fries with a side of love. baekyeol

열다섯

⠀⠀ From one glance in the rear-view mirror, Kyungsoo could tell that Baekhyun, once again, wasn't in the mood to talk, and he was in desperate need of medical attention and fussing-over despite his refusals and insistent, "I'm fine." Rather, Baekhyun was curled into a ball in his seat, his head leaning against the glass window and a blanket Kyungsoo kept in the car from a road trip the previous summer draped over him. Bags hung underneath his eyes, and he seemed to be forcing himself to stay awake. Makes sense, Kyungsoo thought as he drove out of the neighborhood and back towards the Byun residence. Baekhyun hadn't slept much the night before after they had played cards.

⠀⠀ His heart clenched at the sight of his broken best friend curled in the backseat, his knees tucked underneath his chin and blank eyes staring out of the window. Baekhyun was a precious person to him, even if he did annoy and tease the younger boy severely. Yet, fourteen years of being neighbors and friends with the Byun boy somehow made it possible for Kyungsoo to hold Baekhyun near and dear to his heart despite the chattiness, the extraversion, and the overwhelming irritation. It was strange what a person could tolerate from his or her best friend.

⠀⠀ Just from the look of things, Kyungsoo deduced that things hadn't gone well. He hadn't anticipated things to go extremely smoothly, judging from the way Chanyeol's roommates/friends were berating him to see Baekhyun, but he didn't expect Baekhyun to knock at the car door looking so beat up. Kyungsoo sighed and glanced into the mirror once more to see his friend snoozing lightly, the ratty purple blanket sloppily hanging off of one shoulder.

⠀⠀ Kyungsoo's phone buzzed and once he slowed the car to a stop at a stoplight, he checked the text message with a tiny frown. Reading it quickly, he swiftly typed his response before throwing his phone back into the passenger's seat and stepping on the pedal to drive back home.

Kim Jongin: kyungsoo-hyung? chanyeol-hyung just came home singing some song and he's smiling but crying. i think they said something about working it out, because from what i can pick up that's what the song is about. should we help them? i don't think either of them know how to do that...
Read at 1:04PM

Do Kyungsoo: they don't, for sure. we should. baekhyun's looking broken, figuratively and literally, and i expect an explanation for that later, jongin. we'll arrange something for them together, okay? call me in a few, jongin.
Read at 1:06PM

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⠀⠀ Pulling into the driveway, Kyungsoo opened the backseat for and carried Baekhyun out of the car, blanket and all. Grunting, he kicked the door closed and began walking up the stairs to Baekhyun's apartment while shifting Baekhyun himself to make him comfortable in his arms. Kyungsoo fished the apartment keys out of his friend's pockets and carefully half-balanced said friend on a knee and an arm as he struggled to insert the key into keyhole, eventually smiling once he managed to do so. Once inside, he placed Baekhyun on the couch before stretching, wincing as his back cracked. Jeez, he should go to the gym more—he was starting to become an old man like Junmyeon. Maybe he should go to the gym with Yixing and Zitao, though he would most likely be subjected to an uncomfortable level of PDA. Kyungsoo wrinkled his nose—oh, hell no. Maybe Seokjin, though.

⠀⠀He immediately headed into the kitchen to whip up a quick lunch for the two of them and fished some two slabs of meat out of the freezer, quickly placing the meat into the microwave for it to defrost. Feeling his phone vibrate in his pocket, he took it out and answered the call, holding it up to his ear.

⠀⠀"Hey, Jongin," Kyungsoo said, his thick eyebrows furrowed together. A chuckle was heard on the other line, and Kyungsoo shifted his position to lean against the marble counter.