The Invasion (Part 2 of the KaiSoo Fanfic Series)

Chapter 7

It's hard for Chanyeol to look back and point out the exact moment he realized he was living inside of a lie. He would like to say it's a feeling that's always been there like it is for Jongin, but if he said that, he'd then be lying to himself. He thinks it was probably all the years of hiding and taking the so-called medicine that made him forget about that pivotal moment in his life, but he does recall the moment he started to feel different. And no medicine of any kind can ever take away his memory of the first time he saw Baekhyun.

Chanyeol likes to accredit his figurative and literal change in heart to Baekhyun, but he has yet to make that known to him. The way Chanyeol sees it, being able to feel something so strong for a person he barely knew was the tell-tale sign that They were lying to him and everyone else because even as an engineer, he knew it's impossible to have control over someone else's feelings. And that was really all he needed to be motivated to get out of there.

He can't exactly explain why or how his personal affections began. They just sort of did and have formed a mind of their own ever since. There's just something about Baekhyun that triggers those bubbling feelings in his stomach, much like what Jongin must have felt for Kyungsoo when they were still in hiding. However, unlike those two, Chanyeol know the chances of Baekhyun even acknowledging his feelings let alone returning them are slim to none. He still isn't able to accept the fact that they left The Dome and moved on from Their lies, so how would he even begin to accept his feelings?

Chanyeol stops at one of the two wells for water on his work break. The container of water that he shares with Chen is nearly empty, so he just decides to fill that back up instead of dirtying a cup that can be used later. As he's doing that, he whistles a random tone that has been jammed inside his mind all day, so he doesn't notice when Jongin first approaches him.

"Whistling while you work, huh?" the younger says in a teasing voice, chuckling and taking a seat on a pile of rocks as Chanyeol finishes filling the container, laughing a little as well.

"Passes the time," Chanyeol replies as he sits down next to him, letting go of a discrete huff of air. "Keeps my mind distracted."

"Yeah," Jongin says with a sarcastic sigh, "I guess as a worker with all those responsibilities you need something to keep you distracted."

"Hey, I do a lot around here. I'm literally the nuts and bolts of this place," Chanyeol says, sending him an unimpressed, narrowed-eye look despite the grin that was pulling on the corners of his mouth. Jongin chuckles and shifts the position of his legs, opening them up slightly and letting his arms hang in between them. Right at that moment, Baekhyun comes striding past a few feet away with something in his hands. Naturally, Chanyeol's eyes get caught on him and watch him as he walks, and Jongin takes notice of this, glancing in between him and Chanyeol a few times. He knows that look floating in his eyes, that look of wonder and amazement and awe all meshed into one very confusing emotion called love because that's the same look he had in his eyes when he first met Kyungsoo. 

"You should talk to him," he says suddenly, the sound of his voice making Chanyeol flinch a little before pointing his eyes at him. 

"Ah, I don't know..." Chanyeol says back, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand in uncertainty. "I mean, I want to, but how where would I even begin? He probably resents me for dragging him away from The Dome."

"Yeol, don't say it like that," Jongin says, nudging the elder a little with his shoulder. "He resents us all, even Soo. And who knows, maybe if you talk to him, you could give him a different perspective on being here. You know, show him that it's not all bad. I highly doubt he'll ever believe that They were the criminals, but if nothing else, maybe being with you could show him that it's okay to be free."