Cursed Freedom

Sound

(Story under construction  🏗)

Chanyeol made his way down the hallway to his own room, which was just as lavish as the one that he had given to Baekhyun.

He had a routine that he followed almost every night for years. First, he changed into some more comfortable clothing and then he sat with a pile of pillows propping him up while he read a chapter or two from whatever book he had chosen for that particular day until his eyes got so tired that they began to droop and that's when he would turn off the light and, making sure he was as tired as possible, he would adjust his pillows and lay flat on his back until he was overcome by sleep.

Chanyeol had a small problem with big consequences. His confinement was especially prominent in the evenings, particularly because he had a very hard time sleeping without any sound, in the complete silence of the house.

The ticking of the grandfather clock did not reach up to the third floor. Although he did try to move it when he was about 16 years old. But that just ended in an injury that led to him laying flat in his bed until the ridiculous crook in his back slowly healed.

Eventually, he realized that his attempt to get the clock to move a single inch was incredibly stupid, but that's how desperate he was for sound when he was sleeping.

It was not long after the grandfather clock incident that he had another misadventure where he tried to leave the water running all night, which, to say the least, was a terrible idea and it took the unfortunate 'live and learn' experience to come to that conclusion.

This night however, he entered his room and began to unbutton his shirt, sliding the sleeves off and hanging it in the wardrobe where it would smell fresh and clean and good as new in the morning, as well as his slacks that he folded up and placed in a drawer. He had begun to sleep in just a pair of sports shorts since he was around 18.

It was on this night, as he was slipping into bed, dressed in his regular attire with a book in his hands that he heard the sound of water running through the pipes of the third floor.

Baekhyun. Of course. He had wanted to shower.

Chanyeol smiled and shook his head. He could not believe his great luck that this individual had come into his life. For SO many reasons.

Before he could change his mind, he slipped his book onto his bedside table, pulled the string on his reading lamp and shuffled his bedding around before turning onto his side as he experimented with breaking his strict routine. He nuzzled his face into his pillows and listened to the water running and the faint sound of cabinets and doors closing and feet shuffling about. He closed his eyes and listened.

He laid in bed trying to focus on the sounds instead of the images that, he knew, were accompanied by those sounds. The sounds of Baekhyun showering, toweling his long messy brown hair, changing his clothes.

'No, focus on the sounds. Oh boy Chanyeol, are you in deep trouble.'

And that was the last thing that flitted through his mind before Chanyeol fell into a deep, unfathomable sleep, listening to the wonderful sounds of the house coming alive into a home for the first time.