Reset
Title: Reset [2/11]
Pairings: Kris/Lay, Kai/Lay, Baekhyun/Kris
Genre: AU, angst, fluff,
Warning: un-beta-ed
Rating: Pg-13
Wordcount: 4,276
Summary:
An early relationship blooms but as time progresses, they find
themselves drifting apart. A Christmas of fate changing, will it be
enough to save Yifan and Yixing's relationship?
Proloug| II | III | IV | V | VI | VII | VIII | IX | X
(Disclaimer: I do not own Yixing or Kris or frankly anyone else mentioned in this. This is also, to some point, loosely based on the concept of the Christmas movie "Three Days.")
December 15th, 2012
Day 1
It was odd, or at least Yifan thought it was odd how only a few days could pass yet it seemed like a much longer span of time. Yixing had only been dead for six days, cremated on the third day and taken away on the fourth to sit on a mantel in horridly colored jar for however long time wanted. Yet, there he was, back facing Yifan as he walked into the kitchen. Disbelief went through him and really the only thing keeping him from asking how it was that he wasn’t dead was the calendar.
Yixing had a habit of crossing off the day’s on the calendar in the morning. It had been weird to him at first but slowly as time had progressed he had gotten used to it. He had even kept it going once Yixing had died. The fifteenth of December was crossed out, the sixteenth was still clear.
“I have a performance today, so I’ll be home late…. I kind of made something for you to eat for lunch if you stay home today… dinner can be made later.”
He remembered having this conversation. There had been a small argument following this because of something Yixing had asked. What had been asked didn’t come back to him as easily as a few of the other details of this day had. He remembered breakfast and then Baekhyun, more Baekhyun, and then Baekhyun underneath him. But the morning’s occurrences eluded him.
“You know… it’d be nice if you came to this one. Could you?”
There it was. A light bulb came on as the question was posed. Thinking on it now, Yifan realized how trivial it had been to start a fight because of a question. But when it came to choosing time with Yixing over time with Baekhyun, it did seem bothersome to even entertain the idea of spending more time then needed with Yixing.
“I’m busy today. Maybe next time.”
He didn’t miss the way Yixing’s shoulders seemed to slump down for the smallest fraction of a minute. Had that happened back, er, today was well? Why hadn’t he noticed it then? The beeping of his cell phone answered the question. Baekhyun.
I’m waiting for you in front of the train station, okay? I’ll meet you there. Love you, Baekhyun.
He closed his phone after reading the message over. He knew what would happen that day, so there wasn’t a need to rush. Baekhyun would arrive late because he wouldn’t be able to find a taxi in time and then he’d spent close to twenty minutes just waiting.
“Well, I guess that’ s okay. Schedules are a tricky thing… speaking of which, I’m going to be gone for a week after Christmas. The company is putting on The Nutcracker in a theatre in the next town over so we’re leaving on the twenty-sixth. So that means that you’re going to be spending New Years alone… unless you know… you want to come along.”
He didn’t remember this part. Had he missed the argument? Probably, he had a habit of drowning out things that he didn’t want to hear. He looked at the clock and frowned a little. He should have already been out the door. From what he remembered of the day, he hadn’t stayed long enough for Yixing to serve him food and yet there it was. A plate full of food.
“Well, I need to get going or I’ll be late. Have fun today okay? Don’t work too hard and I guess I’ll see you tonight.”
There was a hesitance that he noted in the way Yixing seemed to move from the kitchen and into the hallway. The room he walked into wasn’t the one that they had both shared. No, they had stopped sleeping in the same room long ago. Yifan moved over towards the table and sat down before taking a bit of the food into his mouth; he had time to kill anyway so it wasn’t as if he was in a rush. Baekhyun was probably trying to hail a cab right now.
A duffle bag with a drawing that he had given Yixing long ago was slung over his shoulder a moment later. His eyebrows furrowed as he watched Yixing grab a bottle of water out of the refrigerator, hadn’t he gotten rid of that bag a while ago?
“What? Do I have something on my shirt?”
Yifan hadn’t noticed that he had been staring. He shook his head and turned back to his food. It really was delicious.
“Hey…”
Yixing was now looking at him and it took Yifan a moment to realize that he had been the one to speak. A glint of hope seemed to sparkle in Yixing’s eyes as he looked at him.
“I though you threw that bag out.”
“Why would I? You gave it to me remember?”
It was true. He had given it to Yixing the night he had debuted with the company he was still with. He
still remembered the part he had played: the warrior Solor from the ballet La Bayadere. He had never heard of it before but from the way Yixing had gone on and on about it, he had been more than excited to see it.
“Didn’t it have a hole in it or something?”
“I fixed it. Holes can be fixed and besides, it’s my favorite.”
Had he been able to, Yifan would have protested. However, Yixing caught sight of the clock and with a rushed farewell, he was gone. He was alone again. Slowly it seemed like the apartment returned to the way that it had been yesterday. Cold, and unwelcoming. It was almost like Yixing took the warmth with him wherever it was that he went, as absurd as it sounded it sincerely made him wonder. His phone rang and he didn’t have to look at the caller I.D. to figure out who it was,
“I’ll be there in ten minutes.”
He hung up without waiting to hear anything else.
12:30 p.m.
Why was he here? More importantly, how had he even gotten there? There was a picture of Yixing and a woman framed on the side of the building; Sleeping Beauty that was the ballet that they were putting on. His eyebrows furrowed as his thoughts traveled to the ballet. They had done it several seasons ago, the exact date had faded into obscurity but he knew that it had been over two years since this company had performed it.
Yixing had gotten a waist injury from how hard he had pushed himself to get the choreography right and had even contemplated stopping when he had been recovering. It had been Yifan who had talked him out of it and helped him get back into the swing of things in time for the performance. Needless to say, the preparations for it had been extremely stressful for Yixing and to put another performance on top of that one must have been killing Yixing. Was that why Yixing had been coming home late in the last few months? He had never stopped to ask.
“Sir you’re not allowed in here. It’s a closed practice.”
Yifan walked down the hallway that he had become familiar with without really caring if it was a closed practice or not. There was something that was bothering him and he wanted to get it to stop. His phone rang, he ignored it for now. There were ways to make Baekhyun forgive him for today and he was going to make sure to do that later.
“The hold you had on her was a little tense. But, that’s understandable. The distance was too great for the leap. You’ve gotten it before, and I’m sure you’ll get it now.”
Yifan ignored the looks that he got as he walked into the practice room. Yixing had his back turned towards him and it seemed like he was in deep conversation with the head choreographer, he didn’t really care.
“The timing is a little off when we embrace. We need to run that again. Kai come here.”
Yifan watched as Yixing motioned for the man that he had once slept with. Kai seemed to fall well into the conversation and Yifan couldn’t help but feel as if they were planning to do something after rehearsals. It bothered him more that he even cared. The distance between him and the small group of male dancers quickly dwindled and he found himself standing behind Yixing.
“Um , Xing…”
It was Kai who noticed him first. The usage of the nickname name him scowl a little. However, Yixing’s
surprised and confused expression brought him down from the cloud of irritation that he had been sent to.
“Yifan, what are you doing here? It’s a closed practice, you can’t really be here… is something wrong?”
How long had it been since he had even visited the company? Maybe a year or so give or take a few months. He had started to avoid the company building the moment he had learned about Yixing’s affair. Maybe that was why he didn’t recognize a few of the dancers in the room, though one in particular seemed really out of place. He shook his head and turned his attention back towards Yixing.
“Lunch? Yeah, lunch sounds good right about now. Let’s take a thirty minute break and come back here, okay?”
He wasn’t talking to him. No, his comment had been aimed towards the dancers and musicians. How long had Yixing had the power to call for lunch or even a break? From what he remembered it was a power given to very few and hardly anyone ever got to taste it. Yet, there he was calling a break. The dance hall was empty within minutes; Kai had taken off with the dancer that seemed out of place. He had begun to wonder if he was even a dancer, maybe he was a spectator? But it was a closed practice so why they allow him in?
“So what’s wrong?”
“How do you know something’s wrong.”
A sigh. Yixing looked tired.
“You don’t come around here anymore and if you just came here to start and argument than please leave.
I’m actually wanted here so please don’t start something here.”
Silence. He’s left speechless by the accusation and can only watch as Yixing seems to limp over
towards his bag. He didn’t recall Yixing ever packing a lunch, so he couldn’t have been going to get food.
“Are you skipping meals again?”
That seemed to stop Yixing. What seemed like hours passed, though really it was only a minute or two, before he saw the other move again. There was a slight limp in his step making Yifan wonder if the waist injury was acting up.
“And you care? Why are you even here, Yifan? You can’t honestly say it’s because you got the urge to see the ballet. What four seasons without coming to see a single show, why now? Why the practice? You could have at least waited until we were ready.”
Yixing’s voice echoed through the room as Yifan silently made his way over towards Yixing; the younger of the two eying him curiously.
“I’m taking that as a yes. Your waist is hurting isn’t it? Didn’t the doctor say to not play with it?”
“Weren’t you the one that told me not to pay attention to the doctors? That I could get back to where I was and that maybe a little pain would have to be endured before I reached it but that it would be worth it in the end?”
He was defensive. Was there relationship really that bad? Yifan simply nodded.
“You’re just being stupid now. Skipping meals and dancing when your waist is acting up. Where do you think that’ll get you? Nowhere, that’s where. You’ll end your career before its time.”
That kept Yixing quiet for a while. A hint of sorrow seemed to reach him before Yifan could properly assess it.
“Aren’t you supposed to be somewhere?”
“Why are you defensive?”
“Go away.”
“How about no?”
To say that he was entertained by the argument would be telling the truth. The smile that he wore was the proof.
“Why are you even here? Isn’t Baekhyun or whatever his name is waiting for you or something?”
The amusement left Yifan and instead a cold hint of air was around him.
“Yeah, I know. Just like how you knew. I’m not stupid, Yifan. I also don’t have time for this.”
Yixing took the moment to pick up his bag and walked out of the room. Yifan’s phone rang and before he could really think about it, he had the phone up to his ear.
“So, I got us food and I’m lonely. Come over?”
7:34 p.m
The apartment is empty. Or at least it feels that way. Yifan had only arrived home and he already had the urge to leave. Yixing had left a message on the answering machine telling him that he’d be home late and to not wait up. What had sounded like an apology had also been mixed in there.
Maybe he would spend the night at Baekhyun’s. He had done it before and from what he remembered, he had spent the night there. Why was it that everything had turned out different this time around?
He began to think back on the day. Waking up, going to the company building, arguing with Yixing, spending the rest of the day with Baekhyun, eating alone. It was all wrong. His mind wondered back towards the argument with Yixing, maybe they had been making up from the argument they were supposed to have had in the morning.
Yifan… I’m sorry for blowing up at you earlier… it’s just…I… I’m coming home late tonight, so don’t wait up. You’ve got things to do and if you’re not home then I guess I’ll be listening to myself later… in which case. Note to self: remember to buy more milk.
He replayed the message over once more. Had there been a message like this last time? Probably. It wasn’t all that late but considering the time that Yixing usually, or use to get out it was late. Was he only just recently coming home this late? Or had this been carrying on for months and it was only now that he was noticing it.
His phone rang. The ringtone was different and what he saw on the caller I.D. made him scowl.
“Hello, Kai.”
9:30 p.m.
“It’s just a mild case of exhaustion coupled with the irritation his waist. He’ll be fine by tomorrow, just make sure that he takes the pain medicine prescribed and that he gets enough sleep. Also, meals shouldn’t consist of anything too heavy and any stressors should be kept away from him.”
Yifan nodded as he continued to listen to the doctor.
…I think it’s best you say goodbye.
It was the same doctor that had told him about Yixing’s hemophilia, the same one that had told him that Yixing was going to die and to say his farewells. He didn’t like this doctor.
“He’s sleeping right now and normally I wouldn’t advise this at all but he seems adamant about going home, you can wake him up and take him home. I’ve already sent for a nurse so a wheelchair should be here for him in a minute or two. The nurse will see you two out from there. Also, please watch his dancing. He’s stressing his body too much and in the end that could lead to very serious injuries.”
A nod.
“It’s been nice seeing you, again mister Wu. I hope you both have a good night.”
Another nod and he entered the room. There was no heart monitor hooked up to Yixing this time, but the image of a critically injured and dying Yixing were the only thing Yifan saw. His hand found its way onto Yixing’s shoulder and with a gentle shake he had woken him up. Yixing had always been a light sleeper.
“Yifan… were am I? …. Did I forget to turn the oven off again?”
Innocence. That was all he could see in Yixing at that moment. Be it because he was groggy and talking about an incident that happened so many years ago that he didn’t really remember all the details, or the fact that he hadn’t seen Yixing wake up in more than a year.
“Okay mister Zhang, we’re going to take you out now, okay? You can go home.”
The moment was taken away the moment the nurse walked in.
9:50 p.m.
The instructions were simple enough. Get Yixing to sleep more, keep him stress free, make sure he eats. Basically, he was supposed to be kept in a secure environment. Yifan contemplated calling Lu Han. It shouldn’t be that hard, he should have been a natural with the instructions. They had been together long enough for him to know how to do everything the doctor had told him to do. But he wasn’t and he was finding it harder and harder to think up of ways to accomplish his assignment. It was at times like this that Yifan wished he hadn’t decided to start a company from his home, at least with a cubical in some office; he’d be able to go and hide there. But he was stuck and he highly doubted Baekhyn would appreciate the reason for his late night visit.
He was stuck.
“I don’t want to. I don’t like pills, Yifan.”
Yixing had fallen asleep during the car ride home meaning that he was stuck with a groggy and somewhat
childish Yixing.
“But the doctor said you had to take them.”
“No.”
“Yixing.”
“You’re not my mother. I don’t have to listen to you.”
He had him there. The smirk that appeared on Yixing’s lips did nothing to help him.
“I wi-”
The opportunity had arisen. Yifan stuffed the pills into Yixing’s mouth along with a bit of water before placing a hand over Yixing’s mouth and pinching his nose so he wouldn’t be able to breath.
“Swallow and I’ll let go.”
A glare and what seemed like a swallow later, Yixing was free.
“You cheated.”
“So did you.”
They both froze. Any comfort that had possibly sprouted died away and Yifan rose up from where he had
been sitting. Yixing had turned his back to him and showed no signs of turning around. He walked out of the room without so much as a good-night. There was no need to say it at all, besides adding it in would only have been labeled as forced conversation.
The room was cold. In reality, it was at a comfortable temperature. The ceiling offered no comfort as Yifan stared up it, his thoughts far away as he compared what today was like to what it should have been like. He was home this time instead of at Baekhyun’s. He had gone to the hospital for Yixing, he recalled a missed call in the original version of that day.
What was going on? How was any of this possible?
Those were the two questions he wanted answers to more than anything. A sigh left him and he felt himself falling asleep. It wasn’t until he was nearly completely asleep that he realized that the doctor said it had been nice to see him again. He fell asleep before he could react upon the discovery.