Like Night and Day

Dark Hearts

The overwhelming stack of the newly ordered stock boxes piled in the back room of the Musicology store where Baekhyun worked seemed like a monster task to do, but it was nothing the brunet wasn't accustomed to doing on a weekly basis. Working in the back was something Baekhyun preferred, eager in deferring his presence from the front by willing default. Cracking his knuckles, Baekhyun took a small cutting knife into his possession and began opening the packages.

It had been a week since he spent the night at Chanyeol's house, and Baekhyun had been trying his best to try and forget the bitter moments. The giant had seen his conversation with Kyungsoo, possibly one of the more embarrassing things to ever happen to him.

Kyungsoo hadn't spoken to him much, but Baekhyun felt a calming sensation whenever his phone rang and the sound of the president's voice talking on the other end distracted him from his task. It was awkward, something they had never felt with one another prior to the camping getaway events.

Chanyeol didn't know about their conversations. Baekhyun made sure to tell him that they were in touch and on speaking terms once again, and, despite how the athlete ultimately failed in trying to seem unworried, Chanyeol only supported the rebuilding of a friendship that once was.

In the past, Kyungsoo had been able to share anything and everything that was on his mind, but Baekhyun found it hard to get the latter to talk about topics deeper than the normal school related things. From his mother, he had heard about Mr. Do's decision to leave South Korea to pursue a job opportunity in New York, and Baekhyun had the itchy desire to inquire more about the man's plans to leave. With Kyungsoo's parents divorced, there was a small possibility that the student body president would decide to take flight with his father as well despite Baekhyun's wishful and hopeful thinking that the latter would decide to stay with his mother.

The school Kyungsoo had always pushed himself towards was Yonsei, but in their phone conversations, faint and ghostly mentions of New York University made Baekhyun feel slightly unsteady. He wanted to know, but Kyungsoo was unwilling to elaborate and the brunet had no desire to break the thin thread that held their broken relationship together. If Kyungsoo wanted to leave with his father, Baekhyun wished for a little clarity on the situation.

The thought of Kyungsoo leaving was a hard pill to swallow, harder than the acceptance that their relationship would never be as it used to be. It made Baekhyun close his eyes to envision the future he had no certainty of.

Following the path of his father, Kyungsoo had the intention to set out as a lawyer. Baekhyun knew that this decision felt like a death sentence to the male, but one of Kyungsoo's faults was his inability to stand on his own. He was not content with following a life he did not want, but he had no identity of his own to realize what he truly wanted for himself. By nature, Kyungsoo had subjected himself to slave after a dream that did not belong to him.

And yet, Baekhyun was jealous of him. In the very least, Kyungsoo had a direction. He already knew Chanyeol had a goal to be a teacher in the public education system that he knew his boyfriend despised, but it was a future nonetheless.

Whenever the brunet thought about himself, he saw nothing but bleakness. Too many interests, never one that overpowered the rest. Music was a part of him, but the field was unstable and weak in prospects.The chances of ever making it was slim and Baekhyun couldn't fathom another alternative.

Frustrated and distracted by thoughts of the impending, unclear future, Baekhyun accidentally sliced the pad of his left thumb. Immediately, he dropped the small knife and drew his attention to the blood slowly finding its way out of the slit.

It was a mistake, but a stupid mistake. His unfocused attention had caused it and Baekhyun cursed himself for the slip.

Pressing the thumb against his mouth, he instinctively licked the blood off before looking at the wound again, witnessing as the blood returned. Exhaling, he decided the best action to take was to put all activities on pause and take care of the issue before continuing on with unpackaging.