Kai's New Housemate | kaiyong

2

"Hey! I'm heading to a bakery today, do you want anything?" Kai asks when he spots Taeyong sitting with his laptop top at the kitchen table.

"Ah, um... if you don't mind, I really love strawberry cheesecake," Taeyong says softly, "With swirly ganache."

"Ganache?"

"Mmhm!"

"I'll um be sure to ask them. Or better yet, come with?"

Taeyong shakes his head. "Oh, no. No, thanks."

"Are you afraid of the sun or something?" Kai jokes. He glances at the window and notices that the blinds are closed. Which is odd, because usually when Kai is out, he leaves them fully open until night time.

"N-no! I'm not afraid of the sun!? "

"Okay, buddy. I'll be back."

Kai leaves their shared apartment quickly, feeling embarrassed and dreadful. Why does he feel unwelcome in his own home?

He makes his way to the bakery a few miles away where he meets up with Chanyeol, badly needing to vent. When he's there Chanyeol is already at their usual bench with a cupcake and a tall glass of something cool with whip cream.

"You're late!"

"I was talking to my roommate."

"Oh, he speaks!?" Chanyeol says flabbergasted, but it's so obviously fake and dramatized.

Kai nods. "I know, right?"

"Last time I tried talking to him all he did was nod."

"Maybe he's just a bit shy," Kai offers, not knowing what else could make him so quiet.

Has Kai done something before to make him uncomfortable? Is he just bad at making friends on his own? Is there a contagious sickness he has that prevents him from wanting to socialize with anyone? Now that last one, it's a bit far fetched.

"He's cute, though. Maybe it's part of his act." Chanyeol clicks his tongue before slowly adding, "Seems very familiar."

"Where do you think?"

"He's so unreal sometimes. Like I can't believe he's just at your house."

Kai thinks back to the time when he first interviews Taeyong. He giggled at everything Kai said, out of respect and maybe to appear friendly and sweet. He was afraid to make heavy steps when Kai gave him a tour because he didn't want his footprints to be obvious on his carpet. It was strange. But Kai only learns that he gets stranger, and yet Kai wanted him as a roommate from the start even if he knew.

Taeyong sometimes prances around the house in baggy tees and Kai doesn't want to assume but, he's sure Taeyong never wears anything under it. He loves to cook, so even if they don't see each other and share a conversation during dinner, there's always left overs in a container with a message saying that's dinner if Kai would like. He keeps their home clean, especially the bathroom, everything spotless and in order the way it was before he got here. If anything, its even cleaner than when Kai lived alone.

Having Taeyong as a roommate is so easy. Having Taeyong out of his way should make Kai more than happy, and yet it does nothing but disappoint him.

"Snoop his bedroom, you'll find something alright!"

"Hey, I respect his privacy. I just wish he'll be less private. It's what I am trying to figure out."

Chanyeol supreses a look on his face that Kai cannot decipher before commenting, "Have you asked if he wants to use the desk or kitchen table outside? Maybe he's so busy studying all the time but doesn't want to bother you with his books everywhere."

"That's not it. He sits on the couch with his laptop, barely ten minutes before I leave for class. Or ten minutes before he leaves."

Chanyeol laughs, body flailing forward and palms slapping the table as he says, "Seems like he's dodging you. What if he has a crush on you!?"

"The chances of him being a vampire are higher than the chances of him liking me."

"Is that disappointment I hear?"

It's Kai's turn to slap something. He swats Chanyeol's arm and mutters, "I'm not interested in a vampire."

— ♡ —

"Here's your cake. They didn't understand what I meant when I said I wanted garlic cheese cake."

"Ew! Garlic?"

Kai freezes. "Uh, do you hate garlic?"

"It's ganache. And secondly, yes, that stuff is awful. Smelly and stains your clothes with it's terrible scent. It drives me away!"

Hmm, don't vampires hate garlic? Kai knows because of the movies, like the one with the Edward guy and the hot wolf who's actually a dick but nobody picks up on until the end of the saga — not that Kai has watched all five.

"Noted."

Taeyong smiles softly. His sweater paw hands extend for Kai's hands as he reaches for the takeout container. He raises it to eye level and updoes the lid before humming in satisfaction.

"It's perfect! Thank you!"

Kai notices the dripping red sauce from all the edges of the cake. He cringes. He pieces things together, and now he thinks he wants to throw up.

"Okay! Enjoy! I gotta go!" Kai races into his bedroom and slams the door, he hyperventilates against it and cries to himself, "Fuck. He's a vampire."

— ♡ —