Getting his hair touched up for the last time that night, Byun Baekhyun took a long swig from a bottle of water before making his way up the stage. Flanked by his members, the boy waved as soon as he saw the crowds. A familiar swelling of the heart — they never failed to put a smile on his face. If he could, he would have memorized every single face he saw in the crowds, for his fans are always special to him. People he held dearly in his heart.
There was the cue of the ending song in the KPOP Festival held in Brazil, and EXO started heading down to the centre stage. As the other artistes passed by Baekhyun, he bowed and hugged them, aware that it had been months since he had last seen the familiar faces. EXO had been busy with their tour concerts, thus missing out on a lot of such festivals. It was a rarity to even see their own label mates.
There wasn't ample time for rehearsal, and so Baekhyun had no idea who the space beside them was reserved for. Regardless, he goofed around with the members as usual and scanned the crowd, making eye contact with as many fans as he could. Made 'L' signs with his hands, turning in every angle so that fans from different areas could see what he was doing.
Feeling a tug at his sleeve, Baekhyun turned and followed Minseok's gaze. In the far distance, there were fireworks that burst in scarlet red, baby blue, and violet. A beautiful display of art that splayed against the starry nightsky ; a sharp contrast to the misty darkness behind it.
Beyond that, however, was someone more breathtaking.
Gaze lowered, Baekhyun found himself looking at her backview. She, like all others, was looking up in awe, pigtails slung across her shoulders as the wind tugged at her soft, brown hair, causing a few strands to be loose. The way she gazed, the way she clasped her hands together as if to make a wish, made him want to reach up and pluck the stars down for her.
In all honesty, she was the view.
The feeling of her lips against his still lingered, and he had been in a daze ever since that night. At the mere thought of it, his heart fluttered wildly, just like the first time he saw her face to face.
He pulled his eyes away from her, albeit stealing glances every now and then. It was, after all, a long distance relationship, and Baekhyun looked forward to every single event they had together. It was literally the only time he could see her due to their busy schedules, and he hated how their meeting was always so rushed, so constricted. All he was allowed to do was to stare for a few seconds or so, before turning away, as if nothing had happened.
Despite all of these, however, Baekhyun was relieved. Relieved that at the very least, no one was upset over his subtle actions, because it's pretty much the only way he could make sure Taeyeon was alright. If anything, her schedule was probably as hectic as his due to her solo activities, and he had been worried about her health.
He wondered if Taeyeon ever felt the same way as he did.
//
The rain poured.
It was, yet another gloomy day in Seoul. Since the year was coming to an end, skies were often grey and clouds loomed overhead nearly everyday. The weather dampened the citizens' moods, but reminded them of the fact that winter was coming. It could come any day now, in fact.
And, just like a child believing in Santa Claus, Taeyeon found her heart skipping a beat at the thought of first snow. A house fairy like her could simply sit on the windowsill and scrunch her nose against the cool glass windows, with her mug of hot chocolate and Ginger pouncing around behind her. The mere thought of it put a smile on her face, and washed the fatigue from the ongoing dance practice away.
"Kim Taeyeon, why are you smiling to yourself?"
She snapped up at the voice of her instructor and gave a sheepish grin. "Sorry. Just thinking about Christmas."
When practice ended at half past seven, Taeyeon made her way down the hallway and into one of the recording studios where Jaehyeong was already waiting. At the sight of Taeyeon, the vocalist grinned and patted on the cushioned seat next to him.
The session went surprisingly well, considering how much Jaehyeong was messing around. Sure, he was an obvious flirt, but Taeyeon had to admit that his jokes were creative and made her laugh on more than just a few occasions. Seeing how Taeyeon was clearly uncomfortable the previous time, he had toned down a whole lot, and was tentative about crossing the line since then.
As the pair grabbed their wallets and made a move to the building's cafeteria, Baekhyun rounded the corner, eyes widening ever so slightly. Before they could simply pass by one another, Jaehyeong grabbed Baekhyun by his arm, causing the latter to stop in his tracks.
"Baekhyun, wanna have dinner with us?"
Eyes darted back and forth, between Taeyeon and her partner. "No, but thank you for the offer. Enjoy your meal."
Before Jaehyeong could continue, Taeyeon cleared her throat rather loudly. "I'll head to the cafeteria first."
As soon as she was out of earshot, Jaehyeong leaned a little closer to Baekhyun as his lips tugged up in annoyance. "Just so you know, I'm planning to chase her. Like legitimately woo that fine lady. I'm sure you wouldn't mind, would you, Baekhyun? I mean, you guys have already broken up a long time ago, but I still see your gaze wavering—"
"Go ahead."
Jaehyeong blinked in surprise.
"Do what you desire." Baekhyun continued, gaze strong and tone dull. "But make sure you do it right. Ensure that she has her meals regularly because she is someone who is prone to having gastric pains whenever the workload gets too much. Don't let her drink alone because she is known for going batshit crazy when she does. She has a phobia of stage holes, so make sure you hold onto her when there is one on stage."
"... Okay, I will. But are you going somewhere? Will you not return for a very long time? Because you really sound like you—"
"Yes." The reply came so sudden it shocked Baekhyun himself. The confidence in his voice was a sharp contrast to his wavering heart. His next few words were barely audible, since he had to force them out through his lips, but he was certain Jaehyeong could hear him just fine.
"Yes, I am walking away. Because I think she has finally found a star brighter than me, Jaehyeong."
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❝my heart ached. and it was so painful that i had wanted to cry in your arms, but then i realized your arms weren't mine to hold onto anymore.❞
a/n; i have like 5 hours or less to sleep now but i just really really wanted to update aHHHHH. also, my shoulder blades are aching really badly i feel like they are gonna split apart any moment now wtf office job really ain't the thing for me ok by e goodnight
