And Then There Was You

Part 4

The walk wasn't as intimidating or unbearable as Baekhyun initially thought that it'd be. It just felt like how it once was. The contradicting cool ocean breeze and the setting sun that showered them in its warm, golden rays somehow complemented one another in making the walk seemingly peaceful. Baekhyun had no complaints.

Chanyeol broke the silence by asking a question. It seemed inaudible at first, but Baekhyun soon realized that it was due to the fact that his mind was so preoccupied with other things that he was beginning to tune things out.

Giving the giant an apologetic look, Baekhyun waved a hand. "Ah--I'm sorry. Could you repeat your question?"

"I asked if you had any plans tonight." Grinning at the shorter male, Chanyeol rubbed the back of his neck. "If not, do you want to come and eat dinner with my family? You know, like the good old days."

Laughing, Baekhyun politely rejected. "Thanks, but no thank you."

"And why not?" Chanyeol asked, tilting his head. "Mother's making spicy fish soup. Your favorite."

"It's fine, Chanyeol," the brunet said again. "I just feel like it isn't appropriate."

Raising a brow, Chanyeol blinked. "Family dinner between friends? What's not appropriate about that? I get that we used to date, Baek, but it's really nothing--"

"Exactly. It's nothing--we're nothing. I just... I don't know, Chanyeol. Somehow, it feels weird to me." Baekhyun paused for a second before he took one look at the giant's face and knew that he needed to explain a bit more. "Don't take this the wrong way. I want to catch up with you and know how you're doing, but...acting like we're actually still close is just kind of...unusual."

"No, I get that. I don't know. Maybe I just wanted an excuse to talk to you, like you said." Chanyeol sighed, frowning. "I'm probably being a little too forward."

"Yeah... Plus we didn't exactly end things between us very nicely either," Baekhyun added quietly, his hands gripping the handlebars of his bike tightly. "But that's the past. I'm okay with moving forward, just not this fast and casual."

"Right, right..." Chanyeol mumbled. However, he sounded distracted. Unable to ignore the urge to confront the topic that was bothering him, he turned his head and looked straight at the brunet beside him. "About that... I've been wondering about this for years--well, not really year. I don't want to make it seem like I'm still haunted over this, but we didn't actually break up, right? You just left in the middle of the night and never contacted me again."

Baekhyun halted, stopping in his tracks as he gaped at Chanyeol. "What?"

"I didn't mean it in that way," Chanyeol said, quick to defend himself. "I'm not trying to make myself look like some kind of victim. This happened over seven years ago."

"I know, but what's your point?" Baekhyun asked, his gaze locking with the giant's. "Yeah, we didn't actually sit down and talk it out... I didn't want to and you...you couldn't. There was no point in talking back then, Yeol. Even you should know that."

"I'm really not trying to dig up any bad feelings, Baek," Chanyeol said adamantly. Oddly enough, Baekhyun felt he was being genuine and relaxed. "I just want to know why you did that. All these years, I kind of felt like I needed some kind of explanation."

Biting his bottom lip, Baekhyun asked, "What kind of explanation would satisfy you, then?"

"I barely have any recollection of that night... I want to know why you never, in the very least, properly broke up with me... Why did you just leave in the middle of the night after we made love?"