Winter Heat | chanbaek

Chapter Eighteen

Chanyeol was laying in his bedroom, his back to his door when he heard it creak open. Foot steps grew closer before he felt his bed drip from Yoora's added weight, and then her arm was sliding under Chanyeol's, and looping back around until her hand rested on his shoulder. She laid her cheek on his shoulder and gently rubbed her thumb over his skin in small circles, before softly asking, "Do you feel like talking now?"

Chanyeol nodded, but didn't turn around as he muttered, "Before you came over yesterday, I had slept with someone the night before . . ." Chanyeol muttered. "I work with them, and now I'm afraid after what happened —- or what I think has happened —- things will be awkward. And I don't want anything to change because I like them too much . . ." Chanyeol trailed off with a heavy sigh.

Yoora sympathized with her brother and continued to rubbed his arm as she asked, "Was sleeping with them a mistake? Did they say it was . . .?"

Chanyeol shook his head. "No, the morning after it happened they were being completely normal and sweet until . . ." Chanyeol trailed off as something dawned on him, and he chokedly whispered, "Everything was normal until Sehun got home."

Yoora nodded. "Okay . . . So what does that mean?"

"They seemed to . . . know each other," Chanyeol mumbled.

"And what else?"

Chanyeol furrowed his brow as he racked his memories from yesterday, trying to remember very little detail of their conversation; like the way they interacted, and if there was a familiarity; or like the way they would meet the other's gaze. And then Chanyeol remembered that moment before Sehun showed up, when Baekhyun had asked where the bathroom was, and ended up rushing to leave and accidentally dropping the pregnancy test after talking to Sehun. And when Chanyeol went to ask Baekhyun about it, he remembered seeing Sehun's unreadable expression, as if Baekhyun had told him something important; life-changing even....

Chanyeol gasped. It couldn't be, if Sehun was dating someone and had the time to knock them up wouldn't Chanyeol notice? And if Sehun really did get Baekhyun pregnant, then what had Baekhyun been doing with Chanyeol in his bed? If he really was involved with Sehun, why would Baekhyun so willingly open his legs to someone else and allow them to touch him in places that were too sensitive for words.

Chanyeol's head was reeling. He had thought Baekhyun was better than that. He had thought Baekhyun might be actually liking him. But was it all a lie, or a mere figment of his imagination? Was Baekhyun really a cheater, who was pregnant with Sehun's baby?

Chanyeol suddenly bolted up from his bed, startling Yoora and nearly sending her rolling off the edge from his frantic movements as he gasped, "I think I'm going to be sick!" And then he dashed from the room, making it just in time to the toilet to throw up his breakfast.

Yoora had rushed after him in concern, and when she saw her brother heaving into the toilet she was livid and ready to fight whoever had hurt her brother so deeply they made him physically sick. She had been the one to raise him since he was eleven, so in a way, she was both like his mother and his sister, so she would not stand for anyone or anything ever hurting him.

❄️ ❄️ ❄️

After celebrating the rest of what Baekhyun's family managed to salvage of their Christmas, he was packing his bag and getting ready to leave. He couldn't stay there, not when he felt so unwanted by the two people who gave him life.

He walked outside through the thin layer of snow to his car with his brother carrying his bag. He asked Baekbeom to toss it into the backseat, and then he gave him a hug. Baekbeom kissed Baekhyun's forehead and softly said, "I want to come visit you soon, and I'd love to meet that guy of yours."

Baekhyun smiled weakly, and mumbled, "He works a lot . . ."

Baekbeom rolled his eyes at the obvious lie, and gave Baekhyun another hug before seeing him off. Baekhyun waved and told his brother he'd see him soon, and then he was driving home to the comfort of his small house and the alluring pull of ice cream he kept in his freezer for days such as his past three.

Word count: 732