Baekhyun was confused and stuck in between a rock and a hard place. He liked you, but he knew he shouldn't. Whatever was going on between you and Chanyeol had started long before he developed any feelings towards you. You had always been one of his closest best friends. He always thought of you as more of a sister, and he had no idea when that changed.
Chanyeol, on the other hand, was his brother, and he knew Chanyeol liked you. There was even a time when Chan had told Baekhyun that he loved you, so it severely confused Baekhyun when Daeun entered the picture. Baekhyun had no idea what had happened, but something changed in Chanyeol when they went on tour, and ever since, his friend had been having a rough time.
He was either fighting with the members or you, which was so unlike Chanyeol that Baekhyun was really worried about him. He thought that after they had their conversation, Chanyeol had figured something out. He seemed like he had an idea of what he was going to do, but then Daeun broke up with him, and Chanyeol freaked out on you. That was another thing that confused Baekhyun.
Baekhyun didn't want to betray his brother, but he felt like Chanyeol no longer deserved to be with you. He hadn't been treating you well for months now, and Baekhyun didn't feel as guilty for having feelings towards you. Maybe he could have a chance with you...
While they were having their mini celebration party, Baekhyun had pretty much spent most of his time with you. You were fun to be around, but he wasn't stupid. He noticed you glancing over at Chanyeol multiple times. Waiting to see if he would come talk to you.
What you didn't notice, and Baekhyun had no intention of pointing it out, was that Chanyeol had his eyes practically glued to you, until you would glance at him. Chanyeol had always been an expert at watching you without your knowledge. He had been doing it for years.
Throughout the night, Baekhyun had been keeping a close eye on Chanyeol. He had noticed how many drinks his friend was having and was hoping he would stop soon. Baekhyun had literally lost count of how many drinks Chanyeol had downed, and he sadly watched as Chanyeol's eyelids continued to slide lower and lower.
When everyone was sitting at the table hanging out, Chanyeol kept making little digs at you, growing bolder and bolder with each drink. You were taking it in stride, being ridiculously understanding. Way more understanding than Baekhyun would've been. With each remark, the members were growing more anxious, knowing that lines were going to be crossed tonight, but hoping that maybe Chanyeol would pass out instead.
That was until one especially rude comment was made about you, and Junmyeon had enough. Attempting to scold Chanyeol had proved pointless, though, because Chanyeol had then turned on their leader and eventually Sehun too.
Baekhyun watched with profound sadness. He wanted to help his friend, but all of his friends were being hurt at this point. Just when Baekhyun was going to attempt to get Chanyeol to go to sleep, you tried to get Chanyeol to leave his members alone. It worked great for them but terrible for you.
"You're right. How about you get the fuck out of our dorm? That would make everything a lot better."
Baekhyun froze at Chanyeol's words. He never, in a million years, pictured hearing those words come out of his mouth. It was like everything came to a stop. The members all collectively held their breaths until some sense came into Minseok, and he yelled at the younger man.
Baekhyun, now worried about you, turned to watch your face. You were trying to hold it in up until that point, but that was it for you. You were going to let Chanyeol have a piece of your mind, and it was exactly what the asshole deserved at the moment.
"You know what, Chanyeol? I didn't say shit to Daeun. I told her not to break up with you. It was because of what you told me outside that she dumped you. So, quit trying to put all of your fucking problems on me." You stood up. "God, Chanyeol. What happened to you? When did you become this person? I hate him." You grabbed your stuff and walked out of the dorm.
Everything after that happened so fast, that Baekhyun wasn't sure if he should stay behind with Chanyeol or go after you. Once he saw Jongin get up and head towards Chanyeol, he took off after you. You didn't need to be alone right now, and Chanyeol needed to go to sleep anyway.
He ran out into the hall and found you immediately. You turned to see who had come out into the hallway, and Baekhyun saw the look on your face when you realized it was him. He was the person who always came after you, and that was exactly what you were thinking.
"Baek, you don't always have to come after me."
"I am not letting you be alone after what just happened. That would make me a terrible friend."
"Chanyeol is your friend too. You should go to him."
"He has 7 other people with him who can kick his ass, he doesn't need me, and that Chanyeol is not my friend. I don't know who he is."
He could tell his words saddened you, but he was determined to get your mind off Chanyeol. That was his mission for the night. He put his arm around your shoulders and pulled you with him to the elevator.
For the next few hours, he was able to distract you. He would tell you silly stories and impersonated as many people as he could. He even attempted to call Taehyung from BTS again, but you stopped him.
"Will you leave that poor boy alone?"
"First of all, he is my friend. You're allowed to call your friends, Y/N. Secondly, that guy will make you laugh until your stomach hurts. Nobody can be sad around him. I just don't think it's truly possible."
"Okay, well, that's great and all, but you don't need to call him at 3 in the morning."
"3 in the morning?! Since when??" His head snapped towards the clock. Holy crap, when did so many hours pass?!
Laughing at his obliviousness, you say, "Since it became 3 in the morning, Baek! I don't know."
Baekhyun suddenly recalled a memory that he hadn't thought of in years. He sat up in his spot with excitement. "Do you remember that night we went bowling? You let go of the ball too early, and it flung backward?" He laughed.
"Shut up, Baek. That was my first time!" You shouted at him.
"I thought Jongdae was gonna choke on his pretzel. Who did it almost hit?? I can't remember..." He brought his hand up to his nose and tapped it, thinking. "Was it Yixing? No... it was... oh..." His eyes widened when he realized. Shit.
"Chanyeol."
"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to bring him up..." He felt guilty. He had tried his absolute hardest to not mention Chanyeol, and then he brought him up anyway.
"It's not your fault, Baek. He's in all our stories. He was always there." You stare at the coffee table. "Why is he being like this? This isn't like him." You sounded so sad, and Baekhyun realized that, even with all his hard work to take your mind off Chanyeol, your mind was going to go back to him anyway.
He sighed. "Honestly, I don't know what's going on with him. We talked a couple of days ago, and he was pretty confused and lost. It's really hard to see."
He got quiet, worrying about what was troubling his best friend. It really saddened Baekhyun to watch his friend crumble apart like this, but then he remembered how Chanyeol was so desperate to talk to Daeun and set things right with her. That reminder washed away Baekhyun's guilt and instead replaced it with frustration.
Looking over at you, he said, "He's trying to get her back." All you did was nod at his words, which annoyed Baekhyun more than he knew it would. "You're okay with that?" He scoffed.
"What am I supposed to do? I'm so tired of all of this."
"Then let him go." Baekhyun wasn't planning on saying that, but as soon as the words left his mouth, he knew it felt right.
"What?" You asked him, looking at him with confusion.
Completely serious, he said, "You heard me. Move on. Find someone who actually cares about you and is willing to show you."
You sighed. "Baekhyun..."
He knew you were going to try to come up with a reason as to why you couldn't move on from Chanyeol, and he didn't want to hear it. "Don't. Don't tell me it's not that easy. Don't give me some weak excuse." He said as he turned towards you.
"It's not, though..."
"What is it about him? What does he have that's so special?" He had become increasingly more annoyed than he had meant to, so he tried to tone it down. "Why can't you fall for someone else?"
You were quiet for a moment, making him squirm. "Someone like you?"
"Yes. Me."
He slowly scooted towards you. Before you could protest, and before his mind caught up with his actions, he gently placed his hands around the back of your head and slowly pulled you to him. Your lips landing softly on his. He could tell you were shocked, going still for a moment, but then you kissed him back.
Holy crap, you were kissing him back. Baekhyun was internally freaking out because he never thought this day would happen, but then he cleared his mind and focused on his actions. Your lips were so soft, and he wanted so badly to deepen the kiss, but then you pulled away.
When he met your eyes, all you were doing was staring at him. He could see the confusion and sadness in your eyes, and he knew he messed up. He had taken advantage of you during a vulnerable moment, and he had just kissed his best freaking friend. The one that was in love with his other best friend, who, though he was being a complete idiot right now, loved you right back.
"Bae - ". You start to say his name to reassure him or something, but he cut you off.
"I'm sorry. I shouldn't have done that." He quickly said as he backed away from you.
"You don't have to apologize." You tried to tell him.
As he moved further away on the couch, he said, "Yes, I do. I know you don't like me like that. I know you love Chanyeol, and I was being inconsiderate."
You were quiet, and Baekhyun could tell you were contemplating what he said. "I'm sorry, Baek. I really am..." You whisper. "Especially if I led you to think something would happen between us..."
"No, you haven't. I just, sort of, hoped that one day there could've been." He admitted, finally letting his feelings out to you.
He could tell you felt bad, but he didn't want your pity. He just wanted everything to go back to the way it was 10 minutes before. You quietly ask, "Are we gonna be okay?"
He felt a small smile grow on his face. Somehow you guys were always on the same wavelength. "I was just gonna ask you that..." He said quietly.
"I would like us to be."
"Me too." He pulled you into a tight hug without any hesitation. He felt a mix of needing to touch you and wanting to comfort you.
"Thennnn we are?" You said, with a goofy look on your face.
He laughed. Wanting to relieve some of the tension, he thought he would tease you a little bit. "Good, but just so you know, I'm 100% a better kisser than Chanyeol. You can admit it. It's okay."
"You are not really trying to go there right now, are you?" The look on your face said it all.
"I mean, I just want to make sure you realize what you're letting go. I'm a catch, you know." He winked at you.
You patted his back and said, "Yes, you are, Baek. Yes, you are."
Wanting to change the subject, he asked, "So, when are we going bowling again?"
And just like that, your relationship went back to how it usually was. Baekhyun nursing his crush on you, and you being hopelessly in love with Chanyeol. In the end, Baekhyun just wanted the people he cared about to be happy.