Like Night and Day

Crumbling

He settled for you.

You're not even second best. You're fifth.

You know he deserves better. Do him the favor.

Baekhyun tore the letters in two and held the pieces with his fingers as he looked at the unread others. Why he even bothered to rip the papers when all he'd do was shove them in the trash bin, he didn't know... Maybe it was due to the frustration he refused to show to anyone else. It wasn't necessary to do what he did, but there was a fire in his heart that couldn't bear the sight of the letters untouched.

He wasn't sure how he was beginning to feel with the words. Preferably, he wanted to be numb to it all, but there was something about the numbers and the constant reminder that started out as nothing more than just a pretentious conquest to ease someone else's heartache that kept him bleeding no matter how many times he tried to fix the gaps.

There was no one in the cubby area, due to the fact that he was late again. Baekhyun tried not to think about his tardiness too much. It was stressful to think about the mechanics of school and attendance when he didn't even feel organized and right in his private life.

He was in the midst of changing his shoes when he heard footsteps from behind. Immediately, he tensed. The paranoia that had built after the shed incident was evident in his body language. Panic began to boil when he had the intention of turning around only to stopp when he felt two arms grab him from behind, pulling him into a tight hug.

Baekhyun said nothing, frozen. He made no attempt to rip himself away, but was surprised to feel the individual's hold on him soften.

"You're not even going to scream for help?"

Whipping his head back, Baekhyun saw the way Chanyeol's eyes flashed a brush of concern despite the teasing expression on his face. "Nothing happened, so I..." The brunet stopped. "Actually, I don't know. Delayed reaction, I guess."

"What if I had been someone else?"

"You weren't, so that matter's been averted, don't you think?" Baekhyun turned his back towards the athlete in order to continue on with his business. Shutting the door to his cubby space, he began walking to the trash bin.

Chanyeol followed close after, both arms retracted back and holding onto both his backpack straps. "What's that in your hand?" he asked with curiosity in his voice.

"Nothing," Baekhyun replied platonically.

"Are those love letters, Byun Baekhyun?"

Rolling his eyes at the teasing other, Baekhyun scoffed. "Yes, ironically. They are."

"From who?"

"A secret admirer, Chanyeol. Who else?"

"Let me see."

Sprinkling the pieces into the bin, Baekhyun looked back and gave him a look. "Interested in my potential love life?"

"Maybe."

Blinking, Baekhyun found himself caught off guard by Chanyeol's slip. The latter sounded more serious than playfully curious about the letters he had tossed. Frowning, he turned back around to face him.

"Nevermind the letters, Yeol. Why're you late?"

"Can't I be late sometimes?" Chanyeol replied dismissively, his eyes glancing past the brunet and on the trash can. "You know, I don't get jealous very easily, so it would've been okay to show me those letters."

"You don't get jealous easily? That's a lot of credit, even for you," Baekhyun responded. "Anyways, they were nothing, so don't worry about it."

"Why did you rip them up?"