Xiumin: “Listen to this, and tell me if you like it…”
You’re sitting at a table where Xiumin is going back and forth between practicing guitar and scribbling lyrics to a potentially new song. You’ve known each other only for a couple months, but you’ve grown to be good friends with each other since then, becoming close enough to be constantly bickering at one another all the time.
“This tune might sound nice,” he muffles through his mask.
“Yeah, you’d sound angelic, too, if you weren’t sick,” you teased, motioning towards the mask on his face.
He rolls his eyes. “Not my fault I can’t prevent a cold. But that doesn’t stop me from writing pretty music!”
You scoff and go back to scrolling through your phone. You’re looking through Baekhyun’s latest updates regarding his upcoming mini album, which he’s only briefly implied to be ready for a full comeback in a recent interview.
“What are you reading?” Xiumin asks, and you’re caught off guard because you hadn’t noticed he’d been staring at you for a short minute.
“Nothing,” you blush, and turn off your phone.
“Show me! You’re red!” Xiumin pleads, and extends his arm out towards you.
“No, go back to your little guitar!” You cover your phone with your right hand and turn your chair around, avoiding him completely.
“Hmph. Fine,” he mutters, defeated. He turns back to his lyrics, and tampers with his pen for a bit before putting it down to stare at you again.
This time, your back is facing him, and he leans back to read whatever’s on your phone: Baekhyun’s New Comeback! Confirmed or Not Before Christmas?
“You’re hooked on Baekhyun’s comeback, when you have me right here?” He scoffs this time, forcing you to instantly turn around and glare at him.
“Let me have this moment! Besides, why don’t you tell me more about it. He’s your best friend. Or more like your brother. Let me know all the details!”
“Sure, I can do that,” he rolls his eyes. “And then what do you want me to do? Tell him you’re obsessed and wanna date him?”
“XIUMIN!! Don’t you DARE!”
He throws his head back in a laughter. “You get too flustered around him,” he pauses, “though I wish I was your favorite.”
You slump back in your chair. “Of course you’re my favorite. But you’re also my friend, and I can’t be crushing over you like that, you know?”
He stares back, blankly. “No, I don’t know.”
You giggle and turn back to your phone. “You’ll be my favorite-favorite when you write a song prettier than Candy. Or Cry For Love. Or Bambi.”
His eyebrows furrow, and he pulls up closer to you. “Fine, then. Listen to this, and tell me if you like it,” he says, and stars to strum along to a beautiful set of verses that scream the theme of falling into a deep, uncharted love story.
Once he’s done, he turns to you, eager to hear your thoughts. “What’s missing?”
You watch his eyes, which are carefully watching your expression. “You know,” you begin, “it’s actually… really sweet. I don’t think you’re missing anything, Minseok.”
He tugs his mask slightly over the bridge of his nose, and smiles towards his guitar. “No, im serious, what about the lyrics do you want to hear more of?”
Your gaze is fixated on his eyes now, carefully studying his expression, or at least the little bit that you can study from under the mask.
“I’m being serious, too, Minseok. Your song is beautiful. But…” you pause, unable to continue.
“But what? Is it the chord progression?”
“No,” you start. “But… can you sing the last verse again? I want to listen to that again.”
He obeys you excitedly, and sings the last part of his lyrical poem in a most heartwarming manner. His eyes move across the pages of lyrics on the table, and they slowly crawl their way to your hands. He’s singing quieter, his attention focusing gently on you.
There’s a moment where he pauses, and his eyes lock with yours.
He sings a line, one that seems to be dedicated to a lover, but the songs pace slows,
You feel yourself blush lightly, but you don’t understand why. Why do I feel…?
Xiumin finishes his last line, dragging out the last adlib, his eyes slowly making their way to your lips.
He ends his line, and there’s a moment when you both sit in silence, staring into each other’s gaze.
“Xiu,” you say quietly, placing your hands on your knees.
“Yes?” He whispers, his gaze completely fixated onto you.
“Don’t move,” you say, your hands slowly reaching for his mask. “You’re not… you’re not sick…”
You pull down his mask, but he doesn’t protest. “You sing like yourself, you’re not sick at all,” you whisper. “Why’s that?”
He hesitates, pulling his eyes away from your lips.
“Tell me,” he whispers. “What do I need to do, to be more like him?”
You’re quiet, unable to move your hands away from his face. “I don’t… I don’t know,” is all you can mutter.
“Maybe I wear my mask,” he whispers, “to hide the fact that I can’t help but get flustered around you.”
His eyes are infatuated with you.
“I haven’t been sick in a long time. But if a mask can hide the jealousy I feel when you talk about my brother the way you do, then it can also hide the hot, stupid smile I get when I see you walk into a room.”
You don’t respond, but you’re frozen in place, unsure of whether to take your hands off his face or not. Your hands are surely sweating, but the feeling of his tensed jaw under your fingers won’t let you leave.
Then, he does something painfully terrible.
Bad move, you think, because suddenly, you feel your face get hot, and your heart skips a beat.
“You didn’t answer me earlier,” He whispers, wrapping his hands around yours, and slowly descending them down to your lap. He reached his right hand up to your cheek, rubbing his thumb against your lip.
“I don’t think I ever told you how much I love hearing you call me by my name,” he whispers. You feel his hot breath slowly drawing closer, his eyes completely situated on your eyes, your lips, your eyes, your lips…
“What do I need to do, to be your favorite member of EXO?”
“Say it,” he insists, “say I’m your favorite.”
“You’re…” you stutter, “you’re my favorite…”
His gaze drops to your lips.
“Beautiful,” he whispers, then lets out a small sigh. “That’s all I wanted to hear.”
Suddenly, he sits back up in place, and places his guitar back on its stand. He walks up to a desk with music equipment and opens a cupboard, pulling out a small case and bringing it back to you. He places it carefully on your lap. On it read,
Hope you enjoy being the first fan to listen to my new mini album! Listen to this in secret! Much love, Baekhyun xx
“Wha—what— I’m so,” you’re stuttering, unable to comprehend anything that just happened in the span of the last five minutes.
“What? You think I wouldn’t make sure to get you a signed personal copy of his new music? Don’t show that to anyone, alright?”
You glare at him, pick up the album on your lap, then gasp at him in disbelief.
“I can’t STAND you!” You cover your face with the album, absolutely flustered at him right now!
He lets out a loud laugh, proud of his little stunt, and reaches for his pockets. He pulls out his car keys, and turns them towards you.
“Get ready in ten minutes. You and I are going out to dinner.”
You grunt, peeking over your new album and catching a glimpse of his warm grin, one that you won’t be able to get out of your head now. There is no way of hiding the loud smile that is taking over your face right now.
And ultimately, there is no way of hiding the sudden, huge crush you just spawned for the boy standing right in front of you.
