#backbaconchandwich

[ficsbyaprocrastinatingstudent]

Remnants

Part III

Slowly, the long months of winter passed, and soon it was February, then March and as the temperature inched up, and the snow melted so did Baekhyun’s attitude towards Chanyeol, and, somewhat less, the world. Baekhyun smiled, talked, and even went out a few times with Chanyeol and his friends, and much, much more often with just Chanyeol. They now often went out for late night meals and bubble tea, taking advantage of the lack of curfew on campus. Particularly on the weekends when they had more time, they would often spend hours playing board games and just chatting over food in the nearest café or tea shop.

Baekhyun never had a problem with being by himself. He got used to it after his parents passed away, and his brother left for another country, leaving him with his grandparents. Although they were kind and caring to Baekhyun, they weren’t the companions for a young teenage boy, and so consequently they simply left him alone to do what he wished. Baekhyun did relatively well in school, but had few friends, all of which left him as they grew older and began to grow tired of a boy who couldn’t hang out with them late at night and go clubbing to pick up girls. Although they pressured him, Baekhyun was too grateful and caring towards his grandparents to ever value his “friends” over them, he always rejected them politely to go home early enough to waylay his grandparents’ worries.

As Baekhyun approached University age, his brother got in touch unexpectedly and said he would take over the caring of their grandparents so Baekhyun could concentrate on school. And so Baekhyun watched his grandparents, the people who had stayed the longest in his life, walk out of his life with one last hug, as they harassed his brother about his life overseas and his current relationship status.

With the abrupt departure of his grandparents, Baekhyun resolved to focus only on his studies and slowly began to shut himself away from the world, one piece at a time; cutting the last of his friends from school, distancing himself from old teachers, deleting the emails from his brother/grandparents, unread and unopened. It was to better concentrate on school he told himself. Not because he hardly had a life outside of academia, but because he chose study over socialising, grades over friendships, and future success over present pleasures. He told himself this every day. Besides, he would think, there isn’t anyone who really wants to know me anyway. All my high school friends were interested in was pushing me to join in experimenting with their drugs in hopes of getting me hooked. It is better I just stay by myself and work, hard work has gotten me where I am today. I will have time to make things right with these people later, to create these relationships later, after I am secure in life.

So although Baekhyun never had a problem with being by himself, he hadn’t realised how alone he had been. Sure, it was nice to be by himself, and do as he liked without pressure from others to be like them. But it wasn’t the same as having another person to complain to when his day went badly. It was nice to have some peace and quiet to think things through, but it didn’t beat hearing another person’s laughter and knowing you were the cause of it. His new friendship with Chanyeol, as he tentatively termed it in his head, was one the happiest things in his life. Soon he came to enjoy their little weekend routine of board games and coffee, broken only once, about two months before the start of exams when Chanyeol had to go home as his mother was ill. But he was back the next week, as cheerful as ever, his mother was fine, it had just been a small thing, nothing to worry about. He even brought back some homemade food for Baekhyun. Just as Baekhyun settled into this routine and began to relax into its stability and permanence, Chanyeol disappeared.

Part I

Part II

[ficsbyaprocrastinatingstudent]

Remnants

Part II

Their first encounter set the tone for their interactions for the following months. Chanyeol was always endlessly upbeat, constantly trying to engage Baekhyun in conversation, inviting him to hang out, and just bugging him in general. Baekhyun always responded with the minimal amount of reaction possible, declining all invitations and refusing to answer any of Chanyeol’s questions, in the hopes Chanyeol would just give up and leave him alone, but that didn’t happen. For some reason, Chanyeol was insistent on making friends with Baekhyun, or at least get to know him, however slightly, despite the fact Baekhyun was borderline rude to him every time he tried. Although Baekhyun tried his best to close himself off from Chanyeol, and the world in general, Chanyeol still found out little things about him. For example, Chanyeol knew Baekhyun didn’t like super sweet foods or raisins, but loved deserts and dried apricots, as he ate them when Chanyeol brought back extras from outings with his friends and left them on the table for him, but always picked out the raisins and left the icing on any cakes and sweets he was eating.

Chanyeol found out that Baekhyun didn’t sleep by the window because he was an early riser, but because he was a late sleeper. Chanyeol had often seen Baekhyun sitting against the window in the small hours of the night, head leaned against the glass, breath lightly fogging up the piece of glass in front of his mouth, staring, almost unblinkingly, into the dark of night; whereas in the morning, Baekhyun was more often found buried under his blankets in an effort to avoid the light streaming in from his window.

Chanyeol knew Baekhyun either wasn’t close to his family, or they weren’t nearby, as when he fell sick after exam season, he called no one and no one checked up on him. Except Chanyeol of course, who had silently brought him soup and honeyed water. Waking up to rub his back after coughing fits in the middle of the night. Texting or calling him every four hours to remind him to take his medicine, regardless of where he was or what he was doing. It was one of the most tiring weeks of his life, but Chanyeol thought it well worth the effort when after this bout of illness, Baekhyun seemed to open up a little. The next day after he recovered his voice, he actually asked Chanyeol where he was going, and to take care since the weather was still cold.

“I’m just going down the street, I’ll take an extra jacket.” Chanyeol had said automatically, somewhat in shock over Baekhyun’s comment.

Baekhyun promptly nodded before turning back to his work, brown hair, now getting a tad too long, flopping to hide the upper half of his profile.

Part I

[ficsbyaprocrastinatingstudent]

Remnants

Part I

The Don lead Baekhyun to his room, chatting and filling him in on the general rules of the dorm. Baekhyun walked along, shoulders slumped, head down, just nodding and making accepting noises at whatever the older male was saying. He just wanted to get to his room and sleep. They finally stopped outside a door, much like the other plain grey ones in the hall, with name tags affixed to them. One of them read “Baekhyun” and the other “Chanyeol”. Baekhyun supposed that was his roommate.

“And here we are, Room 1010.” The Don announced, his name already a distant memory in Baekhyun’s mind. “I think your roommate is here already, so get to know each other, and don’t forget we are all meeting in front of my room to go down to dinner together at 6. OK. I’ll leave you to it then. See you.”

And with that, the Don left.

Finally, thought Baekhyun. He dropped his bag and suitcase beside the bed on the right hand side, where it was closer to the window, and flopped down on the bed, closing his eyes against the lingering afternoon light warming his face through the window. Only to be interrupted seconds later as someone burst in through the door, roaring with laughter. The boy, tall, pale and black haired, spun around, slammed the door shut, and leaned his back against it, before noticing Baekhyun lying on the bed.

“Oh, you must be Baekhyun! Nice to meet you. I’m Chanyeol,” Chanyeol said all this very quickly, in a voice light with laughter.

Baekhyun just stared at him a bit longer, before nodding and turning away from the door towards the window.