. . .Chairs, he told himself. Next time, he would have to make sure they got chairs to sit down while they manned the booth. There was no need to keep standing for hours.
". . .yelling at me. I wasn't running, are you serious?—No—Hey, Han Sooyoung, don't you dare!"
Yoo Joonghyuk turned on his heel. He knew that voice.
"Yes, I spoke to him. Yeah, I know. . .Are we? Okay."
Where was he?
Scanning through the crowd, Yoo Joonghyuk finally spotted the man he had been hoping to see the whole day standing near the water tank, just a few feet away, holding a paper cup, his other hand keeping his phone at his ear as he spoke to the person on the other side.
Breaking habits seemed to bring him to this man.
Kim Dokja had that blank expression again. His voice was bright and lively, but his face showed little of the excitement.
"...is that. . .Does that even make any sense?. . .Blowing up my phone won't make me teleport back there," Kim Dokja said, raising the paper cup to his lips.
He tipped his head back, emptied the cup and crushed it in his hand.
"Is everything alright, sir?" the young woman standing next to him called, noticing his strange behaviour.
Even as Yoo Joonghyuk made to look the other way, Kim Dokja chucked the crushed paper cup into the bin nearby and raised his head.
Their eyes met.
Kim Dokja blinked and his eyes widened a little in recognition.
"Give me a second," he said to the person he was speaking to on the phone and lowered the device away from his ear. He gave Yoo Joonghyuk a polite bow with a tiny smile.
Then he turned around and walked away, his phone coming back to his ear and his voice getting farther away.
Was that it?
Well, it was a reasonable reaction, Yoo Joonghyuk told himself logically. They had barely met for an hour the previous night and Kim Dokja didn't have any of the misunderstandings that Yoo Joonghyuk had been stewing in. Yoo Joonghyuk was willing to bet his entire fortune that Kim Dokja didn't have a wet dream about him either.
Of course, Kim Dokja would react that way. Yoo Joonghyuk would say that the man was going one step further than what was generally considered appropriate by making it apparent that he was acquainted with him in some way, instead of jumping in caution and scampering away.
Kim Dokja had vanished into the crowd leaving the venue. And Yoo Joonghyuk knew he had to finish whatever it was that he was doing there.
He took three seconds to come to a decision.
He was a prudent man. He didn't think with his dick, no matter how much this came off as just that. He was a prudent man, and that's why he felt the need to get it out of his head.
It would be the absolute worst if he woke up another day with his boxers stained and his mind plagued with a stranger. He was going to put a proper close to this whole situation and be done with it. He hated it when things were left unfinished.
Long, hurried strides helped him catch up with Kim Dokja quickly.
"—hungry, you should eat," Kim Dokja was saying as he stepped through the automatic glass doors that had opened for him, out into the sunlight of the afternoon.
"I'll be there tomorrow. . .Ah, I don't think I'll make it—I'm busy—I was thinking of resigning. . .What do you mean? It was a shitty company. I'm counting on you to pay me while I go job hunting."
"Yes, yes, writer-nim," Kim Dokja chuckled. "Leave it all to me. I will not let you down—"
"Kim Dokja."
Kim Dokja turned his head around and his mouth fell open, stunned.
"I'll talk to you later," Kim Dokja said into his phone. "I have to go now."
They could hear someone screaming through Kim Dokja's phone as Kim Dokja ended the call with a light tap on his phone screen.
"Yoo Sajangnim," Kim Dokja said, bowing again.
It irked Yoo Joonghyuk a little.
"I'm not your boss," he said.
"Doesn't change your position, sir," Kim Dokja said simply, straightening. "Is there anything you want to say to me?"
It wasn't an impulsive decision, chasing after Kim Dokja. He had thought about it for a whole three seconds.
But he would admit that he had failed to take a few other factors into account before making the decision. He had forgotten his position, as Kim Dokja had so casually reminded him, and their current surroundings had taken a back seat in his head.
Here, he was someone recognisable, Kim Dokja wasn't and yet he had nearly run after the man, just a few seconds short of grabbing his wrist like some pathetic, lovelorn person.
"Yes," Yoo Joonghyuk answered Kim Dokja's question. "I wanted to buy you a drink."
Kim Dokja stared up at him, lips slightly parted in surprise.
". . .why?" he muttered.
"An apology for my behaviour yesterday," Yoo Joonghyuk said.
"Ah, there is no need for that, sir," Kim Dokja said, waving his hands a little frantically. "It wasn't anything serious. I'm grateful for your consideration, sir."
Why was he acting like a bumbling fool all of a sudden?
"Sir! Yoo Sajangnim!"
That's why.
What a slippery guy. He had switched up his attitude without giving away a single thing the second he noticed someone was coming for Yoo Joonghyuk. He didn't even show any signs of having seen something strange.
"I still wish to apologize," Yoo Joonghyuk pressed on. "It has been bothering me for the entire day."
Annoyance flitted through Kim Dokja's eyes for a second.
"Same place, same time as yesterday," Yoo Joonghyuk said, relishing in his little victory brought about by a little coincidence of his subordinate showing up.
"Yes, sir," Kim Dokja said politely.
"I'll see you there," Yoo Joonghyuk said, the last few syllables he had uttered being interrupted by a third party.
"Sir, is something wrong?"
"Not at all. I was simply catching up with an old acquaintance of mine."
"...Acquaintance, sir?"
Yoo Joonghyuk had barely looked away from Kim Dokja for a minute and that man had vanished again. He didn't even see him in the stream of busy passersby on the street.
There was every chance that Kim Dokja wouldn't turn up that night.
Well, at least he had tried.
Yoo Joonghyuk wasn't entirely sure if Kim Dokja was coming at all. He had entered the bar early and waited. If Kim Dokja didn't arrive by ten thirty, he would leave.
At ten-twenty, Yoo Joonghyuk felt it was likely that Kim Dokja had just run away. They both knew the chances that they would ever run into each other after tonight fell just a little short of utterly impossible.
As the time ticked closer to half past ten, Yoo Joonghyuk supposed he could extend it to forty-five. It was just fifteen minutes, and he still hadn't finished his drink.
The doors to the bar opened plenty of times as he was waiting but it wasn't Kim Dokja who had walked in all those times. When he turned around fruitlessly for the seventh time, Yoo Joonghyuk decided to give that up. He was sitting in the same spot as yesterday, Kim Dokja would notice him easily when he walked in.
At ten thirty, Yoo Joonghyuk was pretty certain that Kim Dokja wasn't going to be coming. It was a bit disappointing, but there was nothing he could do about it. He should just forget about it.
Yoo Joonghyuk raised his glass to his lips to finish his drink. He would leave after this. Getting back to work might take his mind off things. Come to think of it, he was pretty tired.
He put his glass down after emptying it and made to get up from his seat.
"Yoo Sajangnim?"
Yoo Joonghyuk froze.
He didn't have to turn around because Kim Dokja had taken the seat next to him.
"Good evening, sir," he said, curt and polite.
"I'm not your boss," Yoo Joonghyuk found his words. Kim Dokja opened his mouth and Yoo Joonghyuk spoke before he could. "I didn't call you for work."
Kim Dokja closed his mouth. The corners of his lips tipped downwards as he considered it for a brief second.
"Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi, then?" he said.
"Better," Yoo Joonghyuk approved.
Now, onto the next issue.
"You're late," he said sharply.
"I don't think so," said Kim Dokja. "I think I met you around this time yesterday. . .If anything, I would say you're early."
He wasn't wrong, but Yoo Joonghyuk didn't like getting called out like that. . .And was this the time he had met Kim Dokja yesterday? He hadn't been keeping track of time.
"You arrive early to appointments, it's an unspoken rule," Yoo Joonghyuk said.
"A very pointless one too," Kim Dokja said quickly.
"Would you rather be late?"
"I'd rather not be there at all," Kim Dokja smiled at him.
He really did look a lot different when he smiled. Even if it didn't reach his eyes, his face looked a little bit more alive. Kim Dokja wasn't wearing his office suit today. He was in a white button-up shirt and black slacks. His blazer and tie were gone today, and it made him look a little fresher.
His clothes were still a bit ill-fitting, but he could make out his physique better than the previous times he had met the man. He was very thin, only just above the threshold of being called bony. Shoulders smaller than a young woman's, long slender arms and legs, a tiny waist that women would be praised for and men would be pitied for as per the conventional beauty standards.
He still looked tired, with dark circles as prominent as the previous night.
He couldn't tell that he had dressed up for their...could it be called a date?
Regardless, Kim Dokja hadn't exactly dressed up. He just had put some effort into appearing more casual. He was aware that Yoo Joonghyuk hadn't asked him out for something work-related.
. . .And yet he started with Yoo Sajangnim.
Yoo Joonghyuk wished he knew what Kim Dokja's position at his workplace was so that he could call him using his title, just to piss the man off a little, and take him aback slightly. Kim Dokja managed to catch Yoo Joonghyuk off guard every time. It only made sense that he would like to return the favour.
"Order anything you want," Yoo Joonghyuk said.
Kim Dokja's mouth twitched for a second. It could have been a smirk or a scowl, but since the expression didn't settle on his face, Yoo Joonghyuk wasn't able to tell what it was.
"What would you recommend?" Kim Dokja said. "I leave myself in your capable hands, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi."
Yoo Joonghyuk was a handsome man, wasn't he? Even with the scars on his face, he was told that he was pleasing to the eye.
Even if yesterday was just him jumping the gun, today could be different.
He couldn't be sure just yet though. He refused to humiliate himself like yesterday, so he would wait until Kim Dokja gave him a clear sign that he was up for it too. Not just vaguely suggestive comments, but something more concrete.
During their short interactions, Yoo Joonghyuk had figured out the man a little. Kim Dokja was very guarded, the alcohol should help with that. He didn't think Kim Dokja would be the kind to drink a lot, people with his personality didn't do that.
Kim Dokja was clearly an introvert. Used to making himself as small as possible, he had made no extra motions throughout. When he was talking to someone on the phone, his hands were tucked close to his body.
Even now, when he picked up the glass from the bar counter, his hand had returned close to his body the second he accomplished the movement. Kim Dokja examined the cold, transparent drink, watching the slices of lime in it with mild interest. His eyebrows were raised and his lips pursed, but again, his curiosity didn't reach his eyes.
Kim Dokja pretended a lot, Yoo Joonghyuk concluded. He had probably been doing it for a long while now, to be so good at it.
Yoo Joonghyuk had seen a similar tired look on plenty of people who moved through life under severe pressure. A dead sort of look in dimmed eyes, a lack of interest in anything.
. . .He would remain cautious regardless. It never hurt to be careful.
"By the way, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi," Kim Dokja said, twisting his glass a little and the lime slice that was stuck to the walls of the glass fell off and to the bottom of the glass.
"You are paying for this, right?"
"Yes," Yoo Joonghyuk nodded. "I was the one who asked you to join me tonight."
"Oh, thank you then," Kim Dokja grinned.
"Because this is really not worth it," he dropped his voice to a whisper.
Yoo Joonghyuk blinked.
"What do you mean?" he said, a little defensive. He quite liked that cocktail.
Kim Dokja's smile turned into something a bit more genuine.
"Do you like this, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi?"
"I was asking your opinion," Yoo Joonghyuk said. He wasn't giving Kim Dokja any answers if Kim Dokja wasn't going to answer him.
"Well," Kim Dokja said slowly, taking a sip from his glass. "It's just sparkling water, a bit of lime, salt and soju."
"Oh, and that mint leaf," he lowered his glass a little so that Yoo Joonghyuk could see the singular mint leaf floating on the clear drink.
Yoo Joonghyuk thought it was stupid, to defend a dumb cocktail, but he was doing it anyway.
"It's vodka," he said. "Not soju."
"Ah," Kim Dokja said, slightly smug. "Both are distilled alcohol in the end. Only Vodka's a little stronger. Though I don't think this one's particularly got a very high alcohol content."
He was not wrong.
Yoo Joonghyuk hadn't ordered anything with a high alcohol content and went for the lighter cocktails for a reason. He didn't want either of them to get too drunk. He wasn't sure about Kim Dokja's alcohol tolerance, but Yoo Joonghyuk wouldn't get knocked out by just this.
"That aside, you didn't have to do this, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi," Kim Dokja continued. "Apology accepted. Though I don't really know why you were bothered by it and saw it as a reason to apologize."
Yoo Joonghyuk had to find an excuse again.
"I assumed that you were someone sent to cause me trouble," he said dryly. "You said you wanted to unwind after a long day, I must have disturbed you."
"I see," Kim Dokja nodded understandingly. "Please don't let it bother you. Rather than disturb, you distracted me last night."
"It's a good thing," he said quickly. "I wasn't exactly having the time of my life yesterday. You took my mind off things. I guess I should thank you for it."
Kim Dokja stopped talking and Yoo Joonghyuk didn't know how to get him to start talking again. Maybe people did have a point when they said he could do better when it came to communicating.
"How did you find the...exhibition's last day?" Yoo Joonghyuk said and Kim Dokja looked up from his drink that he was staring into.
"It was alright," Kim Dokja said. "Oh, and I was there for your talk. It was quite nice."
"You were?"
Kim Dokja nodded.
Yoo Joonghyuk cast around his mind for what would be an appropriate response that would keep the conversation going. He had gotten tons of praise for his speech that day, but he hadn't responded to any of them. He had found no need to, especially since he hadn't written the speech at all. He had simply memorised the thing on his drive to the venue and blurted out the words.
And 'quite nice' was such a lacklustre praise, that too.
"Is that all?" Yoo Joonghyuk asked. "Only quite nice?"
"It was very inspiring," Kim Dokja said.
"And what did it inspire you to do?" Yoo Joonghyuk narrowed his eyes a little.
"To go to bed."
A rather disgraceful sound left him and Yoo Joonghyuk turned his face away immediately.
He hadn't meant to laugh. And especially not like that, not like a choked wheeze.
Regaining his composure, he faced Kim Dokja again and for the first time, he saw something different in the other man's expression.
Though Kim Dokja was maintaining an emotionless face, his eyes were twinkling, bemused and without his eyelids drooping over his eyes anymore. . .Oh, he had beautiful eyes.
"Any," Yoo Joonghyuk cleared his throat. "Any suggestions?"
"I wouldn't know," Kim Dokja shrugged. "Public speaking was never my strong suit."
"Tell me anyway," said Yoo Joonghyuk. "A listener's opinion."
"You were impressive," Kim Dokja said a few seconds later. "Very informative. . .A bit too informative. . .Well, it's not exactly a criticism, but you don't use any jokes in your speech, do you?"
"Why should I?"
Kim Dokja blinked.
"You don't have to," he said. "But I've heard people do it. It's to draw attention...Though you might not need it after all. People pay attention to you regardless."
"And yet you wanted to go to sleep," Yoo Joonghyuk said.
"Ah, but I was paying attention to you," Kim Dokja smirked. ". . .You maintained eye contact with the audience throughout. That was impressive, truly. You didn't refer to any notes or the slides."
"I have a good memory," Yoo Joonghyuk said. He was not going to tell Kim Dokja that the only reason he had swept through the crowd was in hopes of spotting Kim Dokja in the audience. But he wouldn't have anyway. The glare from the projector and the lights on the stage made it hard for him to see the audience clearly and there were over a hundred people in the room, Kim Dokja would have blended in easily.
"Which part did you start dozing off at?" Yoo Joonghyuk asked.
"Hmm...the one with the stats," Kim Dokja answered him. "It's subjective though. It held no meaning to me, but someone else might have found it interesting."
"It was a talk aimed at laymen," Yoo Joonghyuk told him. "Your opinion is insightful."
"You give me too much credit."
Something had closed off in Kim Dokja again. . .Seriously? Did Yoo Joonghyuk have to keep embarrassing himself to have an honest, proper conversation with this man?
Silence stretched between them and if it went on like this, Kim Dokja would leave after he finished his drink.
This was ridiculous. This was so ridiculous. How did he not know how to talk to people? It was others who usually came up to him and got things moving, but now that he had to put in the effort, he was fumbling.
"Did you have to travel far to get here?" Yoo Joonghyuk said. He could now offer to get a taxi, that should work.
"Here as in the bar?" Kim Dokja said. Yoo Joonghyuk nodded.
"Oh, no," said Kim Dokja. "My hotel's more or less directly behind this. I'll probably find an alleyway that'll get me to my hotel in two minutes."
Darn it.
"You are not from here?" Yoo Joonghyuk braved on.
Kim Dokja shook his head. "No, I was just here for the exhibition."
Why did he keep calling it an exhibition?
"It wasn't an exhibition," Yoo Joonghyuk said. Even though he wanted to make a good impression on Kim Dokja, him calling it an exhibition and greatly undermining the whole event just rubbed him the wrong way.
"You were greatly missing out on a lot if you thought of it as an exhibition."
"I got what I wanted anyway," Kim Dokja said dismissively.
"What did you want?" Yoo Joonghyuk asked.
"An excuse to leave the city for a bit"
Really? Is that it?
Yoo Joonghyuk's pride had taken a series of hard hits with that statement alone. There was a hall packed that afternoon with people who had just been there to listen to the talk delivered by the CEO of N'Gai Enterprises. And for Kim Dokja, all of it was just an excuse to leave home?
No wonder he called it an exhibition. It might as well have been a little vacation for him.
"Why?" Yoo Joonghyuk said, keeping all his grievances in check.
"Didn't want to stay around," Kim Dokja gave a short answer.
And the conversation stopped there.
Was Yoo Joonghyuk, perhaps, bad at flirting? Or it could be Kim Dokja, he didn't know if he was interested in men, or anyone for that fact.
Yoo Joonghyuk's expectations were dropping rapidly. This was a hopeless endeavour. It may end soon.
When Kim Dokja fished his phone out of his pocket and turned it on, Yoo Joonghyuk gave up. They weren't getting anywhere.
Kim Dokja checked the time and inhaled deeply.
He was probably going to say something along the lines of having something set up for tomorrow so he'd have to turn it in or something. Anyway, it was going to be a goodbye.
Kim Dokja had a very generic wallpaper. The dark, default one, the time stood out in a bright white.
11: 06
Kim Dokja had a few unread texts that he didn't check, probably to be polite. And he turned his phone off again.
Whoever it was, was sure eager to talk to Kim Dokja even at this late hour. Kim Dokja's phone screen lit up to show that he had another unread text.
Kim Dokja slipped the phone back into his pocket, ignoring the texts.
Yoo Joonghyuk felt this whole thing would have been better if he had just outright asked Kim Dokja for a date, instead of giving an excuse. He had told him that he was going to apologize, of course, Kim Dokja was expecting just that and not whatever Yoo Joonghyuk had in mind.
It made sense, that's how any normal person would have thought. Yoo Joonghyuk hadn't interacted with normal people in a while, people always had different expectations of everything he did.
He really ought to interact with normal people more often. Or at least learn how to do that. He did not want to go through such a mortifying experience ever again.
Kim Dokja placed his nearly empty glass down on the counter. How was he still on his first drink? He was being cautious too.
"Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi, I'm sorry," Kim Dokja spoke and Yoo Joonghyuk got himself ready to leave the bar. He was going to go to his hotel room, take a cold shower and get into bed.
"About yesterday, I didn't realise that it must have been alarming to you."
What?
Kim Dokja chuckled awkwardly.
"But I'm not one though," Kim Dokja said sheepishly.
Yoo Joonghyuk thought maybe the 'explain like he was five' thing was more effective than he'd originally felt.
He was a little lost and making it simpler would save him a lot of mental power.
"I'm just another run-of-the-mill employee of a little company," Kim Dokja was saying as Yoo Joonghyuk tried to make sense of things. "I had no ulterior motives and I really do have a friend with your name."
. . .Oh, that's what he was talking about.
"I'm really not the kind to be put on an undercover mission."
Every time Kim Dokja spoke he took him off guard. The man kept acting a certain way and right as he drew to the conclusion of the scene, he'd break all of Yoo Joonghyuk's expectations with a curve ball.
"You could if you wanted to," Yoo Joonghyuk said. "You're. . .eye catching."
"That's a very flattering way to put it" Kim Dokja smirked wryly. "But unfortunately for all of us, my life isn't that thrilling. The most exciting thing in my life would probably be the neighbourhood stray cat giving birth."
"Oh, I have to update the order now," Kim Dokja said. "Meeting you comes out on top, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi."
Mixed signals. Was it a sign? Or was he just being polite?
"Did your neighbourhood stray cat give birth?" Yoo Joonghyuk said.
Kim Dokja blinked.
That confirmed it, Yoo Joonghyuk was pretty bad at flirting.
"Yes, three years ago," Kim Dokja said. "Nothing much goes on in my neighbourhood anyway. An ever-busy city, not the best place for whimsical adventures."
"You're from the inner city?"
Kim Dokja nodded.
Kim Dokja didn't ask him where he lived. He wasn't as curious as Yoo Joonghyuk, nor did he care. It was a little upsetting.
"Care for another?" Yoo Joonghyuk nodded at Kim Dokja's empty glass on the counter. "It's on me again. As long as you have the time."
Kim Dokja thought about it for a few seconds.
"Alright," he agreed.
Yoo Joonghyuk wasn't sure if he should rejoice that he had managed to get Kim Dokja to stay a little longer. But he supposed he would have to leave a good impression on him.
"Do you like cats, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi?"
"I'm...not sure," Yoo Joonghyuk said honestly. He had no opinion about cats.
"Do you like cats?" he asked.
"I'm not sure either," Kim Dokja said. "I've never thought about it...I guess you could say I do. It's more of a 'I don't mind' rather than 'like', you know what I mean?"
Yoo Joonghyuk nodded.
And that's as far as Kim Dokja wanted to know about him.
Why did he still have his hopes up? Seriously? This was such a stupid thing to do, what a waste of time.
And yet, Yoo Joonghyuk put in the effort.
"What made you want to leave the city?" he asked.
Was he being a bit too intrusive? He didn't know what else he could talk about. No one really asked about favourite colours and stuff, did they?
"Things were happening," Kim Dokja spoke. "I decided I needed a break."
"A work convention is hardly a break," Yoo Joonghyuk said. "Maybe a staycation would be better."
"Where do you suggest?"
"The countryside," Yoo Joonghyuk said even though he'd never tried going to the countryside for holidays. "Or the sea," he amended.
"That sounds nice."
"You don't seem to like it very much," Yoo Joonghyuk noticed. "What would you prefer to do then?"
"I truly haven't got a clue," Kim Dokja said airily.
"It's a different one," Kim Dokja said when they got their drinks.
"You seem to like cocktails," Kim Dokja said as he examined the light lavender liquid in the coupe glass.
"You said you don't prefer drinking outside. I'm trying to make it a good experience for you," Yoo Joonghyuk told him. "Tell me if it suits your taste."
Kim Dokja, a little perplexed, wrapped his fingers around the stem and picked the glass up.
"You don't have to, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi," he said. "I am fine with anything."
"I prefer cocktails," Yoo Joonghyuk said stiffly. He was a little partial to wine rather than hard liquor, but Kim Dokja didn't have to know. Cocktails were the perfect way to get someone drunk without letting them know that he was trying to get them drunk.
No, Yoo Joonghyuk wasn't planning on dragging an intoxicated Kim Dokja into a hotel room. He was just trying to make it easier for him to have a conversation with that wall of a man.
And maybe he was looking forward to getting a little tipsy too. It would probably help him loosen up and carry the conversation better since Kim Dokja clearly wasn't going to do it.
"It is weird that I like cocktails?"
"No and yes," said Kim Dokja.
What was that supposed to mean?
Kim Dokja chuckled at Yoo Joonghyuk's frown then gave his drink a taste.
"...It's not bad," he passed his verdict. "I have no issues with whatever you like, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi. It's just weird for me, because you look very similar to my friend and his go-to cocktail is somaek."
Right, this friend of his that he kept mentioning.
"I've been friends with him for around twelve years. It's just a strange visual for me."
There was a fondness in Kim Dokja's voice that matched the expression in his eyes for once.
"Is this person your...significant other?" Yoo Joonghyuk asked. He did not want to be hitting on a taken man. That would explain why Kim Dokja was unresponsive all this while. Lady luck wasn't on his side when it came to Kim Dokja, was it?
"Oh, no. No," Kim Dokja said quickly. "He's just a friend. . .Just a friend."
The relief Yoo Joonghyuk had felt vanished quickly. He did not like the tone Kim Dokja was using.
"Are you in a relationship currently?" he pressed.
"Nope," Kim Dokja shook his head. "I broke up with my girlfriend a bit over two weeks ago."
". . .That must be rough," Yoo Joonghyuk said, awkward. "I can understand why you wanted a break."
"Not really," Kim Dokja laughed. "It's—It's a different reason."
"I'm all ears, if you don't mind."
"It's a boring story," Kim Dokja waved it away.
"I don't think anything from you would be boring," Yoo Joonghyuk was really trying hard. Please, notice. How the hell did he get reduced into this pathetic mess?
Kim Dokja met his gaze. He thought about it for a long time. So long that Yoo Joonghyuk, who was certain that the topic was going to be left untouched, was startled when he started talking.
"My best friend proposed to his girlfriend."
What do people say in this situation? Congratulations?
"This wouldn't happen to be the friend you were mentioning earlier, would it?" Yoo Joonghyuk said.
Kim Dokja grinned. "You caught me. The very same."
"Good for him," said Yoo Joonghyuk.
"Good for him, indeed," Kim Dokja muttered. He heaved out a sigh that wracked his whole body.
"I didn't want to be there while it happened so I left," Kim Dokja said.
"You don't support their decision to get married?"
"Nope," Kim Dokja dragged his finger up and down the stem of his glass.
Anything was better than that awkward silence again, so Yoo Joonghyuk opened his mouth.
"Is this girlfriend of his your sister?" Yoo Joonghyuk voiced the biggest reason why he would be against someone's relationship.
Kim Dokja shook his head with a chuckle.
"I'm Dokja. In all ways," he said. "Only child, reader, all of it—Do you have siblings, Yoo Joonghyuk-ssi?"
"No," Yoo Joonghyuk said. ". . .I have cousins."
"I do too, but I'm not on good terms with them," Kim Dokja said.
"Same here," Yoo Joonghyuk felt like sighing the second he thought about his relatives.
"Huh, that's interesting," Kim Dokja muttered.
"We are oddly similar," Yoo Joonghyuk nodded.
That made Kim Dokja laugh for someone.
"You think so?" he said, a tad incredulous.
"You don't?"
"Not at all," said Kim Dokja.
Why? They were a bit similar.
"You focus on all the wrong things, Kim Dokja-ssi," Yoo Joonghyuk said.
Kim Dokja blinked.
"Woah," he breathed. "It's so strange to hear you call me that."
"Is it because of your friend?" Yoo Joonghyuk guessed it this time. It still ticked him off though.
Kim Dokja nodded excitedly. "He's never once called me that, and you two look very similar. Even your hair's similar."
Yoo Joonghyuk didn't like this at all. Who the hell was this other Yoo Joonghyuk guy?
"Do you not have any other friends?" Yoo Joonghyuk said, his bitterness seeping into his words.
Kim Dokja seemed to notice it but chose to ignore that.
"I do," he said simply. "Surprising, isn't it?"
"No, not really," Yoo Joonghyuk shook his head slightly.
". . .Is that so?"
"Yes."
Kim Dokja became closed off after that again. Come on! This was so fucking stupid.
Even gin hadn't done the trick.
Maybe cocktails were a bad idea, it took too long. There was a reason why soju was a hit.
"Kim Dokja-ssi—"
"Ah, please speak comfortably," said Kim Dokja. "You're older than me, after all."
Was he calling him old?
"You can do the same," Yoo Joonghyuk nodded anyway.
"I'll do that then, Joonghyuk-ssi. I'm sorry for interrupting, but what were you trying to say again?"
"I wanted to ask you if you wanted to go elsewhere," Yoo Joonghyuk said. He was a confident man, he was a competent man, he could do this.
"Elsewhere?"
"Yes."
"As in?" Kim Dokja prompted.
"Somewhere more...relaxing, perhaps," Yoo Joonghyuk said.
"Relaxing?" Kim Dokja muttered to himself. ". . .I think I know a place. I saw it on my way here. I can't vouch for the quality though, I've never tried it."
Oh!
Was that all it took?
"Guess we'll see it when we get there. Please, lead the way," Yoo Joonghyuk said, keeping his victory smirk hidden behind his glass.