GLITTER

three

baekhyun stopped wrecking his apartment completely after a month of absolute exhaustion on sehun's part. after the pillow & toilet incident, baekhyun had scratched his own ear until it bled, chewed through the leg of one of sehun's dining room chairs (chanyeol didn't laugh), shitted inside sehun's favorite shoes (sehun cried), and much much more.

sehun still had to work and start school again, despite everything. and the adjustment of having another responsibility again stressed him out to the max. though, his precious baekhyun— even after that one time he had ruined his favorite lipstick— always calmed him down.

it was only a month after he first got him yet it felt like sehun had baekhyun forever. and because of it, he took pride in knowing the dog's personality and habits; knowing what to tell people when they meet baekhyun, always aware of where the dog was in the apartment, his favorite places to hide things.

so he didn't have a doubt that baekhyun was starting to act weird...

after a day of work and school sehun stomped into his apartment awaiting baekhyun's intense greeting when nothing. baekhyun was sat on the couch, back against the armrest and head tilted towards him as he barked once as if in greeting— as if in 'hello'. it was a bizarre sight, sehun almost thought about calling out junmyeon's name because somebody had to be in his apartment and positioned his dog that way. somebody made him stay quiet and trained him to bark in greeting. because how could baekhyun do it himself out of the blue.

ignoring his mixed emotions, sehun laughed and picked up the dog; cooing and praising him as he asked things he knew he'd never get an answer to and walked to the kitchen. it had started about a week before but baekhyun had grown interested in the kitchen island. while sehun was cooking, the dog had scratched at the drawers, jumping and barking and begging to be put on top. so of course sehun had cleared the counter and put the small dog on it, expecting him to waggle his tail and try to do something stupid. but baekhyun just sat, mouth closed and eyes concentrated on sehun.

the extra work in disinfecting his kitchen island after was worth it because sehun found it phenomenal. he had filmed baekhyun at first and sent the videos to all his friends who had cooed and awe'd but now it was slowly starting to get familiar. he didn't think twice before setting the dog down and washing his hands in the sink, ready to prepare a meal.

"should i just eat ramen tonight? i'm pretty tired." sehun spoke to the dog before yawning. he expected baekhyun to just stare dumbly but the dog did something close to a nod; head leaning down as if he were about to sniff something before blowing out a sharp breath and looking back up into sehun's eyes. sehun gawked as he stepped back.

it was a coincidence— he just sneezed, sehun tried to convince himself but then baekhyun tilted his head. and he had never tilted his head before like that— and let out a low bark that sehun couldn't stop himself from registering it as a "what?"

"when the fuck did you become so smart?" sehun asked in disbelief, petting baekhyun's head as the dog smiled. (sehun had googled it; dogs did indeed smile. he wan't crazy). and grabbed a dog treat from the jar set on the fridge and fed it to him.

sehun smiled back fondly.

***

after eating while finishing up his college assignments for the weekend sehun got ready for bed. he laid down and groaned softly as he sunk into his mattress. he waited for the feeling of baekhyun going to rest at his side when nothing came. frowning a bit, he found the dog sitting next to him; staring at sehun as if he was waiting for something.

and sehun was too tired to coo the dog to sleep and slipped unconscious within seconds. baekhyun watching him in the dark.

***

"chanyeol, i swear he can talk!" sehun shouted, grabbing at the man's shirt and pulling him to his living room.

"sehun, i love you and everything— but you're fucking mental!" chanyeol tried to pry his hands away but sehun dragged him with all his might, almost fearing the fabric in his clutch was going to rip.

baekhyun was sat on the couch, watching sehun like he always did with his tail wagging.

"look! look!" sehun pulled chanyeol to the ground in front of baekhyun. eyeing him like an exhibit at a museum. "baekhyun, how are you?" sehun asked, but the dog stayed silent, suddenly excited and pressingvhis paws into the couch.

chanyeol laughed wickedly. "you see?! it's all in your head!"

"no it's not! you fucking asshole." tears brimmed his eyes and he smacked chanyeol's shoulder. "it's because it's me but if you ask him something he'll say something back."

chanyeol smiled, patting sehun's head condescendingly before looking back at the dog who had started to chase his own tail. "how is it like to have a lunatic as your owner, baekhyun?" the dog kept running in circles, not paying attention at all to the men in front of him, and clearly not listening. "baekhyun? do you hear me?"

sehun sobbed loudly clenching his fists and grabbing the dog harshly. "he can speak! i'm telling you! i heard it!"

"no sehunnie," chanyeol cooed. "you're making it up."

"I'm not!" sehun wailed. baekhyun started to get irritated at the rough treatment; sehun rattling him like a toy, and released a thick growl. his teeth bared and vicious.

"sehun, you better put him down." chanyeol warned, stepping closer and sehun stepped back to avoid the man.

"baekhyun stop!"

—sehun woke up with a silent scream, sitting up fast enough to give him whiplash and he's blinded by the sunlight peaking through his window. he didn't even have time to process the nightmare before he's hearing growling— baekhyun on the floor with one of his poor pillows ripping it to shreds. the dog livid almost as he bit the pillow like it hurt him. and sehun's already standing up and trying to make him stop.

baekhyun was intense, desolation in his eyes and something almost hopeless in how he didn't relent on the pillow. something so raw and scary that sehun thought back to jongdae.

"if anything weird happens with baekhyun. you come here straight away with him. don't call or text or tell anyone if anything happens— just come here no matter what time."

though he quickly brushed off the thought. how could someone who was dating junmyeon help with this? baekhyun was okay.

he had to be okay.