Boss Complex

49. So close, so far

As naturally as if he had done it a hundred times before, Byun Baekhyun walks down the street wrapped in an oversized tan scarf and navy blue peacoat. He nearly wrecks the car on the bumper of the car before him, staring off at the sight slack jawed. With an illegal U-turn in the middle of the road, he turns around too quickly, speeding back to where the boy is waiting on the bus. He finds himself parked a few yards away,slouched down in the seat as far as he can, he watches Byun Baekhyun and a few older ladies stand patiently in cue for a bus.

"Son of a bitch." He breathes, completely taken back that Byun Baekhyun is here in Korea, casually taking public transit like a mere mortal.

This is no trick of the eyes, this is the man he's in love with, clear as day. Has he been here all of this time? Chanyeol has been chasing down his postcards and racing around Japan, had he been hiding in Korea this whole time? He should get out of his car, run to where the man is and grab him, pull him to his chest and force him to talk. He should grab hold of him forcefully and demand that he stay at his side and stop running. His intern, his in-law, his cupcake, whatever the hell he is, he needs to be with him. But their brief exchange last week had ended with him racing off and disappearing. So approaching him is clearly not an option. For now, Chanyeol wants to look at him, just watch him standing there, hair pulled back by the breeze, eyes trained on the screen of his phone. He hasn't changed. He's still that same Byun Baekhyun he saw standing in the break room yelling at what would someday be his wife.

He climbs up onto the bus, disappearing in the heavy set Daewoo wagon. Chanyeol puts his little Audi in drive and follows wordlessly. There is something light and nervous in his stomach, he can't be caught, can't be seen... This is such a strained situation and he hates every minute of it. He is put into a position where he can't talk to the man, can't so much as approach him and he's so very close... As he watches the from the safety of his car, he keeps just enough distance between them, not worried that irritated cars are passing him by too quickly and yelling at him through glass barriers like there could be any vocalization heard. He drives in silence, watching people exit and reload on the bus, fighting through traffic with his fingers trembling ever so slightly where he doesn't lock them down on the steering wheel. It's 10 minutes in the cab of his car with nothing but the sound of drums in his ears when he sees the man step from the bus. He parks his car there on the side of the road, getting from his car in a run and desperately races to catch up with the man.

Blissfully unaware, he steps into Holly's for coffee and Chanyeol follows him in standing just around the corner. Nervously Chanyeol pulls out his wallet and goes up to a stranger by the window with her laptop open and taps the table lightly. He hands over several large bills and puts his finger to his lips to shush her from speaking up.

"I know you don't know me," He says in a hushed voice. "But is it possible that I can borrow your red muffler and sit with you for a few moments? I'm avoiding someone right now."

Though she looks worriedly around for a moment, she nods with the sort of struck expression that he could chalk up to either interest in money or interest in his looks. He winds the scarf that she hands over around his neck, pulling it up past his nose to hide, seated close enough to the register that he could hear, far enough around the corner as not to be seen. He doesn't say a word to the woman as he sits with his eyes closed, legs crossed, hands in his pants pockets in wait of the audio confirmation that he's not just hallucinating again. She stares at him with her eyes narrowed like she should probably call the cops, but instead he casually reached for his card case and hands over a business card. This immediately sends her into a frenzy of typing on her phone and gasping as she pulls up article after article of his face, his wife, his family and his company.

"Yes, Can I have the pumpkin spiced caramel macchiato to go please?"

Chanyeol's mouth slips open behind the scarf as his heart starts to pound, faster, harder. That's it. That's the voice that breathed life into his mundane routine and snapped him from his perpetual schedule. The unscheduled interruption to his broadcast plans set in stone from before he even took his first step in this world. He coolly slips the woman another bundle of money, a 300% gratuity, asking her to please go order him a caramel spice caramel macchiato to go and to keep the change. There are no questions as she grabs her things obediently and goes to the counter to order like a fire had been lit under her ass. He watches Baekhyun take a seat a few seats away with a magazine in hand and even the back of his head brings Chanyeol and undiagnosed sense of pleasure that turns his breath ragged against itchy wool. A waitress brings him his to go drink, but the man sits there a moment longer after thanking her, still staring at the magazine article he's reading. When the stranger returns, Chanyeol tries to offer her the scarf back but she shakes her head no and holds up a hand, giving him his drink with a receipt.