☁ oops...
all apologies
baekhyun/chen
pg-13
written with modelpress for sinisterkids' bday. here is some hella incomplete fic. WE'RE SORRY, REEM.
Jongdae’s sitting in this room, waiting for his turn to audition, and he’s surrounded by hundreds of people who want the same thing he does. Normally he would be talking to someone by now, but between how nervous he is and how much he wants this-- he doesn’t have a more realistic goal if this doesn’t work out, there’s just nothing he wants, or enjoys, more than singing-- he stays quiet and thinks that maybe he understands this, ‘I’m here to win, I’m not here to make friends’ thing that contestants on reality T.V. shows all eventually say at some point.
The boy who’s sitting next to him seems to have no such apprehensions in making friends with the people he’s going up against. He’s been talking non-stop for the last five minutes. Jongdae’s not even sure if the boy’s talking to him; it’s more...talking at him. He’s about to tune him out or just move, because this continuous chatter is making him even more nervous, when the boy holds out a hand towards him.
“I’m Baekhyun by the way,” he says. He looks at Jongdae expectantly until he shakes his hand. “I talk a lot when I’m nervous. Actually that’s a lie, I talk a lot all the time but a lot more when I’m nervous. A lot more and really fast. You’re probably not even catching most of this.” He stops, takes a deep breath before he starts over. “Hi, I’m Baekhyun.”
“Uh, hi.”
“Talking’s just one of the things I do when I’m nervous.” Baekhyun has been jiggling his knee since he sat down next to Jongdae, but he has shifted closer since he started talking to him so he keeps bumping their knees together. “Sorry,” he says, even though he doesn’t stop. “What’s your name?”
Before Jongdae can answer, one of the people in charge steps into the room. She calls out a string of numbers and people shuffle over before they follow her out of the room.
“What’s your number?” Baekhyun reaches out for the number tacked on to Jongdae’s shirt and brightens when he sees it. “You’re right after me. See?” He puffs out his chest to show off his number.
Jongdae finally gives in and laughs. It’s hard not to. “Do you sing?”
Baekhyun smiles like he’s pleased that Jongdae is talking to him. “How’d you know?”
“You seem to like the sound of your own voice.”
If Baekhyun is offended, he doesn’t show it. “I do,” he says, shrugging. “What about you? Singing too, right? I saw you trip twice coming into the room. You can’t be a dancer.”
“I can dance,” Jongdae says defensively.
Baekhyun grins. “Can you dance well?”
Jongdae laughs. “You’re weird.”
Jongdae talks a lot but Baekhyun talks even more than he does. Baekhyun keeps going until his number is called out and he looks disappointed when Jongdae’s number isn’t called out too.
Jongdae is disappointed too. Baekhyun is a good distraction. He had forgotten his nervousness. He raises an eyebrow when Baekhyun holds out his hand like he expects Jongdae to hold it.
“What?”
“Wish me luck,” Baekhyun says, nudging Jongdae’s hand lightly.
Jongdae reluctantly places his hand on top of Baekhyun’s waiting one. “Good luck.”
“You too,” Baekhyun says, giving his hand a light squeeze before he lets go. He gets to his feet and he’s about to leave before he stops. “I never got your name.”
“Jongdae.”
“Jongdae,” Baekhyun repeats thoughtfully. “I’m going to remember that. When you’re a famous idol, I’m going to tell everyone I remember meeting you when you were this nervous little kid waiting to audition.”
Little kid. If Baekhyun didn’t have to leave Jongdae would have attempted to hit him.
“Remember mine too,” Baekhyun says with a wink. “I’m going to be big.”
“Causing a bunch of scandals I’m sure,” Jongdae snorts.
“Yeah, probably,” Baekhyun says, smiling shamelessly. His number is called out again, and when they look over, the lady is looking around the room, an irritated look on her face. “I better go. Good luck, okay? Maybe I’ll see you around.”
Jongdae is pretty sure he’s never going to see Baekhyun again. There are hundreds of people still waiting with him in this room- what are the odds that, of the few people picked, both of them would make it?
“When we debut-”
“Which will be in about ten years. If we’re lucky.”
Baekhyun ignores him. “When we debut,” he starts again, “I bet there will be more headlines about me.” He grins when Jongdae rolls his eyes. “You know, from all the scandals.”
It’s not the first time that Jongdae thinks they’ve been friends for too long. It’s a strange thing to think about someone he’s only known for a little less than two months, but it feels like he’s known Baekhyun a lot longer. Jongdae’s never had trouble making friends but there’s something different about the way he and Baekhyun had just clicked.
Sometimes he thinks he’s doing something wrong because they’re competing against each other. But when Baekhyun fits his fingers lightly against Jongdae’s throat and says, “Higher. Your middle C is a little off,” or he asks Jongdae to help him with a certain note, it’s hard to remember that only one of them is going to get through.
“Is that all you're thinking about? Debuting and creating scandals? That's just going to cause problems for whichever group gets stuck with you."
Jongdae thinks that both he and Baekhyun are pretty even on the singing front. There are certain things that each of them are better at but otherwise they're both neck and neck with their vocal range. But if they're looking for an all-rounder then he's pretty sure Baekhyun is winning.
Jongdae slumps down to the floor because he really hates dance training. He can dance but it takes him longer to get the choreography to stick and the rest of the trainees seem annoyed every time their instructor stops to point something out to Jongdae or to get someone to help him.
Baekhyun is a lot better at dancing than him. His movements are more fluid and he picks everything up easily. Jongdae can't even be bitter about it because Baekhyun always stays back to help him out.
"Stuck with me?" Baekhyun aims a light kick at Jongdae's ribs. "Any group would be lucky to have me." He crawls his way to Jongdae's feet before he grabs one of his legs.
Jongdae grunts when Baekhyun bends his knee and starts pushing his leg back. “Why is it that whenever you help me stretch I just end up in more pain?”
“Because you're a weak little b-” Baekhyun yelps when Jongdae manages to free his leg and kicks him over. “That hurt.”
“You were saying.” Jongdae grins as he shifts to sit down heavily on Baekhyun's stomach.
Baekhyun's lips quirk up in a smile. “Well, isn't this a compromising position?” He moves an arm and Jongdae thinks he's going to shove him off, but his hands just settle on Jongdae's thighs instead.
"Pretty sure you're not helping," Jongdae says, rolling off Baekhyun and settling down on the floor beside him.
They're both quiet before Baekhyun says, "I really want you to get this." He laughs. "Which makes me feel conflicted because I really want me to get this too.”
"I know what you mean," Jongdae says.
They're both tense and a little high-strung, from a particularly brutal string of dance practices this week. It's a good sign, Jongdae tells himself, because more dance lessons and less vocal ones must mean that some instructor has determined that their vocal techniques are up to par. If they didn't have anything planned for them, then they'd never make Baekhyun and Jongdae improve their dancing.
The first time it happens, Jongdae almost thinks it's a dream. Baekhyun certainly acts casual enough afterwards, so it throws him off.
It's a little past two in the morning, after Baekhyun has stayed behind again to go over a short combo with Jongdae in the rehearsal building. They've both been up for over 24 hours. This kind of exhaustion settles deep in his bones, and Jongdae's pretty much dead on his feet as they make their way back to the dorms.
The back dorm staircase is dark, and Jongdae almost unconsciously grabs onto Baekhyun's wrist to give himself some semblance of protection. Baekhyun's hand is nice, he thinks to himself detachedly. Pretty fingers and long slim lines. He holds on to him like he's the banister, helping himself get down the stairs carefully.
No such luck, and the sole of Jongdae's worn Converse slips on the edge of a staircase. He's falling forward for one heart-stopping second, before he can even curse, but suddenly there's an arm wrapping around his stomach.
"Shit-Jongdae." Baekhyun is wide-eyed and his voice is suddenly loud and strained, especially for this time of day. "Be fucking careful."
Jongdae's breathing hard, adrenaline pumping from the stumble, but Baekhyun still has his arm around his waist and that might be the reason his temperature is spiking. "I just slipped, I'm fine. Thanks for catching me."
His gaze flicks down to Baekhyun's arm and Baekhyun finally realizes that he's still got ahold of him. He pulls back quickly, muttering, "Yeah, no problem. You really need to be more careful though. What if I wasn't here and you twisted your ankle?"
"Then thank God you were," Jongdae says. He grins and hopes Baekhyun can see it even in the dim lighting.
They've almost reached their floor, until Baekhyun suddenly takes a deep breath, backing up into a corner and crouching down.
"Baekhyun? Are you okay?" Jongdae is surprised, and he quickly settles down on his knees in front of him.
Baekhyun buries his head in his arms, sitting up on his feet. His voice is muffled as he replies, "Yeah, I just-give me a second."
Jongdae knows what he's feeling-this kind of anxiety is a constant undercurrent during the day but an overwhelming flood at night, when there are less distractions and more time to worry. He places a hand carefully on Baekhyun's arm, talking softly. "Hey, you're going to be fine. We're practically about to debut-why else would they be putting us through these intensive dance practices?"
He can still hear Baekhyun's deep, stuttery breaths, but Baekhyun slowly picks his head up. "I guess so."
Jongdae beams. He gets these bouts of panic too, so he knows how to talk him through it. It's much nicer, not having to deal with things alone, he thinks. And it feels wrong to see Baekhyun-loud, cocky Baekhyun-hyperventilating in the corner of a dark stairwell.
Standing up slowly, Baekhyun leans against the wall. His face is still shadowed, from this point of view, but Jongdae can hear that his breathing has evened out somewhat. He jerks his chin at him. "Jongdae-thanks."
Jongdae shakes his head, grinning at him. "It's nothing. We all get those moments, yeah?"
Baekhyun hums, pulling Jongdae over by his sleeve until he's leaning against the wall beside him. It's quiet, the distant noise of traffic barely audible and all Jongdae can hear is their breathing. The concrete is dingy but cool against Jongdae's back, and he closes his eyes and takes a deep gulp of air.
They will debut soon-he knows it. He's not even going to entertain the possibility otherwise. These thoughts are so loud when it's dark but Jongdae supposes he has to deal with them sometime. It's easier when Baekhyun is right next to him.
When he blinks his eyes open again, straightening with a jerk, Jongdae briefly wonders if he fell asleep. It honestly wouldn't be anything out of the ordinary.
It takes a bit for his sight to come back to him in the darkness, but all of his senses are suddenly on high alert because Baekhyun is standing right in front of him, a little too close for comfort, his breath hot on his lips.
He has no idea how Baekhyun got so close, and Jongdae blinks rapidly. "Baekhyun...?"
The question has barely left his mouth when Baekhyun pushes him against the wall and presses their lips together. Baekhyun's mouth is hot and Jongdae is so overwhelmed by this feeling, he's-stunned, this is Baekhyun, his best friend, Baekhyun.
And maybe Jongdae's been a little bit in denial lately, but those feelings were small and suppressible, until now. There's nothing to deny now, not when Baekhyun tastes like everything he's dreamed of, his lips unexpectedly soft. There's nothing to deny when Jongdae helplessly locks his arms around Baekhyun's neck to bring him closer, threading his fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck and then running his hands down his sides to make sure this is real.
He lets out the most embarrassing noise when Baekhyun's hand comes to tilt his chin carefully, kissing him deeper, tongue licking carefully into his mouth. This could be a dream, Jongdae thinks dimly. But dreams don't have the smell of Baekhyun's nasty deodorant, or the sharp sting when Baekhyun slips his hands up his shirt and digs his fingernails in.
Baekhyun breaks away, and only then does Jongdae realize how loud they're both breathing. He tries to fill his lungs up with oxygen, and his cheeks are burning. Baekhyun's panting too, before he suddenly presses his face into Jongdae's shoulder.
"Shit," he mumbles. "That wasn't-I wasn't going to-I just wanted to say thanks. For cheering me up."
Jongdae's still too shocked to speak, instead bringing his hand up to press against his lips, which are puffy and slick. "Baekhyun-that-"
"I'm sorry," Baekhyun says quickly. "I should-go, I need to go."
He's gone in a rush and Jongdae is left alone and confused, clutching onto the railings for some kind of grounding. Still trying to wrap his mind around what has just happened, he sinks to the ground and wraps his arms around his legs. Jongdae is dizzy, but he's not sure whether it's because of his exhaustion or because of-Baekhyun.
[there was supposed to be a lot more stuff building up to these scene but well...):]
It's a friendly rivalry, Jongdae thinks. Nothing serious, nothing particularly Earth-shattering. They've both got wide vocal ranges, and there's no harm in having a little fun. He taps his pen against the musical stand, jostling the sheet music on it. "Let me hear that again."
Baekhyun narrows his eyes at him as he spins on his rolling chair. "No way. You heard that perfectly, loud and clear."
"It sounded a little flat to me," Jongdae shrugs. "And if you hit it once, you should be able to do it again."
Rolling his eyes, Baekhyun takes a deep breath and scrunches his nose up, singing a high A. He holds it for maybe a second before breaking out into a cough. "This-is a bad day. I'm not warmed up. Plus, I'm sitting down."
"Excuses," Jongdae scoffs. He nudges Baekhyun to show that he's half joking. "That was still flat, it doesn't count. And isn't there a length requirement? You have to sustain the note for at least three seconds."
Baekhyun frowns, nudging him back. "You're being picky. I wasn't that picky about your G."
"That's because I actually hit it," Jongdae mutters under his breath. He flashes Baekhyun a guileless smile when he looks over at him, suspicious. Moving to the other end of the small studio to the water dispenser, Jongdae fills up a little paper cup with cold water and hands it to Baekhyun. "Here."
"Thanks," Baekhyun says, giving him an appreciative grin and taking a sip. "How much longer is break?"
Checking his watch, Jongdae sighs as he sits on the edge of the desk. "We've got another minute. I'm not gonna make it."
"Only one more session and we're done for the day." Baekhyun propels himself on the chair over towards him. "Besides, these songs are the slower tempo-ed ones. Less belting, less tiring."
Jongdae buries his face in his arms dramatically. "But then they'll want us to be all emotional because it's slower paced. I'm about to fall asleep, I can't emote."
"Kim Jongdae, saying he can't sing emotionally," Baekhyun remarks. "Huh."
"Shut up," Jongdae whines. His voice is muffled and Baekhyun can only see his hair peeking out from over his arms. He picks his head up, a wicked look in his eyes. "I hit the higher note today, though."
Baekhyun's got an indignant retort on the tip of his tongue but then Kyungsoo walks in, banging the door open. He eyes the two of them exasperatedly. "You're still singing? Can't you take a break when you're given one?"
"Nah," Baekhyun says brightly. He scoots the chair over to Kyungsoo, bumping him in the leg as Kyungsoo hisses at him.
Jongdae's still perched on the desk, this time with his chin cupped in his hands. "I beat Baekhyun today," he announces to Kyungsoo proudly. "And only with a high G."
Baekhyun needs to defend himself. "First of all-I won today, with my A. Jongdae keeps saying I'm under pitch but I'm clearly not. Listen."
He sings the note again, this time floating it lighter, with a head tone. When Baekhyun opens his eyes, Kyungsoo is still crossing his arms, unimpressed. "Jongdae was right, you're flat. You're hitting the note at first, but then you're sliding a little under."
Jongdae whoops as Baekhyun throws his hands in the air. He says triumphantly, "Even Mr. Perfect Pitch over here says you're off. I win today. What's the score again?"
"Like, six points for each of us. You just tied it." Baekhyun's not going down without a fight.
"How much longer are you guys going to do this?" Kyungsoo breaks them up, sighing as he sits down and pulls out a recorder, along with his own sheaf of music. "Okay, let's finish up this rehearsal." He hums an A for the three of them, and presses the 'record' button, holding it up to speak into the microphone. "Almost Paradise, rehearsal four, take one."
baekhyun/chen
pg-13
written with modelpress for sinisterkids' bday. here is some hella incomplete fic. WE'RE SORRY, REEM.
Jongdae’s sitting in this room, waiting for his turn to audition, and he’s surrounded by hundreds of people who want the same thing he does. Normally he would be talking to someone by now, but between how nervous he is and how much he wants this-- he doesn’t have a more realistic goal if this doesn’t work out, there’s just nothing he wants, or enjoys, more than singing-- he stays quiet and thinks that maybe he understands this, ‘I’m here to win, I’m not here to make friends’ thing that contestants on reality T.V. shows all eventually say at some point.
The boy who’s sitting next to him seems to have no such apprehensions in making friends with the people he’s going up against. He’s been talking non-stop for the last five minutes. Jongdae’s not even sure if the boy’s talking to him; it’s more...talking at him. He’s about to tune him out or just move, because this continuous chatter is making him even more nervous, when the boy holds out a hand towards him.
“I’m Baekhyun by the way,” he says. He looks at Jongdae expectantly until he shakes his hand. “I talk a lot when I’m nervous. Actually that’s a lie, I talk a lot all the time but a lot more when I’m nervous. A lot more and really fast. You’re probably not even catching most of this.” He stops, takes a deep breath before he starts over. “Hi, I’m Baekhyun.”
“Uh, hi.”
“Talking’s just one of the things I do when I’m nervous.” Baekhyun has been jiggling his knee since he sat down next to Jongdae, but he has shifted closer since he started talking to him so he keeps bumping their knees together. “Sorry,” he says, even though he doesn’t stop. “What’s your name?”
Before Jongdae can answer, one of the people in charge steps into the room. She calls out a string of numbers and people shuffle over before they follow her out of the room.
“What’s your number?” Baekhyun reaches out for the number tacked on to Jongdae’s shirt and brightens when he sees it. “You’re right after me. See?” He puffs out his chest to show off his number.
Jongdae finally gives in and laughs. It’s hard not to. “Do you sing?”
Baekhyun smiles like he’s pleased that Jongdae is talking to him. “How’d you know?”
“You seem to like the sound of your own voice.”
If Baekhyun is offended, he doesn’t show it. “I do,” he says, shrugging. “What about you? Singing too, right? I saw you trip twice coming into the room. You can’t be a dancer.”
“I can dance,” Jongdae says defensively.
Baekhyun grins. “Can you dance well?”
Jongdae laughs. “You’re weird.”
Jongdae talks a lot but Baekhyun talks even more than he does. Baekhyun keeps going until his number is called out and he looks disappointed when Jongdae’s number isn’t called out too.
Jongdae is disappointed too. Baekhyun is a good distraction. He had forgotten his nervousness. He raises an eyebrow when Baekhyun holds out his hand like he expects Jongdae to hold it.
“What?”
“Wish me luck,” Baekhyun says, nudging Jongdae’s hand lightly.
Jongdae reluctantly places his hand on top of Baekhyun’s waiting one. “Good luck.”
“You too,” Baekhyun says, giving his hand a light squeeze before he lets go. He gets to his feet and he’s about to leave before he stops. “I never got your name.”
“Jongdae.”
“Jongdae,” Baekhyun repeats thoughtfully. “I’m going to remember that. When you’re a famous idol, I’m going to tell everyone I remember meeting you when you were this nervous little kid waiting to audition.”
Little kid. If Baekhyun didn’t have to leave Jongdae would have attempted to hit him.
“Remember mine too,” Baekhyun says with a wink. “I’m going to be big.”
“Causing a bunch of scandals I’m sure,” Jongdae snorts.
“Yeah, probably,” Baekhyun says, smiling shamelessly. His number is called out again, and when they look over, the lady is looking around the room, an irritated look on her face. “I better go. Good luck, okay? Maybe I’ll see you around.”
Jongdae is pretty sure he’s never going to see Baekhyun again. There are hundreds of people still waiting with him in this room- what are the odds that, of the few people picked, both of them would make it?
“When we debut-”
“Which will be in about ten years. If we’re lucky.”
Baekhyun ignores him. “When we debut,” he starts again, “I bet there will be more headlines about me.” He grins when Jongdae rolls his eyes. “You know, from all the scandals.”
It’s not the first time that Jongdae thinks they’ve been friends for too long. It’s a strange thing to think about someone he’s only known for a little less than two months, but it feels like he’s known Baekhyun a lot longer. Jongdae’s never had trouble making friends but there’s something different about the way he and Baekhyun had just clicked.
Sometimes he thinks he’s doing something wrong because they’re competing against each other. But when Baekhyun fits his fingers lightly against Jongdae’s throat and says, “Higher. Your middle C is a little off,” or he asks Jongdae to help him with a certain note, it’s hard to remember that only one of them is going to get through.
“Is that all you're thinking about? Debuting and creating scandals? That's just going to cause problems for whichever group gets stuck with you."
Jongdae thinks that both he and Baekhyun are pretty even on the singing front. There are certain things that each of them are better at but otherwise they're both neck and neck with their vocal range. But if they're looking for an all-rounder then he's pretty sure Baekhyun is winning.
Jongdae slumps down to the floor because he really hates dance training. He can dance but it takes him longer to get the choreography to stick and the rest of the trainees seem annoyed every time their instructor stops to point something out to Jongdae or to get someone to help him.
Baekhyun is a lot better at dancing than him. His movements are more fluid and he picks everything up easily. Jongdae can't even be bitter about it because Baekhyun always stays back to help him out.
"Stuck with me?" Baekhyun aims a light kick at Jongdae's ribs. "Any group would be lucky to have me." He crawls his way to Jongdae's feet before he grabs one of his legs.
Jongdae grunts when Baekhyun bends his knee and starts pushing his leg back. “Why is it that whenever you help me stretch I just end up in more pain?”
“Because you're a weak little b-” Baekhyun yelps when Jongdae manages to free his leg and kicks him over. “That hurt.”
“You were saying.” Jongdae grins as he shifts to sit down heavily on Baekhyun's stomach.
Baekhyun's lips quirk up in a smile. “Well, isn't this a compromising position?” He moves an arm and Jongdae thinks he's going to shove him off, but his hands just settle on Jongdae's thighs instead.
"Pretty sure you're not helping," Jongdae says, rolling off Baekhyun and settling down on the floor beside him.
They're both quiet before Baekhyun says, "I really want you to get this." He laughs. "Which makes me feel conflicted because I really want me to get this too.”
"I know what you mean," Jongdae says.
They're both tense and a little high-strung, from a particularly brutal string of dance practices this week. It's a good sign, Jongdae tells himself, because more dance lessons and less vocal ones must mean that some instructor has determined that their vocal techniques are up to par. If they didn't have anything planned for them, then they'd never make Baekhyun and Jongdae improve their dancing.
The first time it happens, Jongdae almost thinks it's a dream. Baekhyun certainly acts casual enough afterwards, so it throws him off.
It's a little past two in the morning, after Baekhyun has stayed behind again to go over a short combo with Jongdae in the rehearsal building. They've both been up for over 24 hours. This kind of exhaustion settles deep in his bones, and Jongdae's pretty much dead on his feet as they make their way back to the dorms.
The back dorm staircase is dark, and Jongdae almost unconsciously grabs onto Baekhyun's wrist to give himself some semblance of protection. Baekhyun's hand is nice, he thinks to himself detachedly. Pretty fingers and long slim lines. He holds on to him like he's the banister, helping himself get down the stairs carefully.
No such luck, and the sole of Jongdae's worn Converse slips on the edge of a staircase. He's falling forward for one heart-stopping second, before he can even curse, but suddenly there's an arm wrapping around his stomach.
"Shit-Jongdae." Baekhyun is wide-eyed and his voice is suddenly loud and strained, especially for this time of day. "Be fucking careful."
Jongdae's breathing hard, adrenaline pumping from the stumble, but Baekhyun still has his arm around his waist and that might be the reason his temperature is spiking. "I just slipped, I'm fine. Thanks for catching me."
His gaze flicks down to Baekhyun's arm and Baekhyun finally realizes that he's still got ahold of him. He pulls back quickly, muttering, "Yeah, no problem. You really need to be more careful though. What if I wasn't here and you twisted your ankle?"
"Then thank God you were," Jongdae says. He grins and hopes Baekhyun can see it even in the dim lighting.
They've almost reached their floor, until Baekhyun suddenly takes a deep breath, backing up into a corner and crouching down.
"Baekhyun? Are you okay?" Jongdae is surprised, and he quickly settles down on his knees in front of him.
Baekhyun buries his head in his arms, sitting up on his feet. His voice is muffled as he replies, "Yeah, I just-give me a second."
Jongdae knows what he's feeling-this kind of anxiety is a constant undercurrent during the day but an overwhelming flood at night, when there are less distractions and more time to worry. He places a hand carefully on Baekhyun's arm, talking softly. "Hey, you're going to be fine. We're practically about to debut-why else would they be putting us through these intensive dance practices?"
He can still hear Baekhyun's deep, stuttery breaths, but Baekhyun slowly picks his head up. "I guess so."
Jongdae beams. He gets these bouts of panic too, so he knows how to talk him through it. It's much nicer, not having to deal with things alone, he thinks. And it feels wrong to see Baekhyun-loud, cocky Baekhyun-hyperventilating in the corner of a dark stairwell.
Standing up slowly, Baekhyun leans against the wall. His face is still shadowed, from this point of view, but Jongdae can hear that his breathing has evened out somewhat. He jerks his chin at him. "Jongdae-thanks."
Jongdae shakes his head, grinning at him. "It's nothing. We all get those moments, yeah?"
Baekhyun hums, pulling Jongdae over by his sleeve until he's leaning against the wall beside him. It's quiet, the distant noise of traffic barely audible and all Jongdae can hear is their breathing. The concrete is dingy but cool against Jongdae's back, and he closes his eyes and takes a deep gulp of air.
They will debut soon-he knows it. He's not even going to entertain the possibility otherwise. These thoughts are so loud when it's dark but Jongdae supposes he has to deal with them sometime. It's easier when Baekhyun is right next to him.
When he blinks his eyes open again, straightening with a jerk, Jongdae briefly wonders if he fell asleep. It honestly wouldn't be anything out of the ordinary.
It takes a bit for his sight to come back to him in the darkness, but all of his senses are suddenly on high alert because Baekhyun is standing right in front of him, a little too close for comfort, his breath hot on his lips.
He has no idea how Baekhyun got so close, and Jongdae blinks rapidly. "Baekhyun...?"
The question has barely left his mouth when Baekhyun pushes him against the wall and presses their lips together. Baekhyun's mouth is hot and Jongdae is so overwhelmed by this feeling, he's-stunned, this is Baekhyun, his best friend, Baekhyun.
And maybe Jongdae's been a little bit in denial lately, but those feelings were small and suppressible, until now. There's nothing to deny now, not when Baekhyun tastes like everything he's dreamed of, his lips unexpectedly soft. There's nothing to deny when Jongdae helplessly locks his arms around Baekhyun's neck to bring him closer, threading his fingers through the hair at the nape of his neck and then running his hands down his sides to make sure this is real.
He lets out the most embarrassing noise when Baekhyun's hand comes to tilt his chin carefully, kissing him deeper, tongue licking carefully into his mouth. This could be a dream, Jongdae thinks dimly. But dreams don't have the smell of Baekhyun's nasty deodorant, or the sharp sting when Baekhyun slips his hands up his shirt and digs his fingernails in.
Baekhyun breaks away, and only then does Jongdae realize how loud they're both breathing. He tries to fill his lungs up with oxygen, and his cheeks are burning. Baekhyun's panting too, before he suddenly presses his face into Jongdae's shoulder.
"Shit," he mumbles. "That wasn't-I wasn't going to-I just wanted to say thanks. For cheering me up."
Jongdae's still too shocked to speak, instead bringing his hand up to press against his lips, which are puffy and slick. "Baekhyun-that-"
"I'm sorry," Baekhyun says quickly. "I should-go, I need to go."
He's gone in a rush and Jongdae is left alone and confused, clutching onto the railings for some kind of grounding. Still trying to wrap his mind around what has just happened, he sinks to the ground and wraps his arms around his legs. Jongdae is dizzy, but he's not sure whether it's because of his exhaustion or because of-Baekhyun.
[there was supposed to be a lot more stuff building up to these scene but well...):]
It's a friendly rivalry, Jongdae thinks. Nothing serious, nothing particularly Earth-shattering. They've both got wide vocal ranges, and there's no harm in having a little fun. He taps his pen against the musical stand, jostling the sheet music on it. "Let me hear that again."
Baekhyun narrows his eyes at him as he spins on his rolling chair. "No way. You heard that perfectly, loud and clear."
"It sounded a little flat to me," Jongdae shrugs. "And if you hit it once, you should be able to do it again."
Rolling his eyes, Baekhyun takes a deep breath and scrunches his nose up, singing a high A. He holds it for maybe a second before breaking out into a cough. "This-is a bad day. I'm not warmed up. Plus, I'm sitting down."
"Excuses," Jongdae scoffs. He nudges Baekhyun to show that he's half joking. "That was still flat, it doesn't count. And isn't there a length requirement? You have to sustain the note for at least three seconds."
Baekhyun frowns, nudging him back. "You're being picky. I wasn't that picky about your G."
"That's because I actually hit it," Jongdae mutters under his breath. He flashes Baekhyun a guileless smile when he looks over at him, suspicious. Moving to the other end of the small studio to the water dispenser, Jongdae fills up a little paper cup with cold water and hands it to Baekhyun. "Here."
"Thanks," Baekhyun says, giving him an appreciative grin and taking a sip. "How much longer is break?"
Checking his watch, Jongdae sighs as he sits on the edge of the desk. "We've got another minute. I'm not gonna make it."
"Only one more session and we're done for the day." Baekhyun propels himself on the chair over towards him. "Besides, these songs are the slower tempo-ed ones. Less belting, less tiring."
Jongdae buries his face in his arms dramatically. "But then they'll want us to be all emotional because it's slower paced. I'm about to fall asleep, I can't emote."
"Kim Jongdae, saying he can't sing emotionally," Baekhyun remarks. "Huh."
"Shut up," Jongdae whines. His voice is muffled and Baekhyun can only see his hair peeking out from over his arms. He picks his head up, a wicked look in his eyes. "I hit the higher note today, though."
Baekhyun's got an indignant retort on the tip of his tongue but then Kyungsoo walks in, banging the door open. He eyes the two of them exasperatedly. "You're still singing? Can't you take a break when you're given one?"
"Nah," Baekhyun says brightly. He scoots the chair over to Kyungsoo, bumping him in the leg as Kyungsoo hisses at him.
Jongdae's still perched on the desk, this time with his chin cupped in his hands. "I beat Baekhyun today," he announces to Kyungsoo proudly. "And only with a high G."
Baekhyun needs to defend himself. "First of all-I won today, with my A. Jongdae keeps saying I'm under pitch but I'm clearly not. Listen."
He sings the note again, this time floating it lighter, with a head tone. When Baekhyun opens his eyes, Kyungsoo is still crossing his arms, unimpressed. "Jongdae was right, you're flat. You're hitting the note at first, but then you're sliding a little under."
Jongdae whoops as Baekhyun throws his hands in the air. He says triumphantly, "Even Mr. Perfect Pitch over here says you're off. I win today. What's the score again?"
"Like, six points for each of us. You just tied it." Baekhyun's not going down without a fight.
"How much longer are you guys going to do this?" Kyungsoo breaks them up, sighing as he sits down and pulls out a recorder, along with his own sheaf of music. "Okay, let's finish up this rehearsal." He hums an A for the three of them, and presses the 'record' button, holding it up to speak into the microphone. "Almost Paradise, rehearsal four, take one."