Like Night and Day

Stay

Graduation had been on his mind and all else that followed concerning life after it. Maybe it wasn't so, but it seemed like a waste of time trying to salvage anything so late into the process and Baekhyun didn't have that time anymore. All he could see was the end, yet the cuts he had made in the destruction of their relationship still bothered him.

Ending his relationship with Kyungsoo felt different. It had ceased all destruction and storms, transitioning into a quiet calm that eventually turned into a platonic friendship. As much as he had hoped for it all to be the same the second time around, Baekhyun couldn't say that it was.

He missed Chanyeol, but even something as simple as friendship felt too out of reach—and Baekhyun wasn't going to chase after it and repeat the cycle over again. Beyond the depths of selfish desires and overwhelming regret, the break up was the one thing he knew was right. It felt right, and it was the only thing that gave him ease.

But how it ended still haunted him.

Seeing Chanyeol at school felt surreal. Watching the giant blend back into his friend group, casually talking to people who seemed genuinely happy around him felt like a reverse of time.

Baekhyun was back to being non-existent.

Music, as always, kept him company, and Baekhyun went on (to the best of his ability) to slowly fade back into the life and routine he had before Chanyeol ever came around, but it wasn't without its difficulties. Baekhyun found ways around the harder moments by focusing his attention on other matters like the future.

Part of him planned for the future as an attempt to run away and erase traces of his existence... but Baekhyun also knew that he needed a new place to begin again. Even if it wasn't with Chanyeol.

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The regional game took place at another high school. It was farther than Baekhyun usually would've liked to travel for something as mundane as a sports event, but Kyungsoo had dropped the hint that Chanyeol wanted him there, despite the fact that the giant asked him to go as well. It meant nothing to him but a show of respect. With the dissipation of time, salvaging their relationship was not possible and neither was fully repenting for all of his regrets for the words he said out of bitterness and anger. And yet Baekhyun wanted to, at the very least, make the gesture. Maybe it was out of the love he still felt but kept locked away—He didn't know (nor did he acknowledge it), but the boundaries were clear, and it was with that clearness that he allowed himself to attend.

However, as hard as he tried to contain the emotions he had attempted to rid for weeks, seeing Chanyeol play basketball again gave Baekhyun a rush of emotions.

He sat at the very top of the bleachers, farthest away from the floor court. Of all the places he had chosen, Baekhyun picked the most obscure area he could find.

Yet, to his surprise, Chanyeol still saw him immediately when the basketball player was called on the court during the second quarter, just before the referee blew the whistle to begin. Their eyes met despite the long distance between them, and Baekhyun could see the latter quietly smile to himself before turning his focus back to the game.

Clenching his jaw, Baekhyun looked back down on the floor.

He was still in love with Park Chanyeol.

Through all the tribulations, at the end of it all, he loved him... Even if he had lied about it just to shove the latter away, it didn't change the facts. It wasn't as though neither one was aware of the underlying feelings that continued to linger between them. Chanyeol respected it enough to stay away, but not before making it clear how much it took him to hold back.