, what was done was done. At least he’d gotten closer to Baekhyun these past few nights. He’d been making great progress lately, which was saying a lot since he’d been working at the club for at least seven months. Now all he had to do was find a way to ask Baekhyun out (and preferably where he could do it in a cool and charming fashion) and let fate do the rest.

Which reminded him...

“If you don’t mind me asking,” Kris said, watching as Baekhyun ate through his sushi slowly. He looked like he was savoring each bite, and for some insane reason, Kris felt happy about that. He continued, “Where do you live?” At that, Baekhyun stopped, hand still in the air, and eyed him.

“Why do you ask?”

“No reason,” Kris said with a small smile. He hoped he didn’t sound too nervous. “I was just wondering if we lived around the same area.” He nearly bit his tongue and sputtered out, “Fruit chew?” as he thrusted the little bag at Baekhyun.

Baekhyun stared at him before placing his chopsticks down with a tiny sigh. “If you were really curious,” Baekhyun started, still looking at Kris suspiciously, “I live in the apartment complex by the park a few blocks from here. Where do you live?” Baekhyun took a fruit snack idly.

Kris brightened. “I live near that,” he said, except he lived in the complete opposite direction. There was no way he was going to tell that to Baekhyun, though. “Should we walk back together when we get off of work?”

Baekhyun thought about that for a minute, peering at Kris with narrowed eyes. He pulled up a hand and leaned his chin in his palm before saying, “You know, you aren’t anything like what I imagined.”

“Is that a good or a bad thing?” Kris asked, curious. How, exactly, had he come off on Baekhyun initially? He hoped it had been a good impression, but because Baekhyun was mentioning it in the first place, it probably hadn’t been. He wasn’t sure how to feel about that train of thought.

“I haven’t decided yet,” Baekhyun admitted before hesitating. “It’s fine with me if you want to walk back together.”

“Great,” Kris said with a smile, already giddy at the prospect of walking with Baekhyun after the club closed and work finished. “Wait for me at the back door, then?”

“Sure.”

They finished their food up in comfortable silence, a few commercials playing in the background. It was already around four-forty-five and no doubt the other hosts would start showing up soon enough. Kris tried to enjoy the little time he had with Baekhyun alone left and watched as Baekhyun got up and made some coffee for himself. Baekhyun paused, looking back. “Did you want some?” He gestured toward the coffeemaker.

Kris wasn’t a big coffee drinker, but accepted a cup readily. There was no way he was going to say no to anything Baekhyun gave him. He sipped at it, staring at Baekhyun over the edge of his coffee cup, wondering if Baekhyun always made his coffee black. Somehow, thinking Baekhyun liking his coffee bitter fit more than Baekhyun liking it creamy and sweet.

Time continued forward, and before Kris knew it, five-thirteen had already passed. A few of the other hosts had arrived and were currently eating, chatting, and laughing amongst themselves a few tables away from where Kris and Baekhyun sat. A few minutes later, Kai poked his head through the door and walked in happily when he saw that Sehun hadn’t arrived yet, plopping down onto the seat next to Baekhyun with a smile.

“Are you not eating today?” Kai asked Kris, looking curious. Kris generally arrived just a few minutes before Kai and was normally eating when Kai walked in, so it wasn’t a surprise that Kai had noticed it quickly.

“I finished already,” Kris said easily. “This way, Sehun can’t steal any of my food.”

“That’s smart,” Kai said, munching on some of his fries. Kai seemed to be fairly fond of American fast food, since he was always eating it, Kris thought amusedly. The door to the lounge opened and Sehun and Luhan walked in together before making a beeline for the table. Kai made sure to scoot his chair closer to Baekhyun before Sehun could make a grab for his fries. “If I hadn’t told Kyungsoo that I ate at work, I would’ve started eating earlier too.”

“You still haven’t told him that you work at a host club, have you?” Luhan asked disapprovingly as he sat down next to Kris.

“How could I tell my boyfriend that?” Kai asked grumpily, fiddling with his food. “He’d tell me to quit and where would that leave me? I wouldn’t be able to buy him nice things anymore.”

“Young love,” Sehun quipped mockingly, and in the process managed to steal a fry from Kai’s fortress of arms. Now that Kris wasn’t fending off Sehun’s attacks, he found it all quite funny, though he made sure to keep his thoughts to himself. No doubt Kai would get angry with him.

“You’re younger than I am!” Kai said with disbelief, a you-are-so-fucking-full-of-it scowl on his face.

“But I am not in love,” Sehun said with a cheeky grin. Kris felt mildly bad for Kai for an instant; he knew exactly how it felt being mercilessly teased by the little devil that was Oh Sehun, and it definitely wasn’t one of the better things to experience, that was for sure.

“No one wants their partner to be a host,” Baekhyun told Kai quietly, seriously. “And people who do have no pride whatsoever. You’re lucky to have him.”

And though Baekhyun hadn’t scolded him, Kai looked a little depressed as he sullenly ate his hamburger. Kris wondered what type of person this Kyungsoo guy was. Kai obviously adored him and loved to pamper him with gifts. Was Kyungsoo someone who liked materialistic things? If Kai was as perceptive as Kris thought him to be, then he would’ve found someone who didn’t go out with him for just his looks. But just because looks might not have mattered to Kyungsoo did not mean money didn’t.

Maybe that was why Kai was so vehement on keeping this job - this job that allowed people to talk and drink with them, to touch and cling onto them for a price. Because if he allowed himself to quit, it would be a heavy blow to the amount of money he had and, subsequently, could give.

Of course, Kris could be completely wrong about that though.

Kris switched around to look over at Baekhyun, considering his words carefully. Did Baekhyun not want to get involved with another host? Or was Kris just hearing things? Since Baekhyun was always so careful with his words and actions, Kris couldn’t be sure. He’d learned by now that something Baekhyun had said could easily mean something else.

He was already getting a headache just thinking about it, so instead of digging too deep, Kris decided to ignore it.

Baekhyun finished his cup of coffee and got up to set the glass away. Kris looked down. He hadn’t even finished half of his own cup, he realized. It was still warm though, so he held onto it and took tiny drinks every few minutes. He didn’t want to finish it too fast; Baekhyun might not offer to make him coffee again so he had to savor this while he could.

Suho came in when six rolled around and told them to start getting ready. Kris scratched his head in thought; maybe he’d lose the tie for today. No doubt his clients would go crazy over the small, yet significant change in his wardrobe.

In reality though, he was just too lazy to put it on himself.

Luhan left the table a few minutes later, claiming he had to change even though he was wearing men’s designer clothes already. Kai got up, too, and left his food to Sehun so he could go and style his hair.

Baekhyun, as usual, had gotten ready before he had come to the club. Kris stared at him, and when Baekhyun noticed it, he raised a questioning brow.

“Do you do your makeup yourself?” Kris asked curiously.

“I wouldn’t call it makeup. I like to call it guyliner,” Baekhyun said seriously. “And yeah, I do. Why?”

“Well, it looks good on you,” Kris said earnestly. Sehun choked on the hamburger he was eating, sputtering and glancing incredulously at Kris as if he were insane. Kris frowned at him, wondering what his problem was.

“I know,” Baekhyun said, a smirk dancing on the tips of his lips. “But trust me, you haven’t seen anything yet.”

Kris took that as a promise.

÷

Though Baekhyun had agreed to walk with him after they finished their work, Kris hadn’t actually thought that Baekhyun would stick with it, if he was being 100% truthful. He thought Baekhyun would just keep on going home with his clients, thought Baekhyun would completely blow him off in the face of sex and money.

However, when closing time came, Kris hurried to the back and found Baekhyun already bundled up and waiting for him. He tried to hold the ecstatic smile in, pleasantly, pleasantly surprised, and reached to pull at Baekhyun’s scarf in hopes of distracting Baekhyun before he could see Kris smiling like a lunatic. Unfortunately for him, Baekhyun did see it. Fortunately for him, Baekhyun didn’t say anything and only reached up to re-adjust his scarf, sparing Kris a faintly amused smile.

“Are you ready to go?” Baekhyun asked before tilting his head to the side as he stared critically at Kris. Kris glanced down at his wardrobe, wondering why Baekhyun was looking at him like that. Was it that weird he’d changed out of his suit before leaving? It wasn’t his fault sweatpants felt more comfortable.

“I was getting tired of suits,” Kris said as an explanation as he pulled the door and ushered Baekhyun out with a hand on the small of his back. He dropped it almost immediately once they’d stepped outside. Had Baekhyun noticed?

“You look good,” Baekhyun complimented with a side-glance his way. Kris smiled and stuck his hands in his pockets.

They soon passed by the park. A large, old beech tree stood at the edge of the playground by the swings, and Kris stopped by it. Baekhyun’s apartment complex was just in front of them, and no doubt it would look weird if he walked Baekhyun up to his room. He smiled when Baekhyun stopped and looked at him.

“This is where we split off,” Kris said, doing his best to keep the reluctance out of his tone. “I’ll see you tomorrow, though.”

“Yeah.” Baekhyun was smiling at him. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

÷

They settled into a routine. Kris came by the club earlier to spend more time with Baekhyun, and sometimes they even went out to get something together. Kris wouldn’t call those dates, though; no matter how much Baekhyun had opened up to him in the past few weeks, he was still cold and uninviting at times and made it fully clear to Kris about what was happening between them. Thankfully, Kris was getting used to it; he learned to read Baekhyun better and knew that he meant no harm. All he needed was time to get used to Kris’ presence.

That hadn’t been the only thing that had changed. Baekhyun’s daily sexual exploits became spontaneous and dwindled until they disappeared completely. Baekhyun no longer went out with customers after closing time came, but instead let Kris walk him back to his apartment.

To say that Kris was happy about Baekhyun stopping would be a gross understatement.

Recently, they’d become close enough to do light skinship with. Kris couldn’t deny this made him feel giddy. (And the added bonus of shocking Sehun once in a while made it even better.)

All in all, things were looking up. He’d never been so set on someone before, but he found he couldn’t regret it. He was completely enjoying experiencing everything that came his way (though the constant drinking was starting to become tiring).

Friday-aka-Confess-Night!!! (or so he’d marked on his calendar) was coming around soon, too.

It would only be a matter of time.

÷

Friday night was going great so far. Kris had some of his regular clients come in, and as usual managed to charm the pants off of all of them. The alcohol was fast flowing, and he had to make sure he consumed enough water during his breaks in between customers. He didn’t want to be drunk before the night ended, and he definitely did not want to be drunk when he confessed to Baekhyun. However, despite his best efforts, by the time one o’clock rolled around a buzz had settled easily into his bones.

He went to the bathroom and splashed his face with cold water. It was enough to shock him out of the light daze that had taken hold of him. He looked in the mirror. Thankfully he didn’t look like the alcohol was getting to him yet. If he had to admit to something, it was that he really didn’t look good when his cheeks and eyes were red from drinking. He sighed, grateful for the little things, and left for the staff lounge to drink more water.

Baekhyun was already leaving to entertain a new client when Kris walked in, but managed a small smile before he rushed out.

Kris watched him settle into a booth that had three ladies waiting, watched as they ran their fingers over his arms flirtatiously and frowned. Was that necessary?

He turned away, slightly irritated, and grabbed a glass of water, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand when he finished. There were mirrors set up in the back, so he made sure to check his appearance. His suit didn’t look all that bad, he noted with approval. He’d managed to hold himself in a way so his suit wouldn’t wrinkle too fast, which was always a good thing. He had bought these expensive suits for just that reason, and it made him happy to see that they were doing what they said they would.

Kris was brushing some hair off of his forehead when Xiumin came in and told him a new customer was waiting for him.

Making sure to look good as he exited the room, Kris picked his way to the table Xiumin had pointed out earlier. It was close to Baekhyun’s booth, so Kris hurried over with the intention of getting there faster. Though he had to put up with his own jealous fits in professional silence, it made him feel a little bit better being in close proximity to Baekhyun. He couldn’t stop Baekhyun from doing his job, but he could at least make sure that the customers were treating him right.

However, when he got to the table, he took one look at the woman and froze. Any eagerness drained from his face, leaving him cold and dizzy. Sitting there was an ex of his, nails long and light pink against the table where they tapped impatiently. Waiting never had been a strong point of hers.

“Hi Kris,” she said when she caught sight of him, smiling, and ushered him to sit down. He managed a smile as he sat down stiffly. The seat had once felt comfortable to him, but it sure didn’t now. It felt cold and unyielding against his back as he stared at the woman sitting across from him, at a loss for words. She had already ordered a few drinks, it seemed, and she poured him a glass before watching him expectantly. He noted the two empty bottles that laid discarded at the edge of the table. For someone who had drunk so much already, she was surprisingly bright-eyed and lucid.

He wasn’t sure if that was a good thing, or a bad thing.

“Thank you,” he said woodenly. The familiar feel of the icy glass in his palm grounded him, and he managed to bow. “I’m Kris. Thank you for picking me as your host tonight.”

She swirled her own glass as she watched him, her smile gone. Her eyes were nearly as hard as the chair felt.

“Rather tense for the number one host here, aren’t you?” she questioned, her tone light but her facial expression frosty. He said nothing. She raised an eyebrow at him mockingly, gesturing to his alcohol. “Are you not going to drink that?”

“Why are you here?” he asked instead. A panicked ringing had started up in his ears.

“Well, a mutual friend of ours mentioned that she saw you here,” she said after taking a drink of her alcohol. “And of course, being the sucker that I am for you, I flew right over. I bet you like hearing that, huh?” His grip on his glass tightened at the veiled insult and he had to force himself to relax.

“I don’t,” he said bluntly with a tight smile. He inhaled and exhaled to try and rid himself of the anger that spiked at those words.

She hummed at that, not at all bothered by it as she looked around. “I have to admit, this is a nice place. I was expecting it to not be so... high class.”

Instead of saying anything, Kris just poured more of the drink into her glass. She watched him, a small smile on her face that told him everything he wanted to know. He knew exactly what was coming.

And come it did.

“You know, this job suits you,” she said, that small smile still on her face. “You always did like to manipulate people.”

“Is that why you came here?” he gritted out at her, making sure that he controlled himself. “To insult me in an environment where I can’t say anything back?”

She laughed. “It’s always about you, isn’t it, Kris? It’s almost disappointing to see how much you haven’t changed.” She leaned in, looking as if she were enjoying riling him up. “So? Who’s your new girlfriend now?” When he didn’t say anything, jaw clenched and lips pressed tight together, she narrowed her eyes at him. “I know you, Kris. There’s no way you don’t have some new, pretty thing hooked onto your arm by now. You live to break hearts.” She was getting loud now, and some people were turning to give them curious looks.

The feeling of someone staring at him made Kris paranoid. He glanced about, wondering if he was imagining things, before he turned back to his ex.

“I don’t understand why you’re being like this,” he said softly. He didn’t want to deal with this right now. “You were the one who broke up with me, remember?”

And just like that, all of the fight drained out of her, leaving her looking as pale and tired as he felt. She huffed out a small laugh, weary lines around her eyes leaving her looking older than he remembered.

“Despite what you probably think now, I actually didn’t come here to antagonize you.” She held up her hands in surrender, and he caught sight of them trembling before he could glance away. “I honestly just wanted a drink.”

“You could get less expensive drinks somewhere else,” Kris said, struggling for neutrality.

She smiled bitterly. “I always did like things too high-class for me.”

÷

Kris rubbed wearily at his eyes. He’d never been more grateful that closing time had come. After the disaster he officially dubbed as Friday Horror Night, all he wanted to do was leave and let himself relax in Baekhyun’s presence. He rounded the corner, wrapping his scarf around his neck as he went, but paused and frowned when he didn’t see Baekhyun waiting for him by the door as he normally did.

He walked around, wondering if Baekhyun was just helping up with the cleanup, but after ten minutes searching, Kris still hadn’t found a trace of him. Those ten minutes of searching quickly turned into fifteen, twenty, thirty, until forty-five minutes had passed by without so much as a call or text.

Finally, he ran into Chanyeol, who was helping with the cleanup and asked if he’d seen Baekhyun. Chanyeol promptly snorted, the plates in his grasp shaking slightly.

“Saw him leaving earlier with one of his clients,” Chanyeol said. He studied Kris before shrugging and leaving. “See ya tomorrow man.”

Kris didn’t reply.

A few of the other hosts were still cleaning up, but Kris turned away and headed out. Winter was upon the city, and he huddled in his coat before beginning his journey home.

Only a few minutes later did he realize he had taken the opposite path.

He swallowed and turn away.

÷

Baekhyun avoided him the next day, and the next day after that, and the next day after that. It wasn’t the type of obvious avoidance - he still had dinner with Kris, and he didn’t turn away and give him the cold shoulder, either. But he didn’t engage in conversation unless it was to make chilling comments, and he didn’t reply to anything Kris sent him via text message either.

Kris was confused at this change. Had he done something wrong? He couldn’t deny that he felt hurt at the icy silence Baekhyun was giving him; even on the worst days, Baekhyun didn’t treat him like this.

“You look like someone ran you over with a truck,” Sehun commented, handing Kris a glass of water. He watched Kris down it before adding, “Actually, you look like someone ran you over with a truck three times and decided to slap you around a bit before leaving you alone.”

“Thanks,” Kris said dryly. Not that he needed Sehun to tell him that; his last five customers had already done that.

“Anytime,” Sehun said, slapping him encouragingly on the back as he left.

Kris rubbed at his eyes tiredly. Maybe he’d ask for a day off tomorrow.

÷

On his day off, he spent the entire time in bed, staring at his cell phone wondering, wondering, wondering. He couldn’t stop thinking, couldn’t stop asking himself what he’d done for Baekhyun to treat him this way. He wouldn’t be surprised if he’d screwed up again; he wanted to apologize, but he had no idea what to apologize for and it was driving him crazy.

Maybe Baekhyun had just gotten tired of him?

His heart hurt at the thought. Kris sighed and, ignoring his rumbling stomach, rolled around and closed his eyes.

Sleep came with its gift of silence.

÷

Kris dreamed of the beech tree on the playground by Baekhyun’s apartment complex. He dreamed of something loud, something heavy, something dropping, something falling, something cold and warm and very, very bright. And when that bright light shined upon him, he twisted and woke with a start.

His pulse was beating at his temples, heart hammering in his ears. The room was still dark; the sun wasn’t up yet. He wiped the sweat from his brow, wondering why he was so sweaty and anxious in the first place. He glanced over to his clock. Four in the morning. The club had probably just closed up.

Pushing himself up with his elbows, he got out of bed and made his way to the bathroom. He relieved himself, resting his head on his arm, before tucking himself in and washing his hands.

His reflection looked a little worse for wear than he’d expected and he winced, examining the bags under his eyes with a small frown. He wiped down his face, tried to smile and clear the wrinkles from his complexion, and when that didn’t work, he gave up and went back to bed.

He’d open up a few packs of fruit snacks later, he decided. That was sure to make him feel better.

And with that, he fell right back asleep.

÷

When he woke up again, the sun was up and streaming in through his window. He was feeling better, thankfully, and he decided to go out on a light jog. It was only a little bit past eleven, and he still had a while before he needed to go to work.

Kris made sure to work up a light sweat, and after, headed back home. He took a shower and had some tea and fruit chews as he called all his clients to explain his absence yesterday. They were all understanding about it and some even said it would be “totally fine with them” if he “took another night off.” He laughed at that but declined; Key would have his head if he took two nights off in a row.

By the time he finished, the clock had hit two-thirty. Kris wiped at the screen of his phone with his thumbs thoughtfully, wondering if he wanted to chance texting Baekhyun his regular good morning. After a moment of fast-whirling thoughts, he finally decided to throw all caution to the wind. He swiped a finger over the glass and tapped in his lock code, opening up his texts to Baekhyun.

His fingers halted in air as he thought about what to say.

After a moment, he just shook his head and typed out a simple, “good morning.” Then he shut off his phone and went to watch TV.

(Unsurprisingly enough, even when Kris did check his phone, there was not even a single reply from Baekhyun.)

÷

Kris ran late after being distracted by a show - something about rich kids bullying the poor ones, as usual - and made it to the club just in time. Slightly red in the face from exertion, he huffed and puffed as he greeted everyone with a wave, ignoring the way Sehun was snickering at him from the table as he made his way to the changing area. Baekhyun said nothing as he walked by.

He hadn’t had time to change at his place like he usually did, so he changed at the club instead. He pulled his shirt off and straightened out his undershirt, glad that it was cold enough outside that he could wear multiple layers even inside a building and not feel too hot, and slowly put on his suit.

Cold hands shimmied under his shirt and laid flat against his back. Kris shivered, whirling around to see Sehun smirking at him, hands still up in the air.

“What are you doing?” Kris asked warily, and stepped back when Sehun tried to come closer.

“I had to handle ice just a moment ago,” Sehun said, pouting. Kris didn’t fall for it one bit. “Please warm my hands up?”

“Why don’t you go stick your hands up Luhan’s shirt instead?” Kris suggested, rolling his eyes as he put on his earring stud. “Don’t use me as a replacement, Sehun, that’s cruel.”

Sehun’s eyes widened before he schooled his face into forced nonchalance. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Kris nearly had a laughing fit at the reply. Trying to play it cool, eh?

“It’s rather obvious,” Kai said from behind Kris. He’d been listening in quietly. Sehun flushed, and Kris and Kai shared an amused glance. It felt great now that they had dirt on Sehun. Maybe now he’d stop bullying them so much.

“Keep it down, will you?” Sehun hissed at them, looking around. “No need to go telling all the neighbors.”

“About what?” Kris asked innocently, enjoying teasing Sehun more than he thought he would’ve. “About you liking Lu-”

“If you say his name out loud, I swear I will-”

“Will what?” Kai challenged, but Kris shut his mouth. He knew exactly what Sehun would do, and well.

No.

Kris found his eyes pulled over to where said No sat, and to his surprise, Baekhyun was already staring at him.

÷

Baekhyun was clearly putting effort into steering clear of Kris, and it was getting so obvious that even Kai was beginning to notice a difference. Kris tried not to let it affect him; he wanted Baekhyun to tell him what was wrong and believed that giving Baekhyun enough time was the way to go. So he held his tongue, reigned in his temper, even as Baekhyun gave him the cold shoulder, and started to go out with his clients every night again.

However, Kris found the tactic wasn’t working as well as he thought it would.

Being avoided for one day was fine. Being avoided for two days was okay. Being avoided for a week was pushing it. But being avoided for nearly ten days?

Kris could only take so much before he snapped.

And when he saw Baekhyun about to walk out, another man’s hands slung across his shoulders possessively, something cracked inside him, and he grabbed Baekhyun’s wrist and barked, “Get lost,” to the shocked man.

“What are yo-” Baekhyun started, tugging and trying to shake Kris’ grip loose.

“Shut up,” Kris grated out to Baekhyun and glared at the man. “Leave. Now. He won’t be fucking you tonight.”

The man threw some curses and threats at him but in the end left, and Kris released Baekhyun once the man was out of his sight. Baekhyun looked angry as he rubbed his wrist, where it was red from the pressure Kris had put on it. When Kris caught sight of it, some of his anger and hurt drained, but not enough for him to adopt a nicer tone.

“You are going to walk home right now,” he said in deliberate slowness. “And I am going to walk with you.” When Baekhyun opened his mouth to argue, Kris said coldly, “Don’t even bother. I’m walking with you whether you like it or not.”

Baekhyun smirked at that, the expression ugly and unfamiliar on his face, as he stalked over to Kris. “Jealous, sweetheart?” he purred, his eyes hard and resentful. “Angry that I’m not draped over your arm and taking it like a pretty little toy?”

Kris had no idea what he was talking about; he had no idea what Baekhyun was even talking about in the first place, and he felt an aching pang in his chest. What had he done to be looked at like that?

He shook off the hurt and steeled himself, snapping, “Walk.”

Baekhyun stared at him, indignation and outrage written clear on his features, before turning briskly on his heels and marching back to his apartment with a silence draped over him that was even chillier than the temperature. Kris stared at his back, taking in his tense and stiff shoulders, before sighing and following. His anger was draining, and all it left was a numbness.

The walk felt long and unbearable.

Just when Kris tried to say something, Baekhyun whirled around, flushed pink both from the crisp air and his anger, irritated tears making his eyes shine bright in the streetlight. It took Kris by surprise, and he was stunned into surprise as Baekhyun rubbed at his eyes in annoyance.

“Stop following me already,” Baekhyun said, his jaw rigid. “I won’t fuck anyone tonight, so just leave me alone, okay?”

Kris stared at him. Baekhyun’s words were telling him to leave, but his body language was crying out from loneliness and strain. There was no way Kris could leave, not now. He shook his head. “I won’t until you tell me why you’ve been avoiding me.”

Baekhyun’s face twisted for a moment, upset and incredulous all at once, as he said, “I owe you nothing.”

“I didn’t say you owed me anything,” Kris said quietly, gaze searching Baekhyun’s face earnestly. Please, he thought. Please understand. “I’m asking you to tell me why you seem to hate me so much.”

And just like that, all the fight and hostility drained from Baekhyun’s countenance, leaving him looking small and exhausted. At his side, Kris’ hands twitched. He wanted so much to grab Baekhyun and hold him. He took in a breath, as if the cool night air would help him restrain himself.

“What do you want from me, Kris?” Baekhyun asked, looking cold, worn-out, and so very, very vulnerable. He was shivering, shoulders shaking like paper in the wind. And there went Kris’ restraint. Before he knew it, his hands were moving, touching down onto Baekhyun’s shoulders gently. Baekhyun’s ears were red, and his cheeks were slowly turning the same color. Kris stared, transfixed. Baekhyun stared back, eyes wide and dark in the soft light.

Baekhyun’s shivering withered away like a bad dream, and they stood under the moon in silence, breath forming between them like a screen that separated them. Kris swallowed, hands tightening on Baekhyun’s shoulders slightly.

What did he want?

Kris allowed his trembling hands to let go, and hesitated. He held his breath, slowly cupping Baekhyun’s warm cheeks in his palms. What did he want? His heart stuttered in his chest.

He wanted -

“You,” Kris whispered, and pulled Baekhyun in.

Baekhyun just stood there in what resembled shock as Kris pressed their lips together, but before Kris could pull away, Baekhyun melted into his embrace, clutching at Kris’ scarf like a lifeline. His shivering had started up, trembling in Kris’ grasp, and he pushed at Kris, pushed deeper into the kiss like he needed it like air, pushed like Kris had all the answers to the universe and none at all. It was obvious he was drowning.

And Kris drowned with him.

÷

They took it slowly. Sometimes they would sit together in the park after work, trying to fit in the swings and failing horribly because they were much too big for them now. Then, faces soft with laughter and contentment, they would just plop down onto the bench and hold each other in the sharp, nippy air, staring up at the moon like they’d never seen it in their lives.

Everything was new. Everything was new and beautiful and right.

Kris was smiling up at the stars, watching them wink and twinkle, when Baekhyun stirred against his chest, arms tightening where they were wrapped around Kris’ middle. Kris’ smile widened, and he brushed his hand through Baekhyun’s soft hair. He paused when Baekhyun sighed.

“Are you okay?” he murmured. Baekhyun didn’t answer him right away.

“You aren’t playing me, right?” Baekhyun asked faintly, the whisper spoken into Kris’ shirt. The words were so quiet Kris had to strain to hear them. Kris frowned and slowly sat up, dislodging Baekhyun in the process so that he could glimpse Baekhyun’s face. Baekhyun looked away before he could.

“I’m not,” Kris said after a few seconds. He gingerly hooked his pinkie to Baekhyun’s. “Where did you get that idea?”

“That woman you were sitting with a few weeks ago,” Baekhyun muttered. “Your ex, I’m guessing.” He was frowning as he stared at the darkened playground. “She said that you liked to break hearts.”

Ah, so that was why Baekhyun had started avoiding him. Kris smiled wryly.

He thought for a moment, staring at the beech tree only a few feet from them before running a hand through his hair and nodding.

“Back in college,” Kris said, “I was the center for the basketball team. I did okay in my studies, but I excelled in basketball, and I grew popular as our team won more matches. And though I definitely wasn’t as popular as the captain, I had my own fair share of admirers. My ego outran my brain.” His smile turned sardonic. “I was notorious for my dating style. I broke a lot of hearts. It wasn’t until my last girlfriend, the one you saw at the club, cried and broke up with me that I came to my senses. I stopped dating after that.” He turned to Baekhyun, gazing at him seriously. “You’re the first person I’ve dated in years. If anyone should be asking that question,” Kris said, lips twitching, “it should be me.”

Baekhyun was looking down at where their feet sat side by side. “I’m not playing,” he said finally, a little embarrassed.

Kris let Baekhyun’s pinkie go and instead held his hand.

“Good,” he said. “Because I’m not, either.”

÷

He didn’t like not being able to show Baekhyun off in public. Now that they were together, all he wanted to do was hold hands and hug and cuddle and kiss. It’d taken him a long year laced with poisonous exhaustion to get Baekhyun in his arms. He wanted to be able to go on dates and do things couples did. But they couldn’t. Not in this area, at least. And especially not in the club. Their jobs depended on them holding back from what they wanted to do.

Kris sighed, absently rubbing a finger across his lips. Just a few moments ago in the men’s restroom he’d had Baekhyun’s hot mouth against his, Baekhyun’s body against his, pliant and oh-so-responsive. Unfortunately, just a few moments ago was starting to feel like an eternity ago.

He wanted to kiss Baekhyun again.

“Mooning again?” Sehun guessed as he popped in to tell a host someone was waiting for them. Kris side-eyed him before pointedly turning around; there was no way in hell Kris would slip up about how Baekhyun and him were already going out. The tactic was that if Kris ignored him long enough, he’d get tired and go bully someone else.

He should’ve known better, though.

“Oh, and by the way, I thought I’d let you know that a woman out there is feeling up Baekhyun,” Sehun said casually as he left, and Kris blinked, debating on whether or not Sehun was telling the truth. He knew exactly how irresistible Baekhyun was, after all. Finally, after drumming his fingers against the table for a bit, he walked over to stare out the door.

Where he learned that, no, a woman was most definitely not feeling Baekhyun up.

Kris rolled his eyes up to the ceiling; he wasn’t sure if he wanted to laugh or find Sehun and give him a noogie. Since when was he ever this gullible? He looked back to where Baekhyun was smiling at the woman as he poured her a drink, and their eyes met when Baekhyun glanced over her shoulder.

Well, he thought, maybe being gullible wasn’t such a bad thing, after all. Especially when it led to Baekhyun smiling like that to him.

÷

Their relationship was blooming wonderfully as weeks dropped from the calendar one by one. They grew comfortable with each other and went out on dates during the day, traveling to cities further away from the club so that they didn’t have to hold back. Kris finally got to hold hands in public with Baekhyun, and it had felt wonderful not having to stifle and hide anything, even if for just a few hours.

They also took a night off together (which obviously wasn’t a bright idea, but they were young and in love and honestly, who could blame them?) and went to the beach. Kris found out that Baekhyun fit perfectly in his arms when they held each other on the empty docks to watch the tide come in. He remembered burying his face in Baekhyun’s hair, listening to how the waves splashed against the rocks as they huddled in the blanket they’d brought with them. He remembered the ride home, how quiet it was, but how loud his heart had been. Most of all, he remembered pulling Baekhyun into his apartment, remembered the way Baekhyun looked and smelled against his sheets, head rolling as Kris used his hands and lips to pleasure him.

It’d been a night to remember.

They still hadn’t gone all the way yet, but Kris was fine with that. Baekhyun insisted that he didn’t want their relationship to only depend on sex, but there was something about the way he talked about it that told Kris he wasn’t ready. So Kris contented himself with holding Baekhyun when he could, waiting diligently until the time came. He’d waited a year for Baekhyun to become his, what was a few weeks in comparison to that?

Kris and Baekhyun waved their goodbyes to the leftover staff who were cleaning up the club before heading over to Baekhyun’s apartment for the night. Kris had long since come clean about the fact that he lived nowhere near Baekhyun, which led to a very amused Baekhyun kissing at the corner of his lips like a cute kitten. Kris had promptly melted into a pile of happy goo.

(Of course, Kris would deny that later on. He was “too cool to goo,” and that was that.)

They had a few fights here and there, just like any regular couple, and sometimes they were too stubborn for their own good, but in the end always apologized to each other. (It turned out that Baekhyun was far less stubborn than Kris initially thought. He couldn’t deny it, though, it definitely felt weird being the stubborn one in the relationship.)

At the club, they made sure to cover their tracks well. They only glanced at each other a limited amount of times while they were working, and made sure to never touch unless necessary. (They did, however, link ankles under the table when enough people were around to not notice or care.)

Kris couldn’t say that he liked other people touching Baekhyun, though. That was probably the worst part of their secret relationship. Sometimes he had to watch as girls twined hands with Baekhyun or pinched his knee or snuggled against him, and while he wanted nothing more than to push them all away and make sure no one but him touched Baekhyun again, he did the exact opposite.

He did nothing.

Baekhyun wasn’t as jealous a person as Kris was, though that side of his showed itself from time to time. And when his jealousy showed, it showed. However, Kris had to admit that he rather enjoyed those times. Especially when they led to nice makeout sessions against doors and walls.

“I’m starving,” Sehun complained, hunching over the table, a perfect picture of a miserable, hungry child. Kris narrowed his gaze at him, shifting his noodles away in case Sehun tried to make a break for them. It was four-fifty, and the hosts would start arriving soon. Kris could only hope that Kai come quickly and feed the beast before it started attacking at random.

“You and Baekhyun both have noodles,” Sehun said, staring at the containers wistfully. Kris felt his pulse spike at Sehun’s words, though rationally he knew he had no reason to be scared. Still... had Sehun noticed something? He calmed down quickly enough, however, when Sehun miserably said, “You should’ve gotten me one order, too.”

Kris scoffed. “Yeah, right.” And when Sehun’s head turned back into the table, Kris turned and winked at Baekhyun. Baekhyun winked back.

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