Chapter 3: Moscow Mule

“Sehun”

“Sehun”

“Oh Sehun”

“Oh Sehuuuuuuun”

Jongdae pokes Sehun’s cheeks again. He’s been trying to get his attention for the past five minutes, not that Jongade’s a stranger to his friend’s ignorance. But he needs te, and if there’s anyone there who can reel in his overacting brain, it’s Sehun.

Working for startup visual design group, you’re bound to meet with artists of every walk of life with many various and sometimes kooky personalities. At first Jongdae was overwhelmed with the trying to work with such colorful people, but soon learned that being eccentric came with the territory. Take for example, Sunny, the enigmatic and flambouyant illustrator whose penchant for anything gold translated not only into her clothes, but also into her hair, her portfolio, and sometimes her contacts. She’s in a serious, monogamous relationship with gold, any other other color seems to disrupt the equilibrium she has created within herself.

You can also take a look at Jonghyun, the epitome of the tortured artist with his black shirt, black denim pants, and black combat boots, to pair with his broody black-rimmed glasses so that when he smokes he looks more contemplative rather than stressed. Then take a look at his best friend/ buddy/soul mate/it’s complicated Kibum, the very example of haughty couture wearing, museum hopping, sandal waering yuppy whose main concern in life is finding the perfect balance of love, work, and zen.

Then there’s Oh Sehun. He wears white button ups every day and likes to keep to his own. He doesn’t have the angst of Jonghyun, the eccentricity of Sunny, nor the pretense of Kibum. Rather, Oh Sehun is sorts of boring—a rare sight in the visual arts community. He looks more like he types financial reports for some corporate boss in the business district of Gangnam. Not here, in some frumpy shared office space with beanbags, communal tables and free flowing coffee. Oh Sehun stuck like a sore thumb and it always perplexed Jongdae how he could look so fantastically dull.

But beyond looking like a misplaced corporate worker, Oh Sehun is an introverted, anti-social man who does his job and stays out of everyone’s business. He should have been the last one on Jongdae’s radar, but Jongdae likes a challenges, and Sehun was his biggest one.

 Fortunately, after much prodding, he found that Sehun is actually not boring. Under his veneer of dull brown khakis and crisp white, was a mind that soared through a different sky. Sehun is quick-witted, vulgar, and so disillusioned that it makes Jongdae want to keep him as a pet just so that he can hear his next witty quip.

Soon enough, Jongdae was hanging out with Sehun on a daily basis, causing much confusion in the office. But they didn’t care much after, because Jongdae made Sehun seem more approachable, which caused the others to prod him as well, much to Sehun’s ire. But Sehun still considers Jongdae his closest friend, though he would never admit this.

Sehun, finally, gives Jongdae a minute of his time, looking at him with a testy glare, one that speaks of impatience and irritation.

“Hey, I’m being a nice person here. If you don’t want to know my special surprise for you, then you’re better off sulking at home while I get a free meal at Verve,” Jongdae says heaving himself up and heading back to the worktable.

Another thing about Sehun is that he is a self-proclaimed “food enthusiast.” His second love was food, and his Instagram food was a testament to this. Jongdae once called him a foodie, and Sehun almost stabbed him with a pen. The guy outright rejected any notion that he was a foodie, called them “pretentious wannabees, who’s only goal in life is to look cooler than everyone else.”

And Sehun’s latest obsession as of late was of a little restaurant by the name of Verve.

Sehun’s eyes snap at Jongdae, his hand reaching out as he almost stumbles out of his beanbag to grab Jongdae’s leg.

“What!?”

Jongdae flashes a triumphant smirk as he looks back at Sehun’s sprawled figure. He’s been attempting to get into Verve for months now, the waitlist apparently booked until next month.

Being roommate of the Head Chef gave you special privileges.

The free dinner was a gift from Minseok after the chaotic dinner that caused Jongdae to pass out during the journey home, his roommate needing to carry him all the way back on his back. Minseok said he could reserve him a table for two for a date he could woo, but chose to bring Sehun, he’s been sulking about this for months.

“Just free a night, I have a table for two reserved for us at the Verve.”

Sehun still looks shell shocked, “But how?”

“Remember my roommate I was talking about, the chef. Turns out he runs the place.”

Sehun bolts up immediately, his eyes turning manic as Jongdae continues to talk. He grabs both sides of Jongdae and gives him a good look over.

“You’re telling me that you’ve been roommates with Kim Minseok for months and you didn’t know?”

Jongdae flinches at the intensity of Sehun’s words. He’s not used to this. The Sehun he knows talks like he’s detached to every single topic on earth. Sehun was walking indifference, he never thought he his friend could get this riled up over one person.

“You know Minseok?”

Sehun casts Jongdae an incredulous glare before he trudges to his bag grabbing a magazine from inside and scouring rather violently through the pages. After almost tearing a page, he stops and unfurls the magazine out, showing Jongdae the article.

Low and behold there stands Minseok ever the picture of elegance in a tweed suit in the middle of the Verve kitchen, the title reads “Renaissance: The Rise of Kim Minseok”

“Woah, I never thought he was a big thing.”

“He’s not just a big thing, he’s the thing,” Sehun remarks dryly his eyes dismissing Jongdae with a tentative roll, “I can’t believe you’ve been living with the Kim Minseok all this time and you didn’t know. You’re such an idiot.”

“This idiot might just ask someone else to dinner if you don’t stop.”

Sehun blanches so quickly that Jongdae didn’t catch how Sehun’s scowl turned to a pout. It’s almost cute, but Sehun has more vile in him than a king cobra so it ruins some of the charm.

“I’m sorry, just please take me there, please.”

“Fine.”

Sehun releases a groan and gives Jongdae a very, very rare smile. Something Jongdae finds disturbing.

“Do you think I could meet him?” Sehun asks bashfully.

Jongdae never thought that a dinner at Minseok’s restaurant would cause an acrobatics of cute from his grimacing officemate. He doesn’t know if he should be unnerved or astonished.

“Yes, sure.”

Jongdae arrives at the apartment that afternoon to the very rare sight of Minseok sitting idly on the couch.

“Wow, you’re home early.”

Minseok takes his eyes off the TV to greet Jongdae, “Yeah, the staff barred me from service today, reckoned I needed some rest.”

“Thank god for them.”

Minseok snickers as Jongdae unloads his things before plopping himself on the couch.

“When can I take you up on that free dinner, my officemate is ready to claw someone’s eyes out to get a table.”

Minseok hums, “I think we can free up a table for two on Friday? That’s the best I can do at such short notice.”

Jongdae laughs at the idea of Sehun revering every inch of the restaurant, “I think if you told him to eat by the dumpster he’d still be stoked. He’s kind of a fan.” Jongdae says raising his eyebrows at him.

Minseok catches his gaze and immediately notices on Jongdae’s taunting tone, “Oh, I’ll go call Yixing to do it reserve the tables now” he says trying to avoid the conversation that is about to come.

Jongdae’s faster though, grabbing the collar of Minseok’s shirt and dragging him back to the couch, “No you don’t Renaissance boy!”

Minseok grumbles as he sinks back into the couch, face strewn in mild agitation. Jongdae grabs the magazine he nicked from Sehun’s bag when he wasn’t looking, and goes straight to Minseok’s feature.

Jongdae’s read the feature on his roommate closely over his commute back home. Absorbing each line with intent.

He clears his throat, shooting straight for his favorite lines in the article, “Kim Minseok orchestrates his kitchen like a conductor of a symphony orchestra. In his kitchen the pans clang with a certain rhythm and a tune carries through the rarified air. His hands fly in a trance, in this acute dance of words and whispers, as the windpipes howl and the drumming of feet against the linoleum floor clack in humble compliance. The chorus sings, deep and direct as they start playing their instruments. In his performance resounds the arias of the south of France, the stacattos of countryside of Italy and the humble remorse of the arirangs of the Korean countryside. A symphony in full flight.”

Jongdae narrates with so much pride that it causes Minseok to blush in embarrassment.

“I asked Minseok if he knew how graceful he looked when he led his squad, ‘I don’t know, honestly, I fall into it. I get into a trance and I can’t get out it until the last ticket.’”

Minseok groans at this, “Hey, sto—”

Jongdae merely silences him with a finger to his mouth, “Kim Minseok has a special relationship with his ingredients, ‘Each ingredient is a cog in a clock, it has to fit perfectly to make a cohesive dish. You don’t just grab a piece of metal and hack at it, you have to make sure each part fits perfectly against each other. That’s why I take time making sure that each ingredient is used to it’s potential.’

It seems too philosophical, the way he talks of tomatoes and raw chicken, but his nebular understanding translates, and his team can’t hold back praise of the genius behind it.

‘He talks like that because he understands flavors more than most people. It’s not him trying to be a pretentious , that’s just how he respects food’ Do Kyungsoo, his sous chef says, ‘Minseok is all about respect, for food, for people, for his staff, and for his guests. He treats everyone with the same respect, and that’s why he’s had so much success.’”

Jongdae stops reading and looks at Minseok’s atrociously crimson face, then skips to his favorite part, “Kim Minseok is the top student in the honor’s class. While others perform with competence, he does with mastery. A modern virtuoso in a city of pretenders. We can all stand to learn from the young chef. Mature beyond his years, Kim Minseok understand that food talks and ego doesn’t. He has rocketed to fame not for his words but by his food, and if this him just starting out, then it seems the rebirth of the restaurant scene is only beginning and we can hope that Kim Minseok will ride us through a very long reign.”

Minseok isn’t even looking at Jongdae anymore, only at his intertwined fingers that have been fumbling incessantly during the other’s lengthy narration.

“Now, tell me renaissance boy, how many features have you had already.”

Minseok huffs, still looking at his intertwined fingers.

“Five,” he says in a small voice, eyes not reaching Jongdae’s.

“I assume that you have all of these in your room, right? They sent you one right?”

Minseok nods.

Jongdae rises from the couch and heads for Minseok’s room. The chef realizing this, gets up as well and follows Jongdae into his room.

“Hey what are you doing?”

“looking for the magazines.”

“Why?”

Jongdae rummages through Minseok’s desk until he finds a cluster of laminated, glossy paper stacked neatly in one corner of Minseok’s shelf. He grabs each of them, all of which have Minseok’s face smiling on the cover, then marches out of the room.

“Hey what are you doing with those.” Minseok blanches as he watches Jongdae sweep through the apartment like an untroubled storm.

“I’m framing these.”

Minseok gives Jongdae a cursory glance, his head trying to grasp what Jongdae had just said to him.

“What?”

“I’m framing all your articles. I’m hanging them all over the apartment.”

“Why?”

Jongdae smiles, “Cause we need to be reminded ourselves that you’re a pretty great chef.”

Minseok just looks at Jongdae confused, “This doesn’t make sense.”

“Oh, but it does. Because when we do something great, we celebrate it, not hide it under a pile of books. I’m proud of you, you should be proud of yourself too.”

Minseok doesn’t talk, just looks at Jongdae as he gathers everything in one his own reusable grocery bags and lugging them to the door.

Friday comes around and Oh Sehun has been acting like a teenager on his first date.

“Do you think what I’m wearing is ok?”

“Are you sure it’s okay, I can change.”

“Do you think he’ll like me?”

“Should I bring him flowers?”

“Yeah, flowers sound weird. Do you need any furniture at home?”

“Should I wear makeup?”

“Do you think he’ll sign my magazine.”

“Jongdae my magazine’s missing.”

“Did you get my magazine?”

“JONGDAE!”

If you asked Jongdae if Sehun was annoying last week, he would have said no. But today, today is a different ball game. One he was tempted stop watching.

“Shut up!” Jongdae snaps, “He doesn’t care about anything. You can give him a piece of toast you ate last week and he wouldn’t care. And for the fiftieth time today, he doesn’t mind meeting you. Just don’t act like you’re meeting god for the first time and you’re okay.”

Minseok told them to come before dinner service so that Sehun could meet Minseok before he was covered in sweat and food stains. Jongdae agreed and Sehun almost fainted. They arrive a good two hours before service, greeted once again by a smiling Yixing.

“Hey, roommate.” The maître d smiles, letting them into the restaurant, “And this is?”

Jongdae looks over at Sehun, who looks like he’s suffering through a severe case of constipation, face scrunched into a mix of disbelief and anxiety.

“This is Oh Sehun, he’s a big fan of Minseok,” Jongdae explains. Yixing chuckles good heartedly as he gives them another tour of the dining room, Sehun staring dumbstruck.

“You know, you had a very lasting impression on the guys,” Yixing says to Jongdae as Sehun ogles at the mural on the wall.

Jongdae smiles, “How so?”

“They’ve never seen Minseok that attentive to someone before.”

Jongdae smirks, his chest filling up with an unknown warmth—a quiet sense of pride—of this fact.

“Did Minseok mention that I framed all his articles on our wall,” Jongdae says.

“No, he hasn’t,” Yixing says his tone probing, “What happened?”

“Well, I just found out that Kim Minseok is a big shot chef and is apparently, ‘A modern virtuoso in a city of pretenders,’” Jongdae says, air quoting the last part, “And found that he just hid all his features in a pile in his room.”

Jongdae moves to sit by the couch, seeing as how Sehun is still awestruck that he’s inside Verve and not outside yearning to get in.

“Normally, I’d leave it be. Say that he just doesn’t want to brag about his accomplishments, but I felt compelled to do it.”

Yixing looks at Jongdae with a smirk between his dimples, eyes knowing as Jongdae explained what happened.

“Can’t wait to tell the others.”

It strikes Jongdae as odd, and somewhat foreboding, the way Yixing says it, like he knows something Jongdae doesn’t. Before he can try to probe further, Sehun comes up to them with a smile that sends tingles down Jongdae’s spine. The man was made to grimace, smiling made him look unpalatable.

“So, you ready to meet the team?” Yixing asks Sehun. The graphic artist nearly pales at the idea, his eyes dilating a tad too much and his mouth hanging open. He resembles The Scream.

Jongdae smacks Sehun’s shoulder, effectively snapping the tall man out of his trance like state.

“Don’t drool when we get in.”

Sehun nods silently as he follows the two into the kitchen.

It’s still hot inside, the sound of knives hitting chopping boards, pans banging on the metal counters, and ladles clacking against the metal pots fill the air, and the sound of a smooth RnB track bounces of the walls. 

“Guys, roommate’s back!”

The team stop what they’re doing all of them shooting Jongade warm smiles. Minseok and Kyungsoo are once again not present, probably discussing the menu at Minseok’s office, but Baekhyun starts ambling his way towards the pair, his smile large and inviting as he hugs Jongdae.

“Nice seeing you again, and so soon,” he says, this seems surprising to Jongdae, standing stock still for a few moments before returning the hug. Chanyeol notices this and chuckles, “He’s very touchy feely, he does that to everyone.”

Baekhyun just hums against his Jongdae’s neck, that’s when he sees Sehun, “Jongdae, why is your friend gawking at us.”

Jongdae disentangles himself from Baekhyun and gives him an apologetic smile, “This is Sehun, he’s a really big fan and he’s kind of star struck right now.”

Baekhyun giggles at him, then proceeds to pinch Sehun’s cheek, “You’re cute.”

Sehun blushes.

Jongdae shakes his head in embarrassment.

“Hey, you guys should stick after service, we’re planning to go to a bar after,” Chanyeol booms from where he’s chopping carrots.

“Even Minseok?” Jongdae asks in disbelief.

“Yeah. He hates going to bars, but he makes an exception for us, even though he almost always ends up with three couples making out.”

“Why doesn’t he date?”

From behind Jongdae, Yixing sports a smirk that only Junmyeon notices, “Well, I don’t know if you’ve met Minseok, but he prefers being alone more than anything else, and if he’s not alone he’s here.”

Jongdae frowns at this. He’s never noticed this, having been preoccupied with other things most of the time. Life before Bolognese was him hooking up with anything that moved or going with friends. Before really befriending him, he never really paid much attention to Minseok outside him coming home from work. But now that he thinks about it, he’s only ever seen Minseok in the living room or kitchen, and when he went out it was to shop for groceries. Jongdae’s been too wrapped up in hooking up that he’s failed to see this lonely man whose only ever been nice to him.

Guilt builds up in him as he realizes how much of a he’s been without even meaning to be. He’s never given Minseok the light of day, and when he does interact with him it was to ask for a favor.

“I’m such a roommate,” Jongdae replies.

Jonging, who’s been silent for most of the conversation takes a glance up at Jongdae and notes the genuine sadness and guilt seeping from the other.

“Don’t feel bad, the boss likes to be alone, he likes having time to himself,” Jongin says with a gentle smile. His voice is sweet and decadent, like the creamiest cheesecake. It doesn’t sound soft, but rather mellow and relaxed, like a dulcet tune on balmy Sunday afternoon.

“Minseok admits that he’s very introverted, he doesn’t like big crowds or talking too much. What you might think is a lonely Saturday afternoon watching movies to him is a calming date with himself. It might seem like he’s bored, but really he’s quite content.”

Jongdae stares at the younger chef, his eyes warm and soft against the harsh fluorescent light. He doesn’t know what to say, or how to react so Jongin talks for him, “I know cause me and Kyungsoo are like that too.”

Jongdae’s about to rebut, but the door to the office opens and Minseok marches out with Kyungsoo by his side. He looks up at the quiet kitchen and sees Jongdae. He looks over and notices Jongdae’s defeated expression, he murmurs something to Kyungsoo, then proceeds to walk towards his roommate.

“Hey,” he says, “Why’d you look so down, tough day at the office?”

Jongdae steels himself to smile despite the guilt building beneath his gut, “Yeah, something like that,” he says before gesturing behind him, “This is Sehun by the way.”

He gestures behind him only to be met with a gaping Sehun, his fists clenched tightly at his sides, his body visibly shaking with a mix of excitement and anxiety.

He then bows a full 90 degrees, shocking Minseok, who flinches back at the sudden outburst of gratitude.

“Thank you so much for your generosity, I am humbled and honored to be standing in your presence. Please take this as a symbol of my gratitude.” Sehun takes out a gift certificate to a high-end cooking store and offers it up to Minseok.

The head chef is visibly confused by the gesture but accepts it anyway, “Oh, I’ve been meaning to buy a new Dutch oven, thanks Sehun,” he says, “As a gesture of my gratitude, you’ll get an exclusive chef’s special.”

Sehun may as well be gargling acid at this point as he attempts, and fails, to produce coherent words.

Minseok just smiles at Sehun, “Do you guys want to have a pick of your meals for today?”

Jongdae feels that it’s time to intervene as Sehun is still indisposed, “Sure, what’s on the menu today?”

Minseok calls for Kyungsoo and gets the piece of paper he’s been tinkering with at the back, “For appetizers we have Sea bass salad or a deconstructed Tom Kha Gai—“”

“A what now?”

“A Tom Kha Gai, it’s a Thai soup made of galangal, kaffir lime leaves and bird’s eyes chili.” Sehun all but shouts from the back, it comes out robotic and somewhat rehearsed, but at least he’s started talking.

“Wow, you sound like you memorized that out of a cookbook.”

“I did.”

“Oh,” Minseok says not knowing how to respond to the Sehun, who’s chosen to just stare intently at the him, “That’s cute, I think.”

Jongdae snickers at the awkward air between the two.

“Anyway, for mains we have a choice of tilapia in coconut cream and mango salad or coffee braised beef shoulder with passion fruit glaze over coconut rice, so take your pick.”

Jongdae ponders over the two choices, “Uh, I think I’ll get that weird soup thing and the beef,” he says after a brief pause. He looks to Sehun, who’s finally able to close his mouth, “Sehun, what are you getting?”

“T-the tom kha gai and the tilapia,” he murmurs.

Minseok smiles, “Well, that’s settled, everyone back to work.”

They start milling about, but Baekhyun stays behind, “Min, we invited Jongdae and Sehun drinking with us after!”

Minseok looks at the two, “Oh, well the more the merrier, I guess.”

Jongdae swears he heard Sehun squeal.

“Sehun, I’ve never seen you look so stupid before.”

They’re at the dining room and Sehun has reverted to his normal sulking self, only now he groans every five minutes recalling how stupid he acted in front of Minseok.

“I didn’t know what came over me, it’s like every intelligible thing in my brain just disappeared.”

“Well right now they’re probably thinking that you’re from the make a wish foundation.”

“That’s offensive.”

“Yeah, to the children.”

Sehun throws his napkin at Jongdae.

“You’re insufferable.”

“At least I didn’t make a fool of myself in front of my idol.”

Sehun scowls at him, “At least I’m not crushing on my roommate.”

Jongdae scrunches his eyebrows together, “I’m not.”

Sehun gives him a look, it’s probing and somewhat invasive, like Yixing.

“Oh, it’s like that,” Sehun says, eyes quirking at the statement.

“Hey, hey, what is this condescending tone that I hear,” Jongdae says raising his hands, “You don’t do that you mouth gaper.”

Sehun’s eyes pop out, “Shut up.”

Jongdae opens his mouth and stares blankly at Sehun.

Sehun wants to hurl his cutlery at Jongdae, but that would attract too much attention.

“You’re so immature, I hate you.”

Jongdae stops staring to laugh at how childish Sehun’s asking. He hasn’t seen his younger officemate act this flustered and shy throughout their friendship, it’s refreshing.

On cue their dishes arrive and Sehun is too engrossed with how nice the dish looks to glance at friend. Jongdae, on the other hand, digs in, enjoying how the lime cuts through the sweet richness of the coconut milk, and how the spice from the chili adds an edge at the end.

He sees Sehun pick apart the dish, tasting each component with the utmost attention, reveling at how each individual ingredient tastes before eating everything together. He looks blissed out at each bite, his eyes closed as he savored how the flavors mingled in his mouth.

Jongdae and Sehun are waiting outside Verve while the rest change to normal clothes. The night is cold and Jongdae is trying to make Sehun act like a functioning adult in front of the others.

They hear the doors of Verve open as the group of seven march out of the restaurant fully changed. Baekhyun heralds the group to Jongdae and Sehun, the smaller boys face visibly tired, but still b with leftover adrenaline from the service.

“You guys ready?”

The two nod.

“Okay, follow me.”

Jongdae sees the other pile near them; Chanyeol approaches Baekhyun and puts his arm around his boyfriend’s waist as they start walking, Yixing and Junmyeon follow, their hands interlinked matching silver bands glinting in the soft glow of the streetlamps. Minseok, Jongin and Kyungsoo bring up the rear.

Jongdae wants to join Minseok, but he still doesn’t trust Sehun with himself so he turns to where Chanyeol and Baekhyun have gone, Sehun walking idly beside him.

After a while, they reach the bright lights of a convenience store, Baekhyun heading inside.

Jongdae and Sehun stare at it with apprehension, “I thought we were heading for a bar?”

Suddenly Minseok pops up from behind, “We are, just follow Baek,” he says following his chefs into the brightly lit convenience store.

Jongdae obliges, entering the store, Baekhyun and Chanyeol are talking to the cashier, Yixing and Junmyeon standing idly by. The cashier then leaves her post and walks to the back, Baekhyun and the rest following after her. Once they reach the back, the girl reaches for a fridge door, opening it. But rather than frozen chicken and fries, the door presents them a room, a bar.

They pile in, Jongdae and Sehun gaping at where they were.

“It’s like walking into Narnia, but instead of forest spirits you get actual spirits,” Jongdae murmurs to himself.

Minseok snickers, “It’s one of those hidden bars only hipsters know about,” he explains, “Only a handful of people know about this place, mostly food people.”

“So like foodies.”

Jongdae feels Sehun’s scowl from the back of his neck, but he’s surprised Minseok’s scowling as well.

“People in the food industry more or less despise anyone who calls themselves a foodie,” Minseok says, “They’re really cocky and self-entitled, they always think they know more about food than anyone else, it’s a pain, really.”

“Oh,” Jongdae says, “how bad do they get?”

“You should ask Yixing, he’s the one who deals with them,” Minseok says as he leads them to a table where the rest, sans Chanyeol and Baekhyun, were sitting.

“Yixing, Jongdae’s asking how bad foodies get.”

Yixing, who’s usually smiling and the visual of eternal calm suddenly grimaces once Minseok says the f-word.

“Don’t get me started on those vile creatures.” Junymeon is chuckling beside his husband, a calming hand rubbing his back.

“One time this girl just comes up to the desk and goes straight to my face, ‘You know, I’m a foodie,’ in the most condescending tone I’ve ever heard on teenage girl” Yixing says shaking his head, “I wanted to wring her stupid head then and there, sadly I didn’t have a good reason to kick her out, yet.”

“Yet?” Jongdae says,

Yixing smiles, but it doesn’t exude the same warmth Jongdae’s used to, this one seems more sinister, with just the right amount of triumph.

“Well, do you remember what’s written at the bottom of the menu,” Yixing asks.

“No substitutes, anyone who ask for substitutes may be asked to leave the establishment,” Sehun blurts out.

Yixing nods, “She asked if I could make her dish gluten-free, I told her nicely that we don’t substitute anything,” he says, “That’s when she starts telling me that we should start serving gluten-free meals for people like her.” Yixing pauses, his voice starting to get agitated as he tells the story.

“That’s when I told her to go off.”

Eveyone starts laughing at the visibly fuming Yixing, even Sehun starts snickering at the story, that’s when Chanyeol and Baekhyun arrive a waiter following them, the man starts giving them grotesque bronze mugs of drinks in front of them.

Jongdae just looks at Minseok, his roommate getting the hint, “It’s a Moscow Mule, which is whiskey, ginger ale, and lime, but knowing that those two asked for this, they probably asked them to add some other into it.”

Jongdae nods, taking a sip and is surprised at how light it tastes.

“Wow, does this even have alcohol?”

“Yeah, the bartenders are just really good.”

The night has dragged on and Jongdae finds himself with Minseok on the couch. The rest have retreated to the small dance floor, the couples enjoying their time with each other. Chanyeol and Baekhyun even got to drag Sehun to the dancefloor where he was awkwardly swaying with the very drunk couple.

Jongdae looks over at his roommate and sees that he seems content watching the others enjoy themselves. The sight brings back the memories of his conversation with Jongin. But before he can say anything, Minseok looks at him with a slightly confused expression.

“You know you don’t have to hang out with me, go and dance with Sehun.”

Jongdae wants to tell him that he’s wanted to hang out with him alone the entire night, but relents.

“Why would I dance with Sehun?”

Minseok looks at him confused, “Isn’t he your date?”

“No, he’s just my officemate who really wanted to eat at Verve.”

Minseok’s eyes pop out, “Oh, I thought,” he pauses, “no never mind.”

“What, did you think I wanted to sleep with him so I used you as a means to get into his pants.”

Jongdae snickers, but it dies in his throat as he looks at his roommate. He’s not looking at Jongdae and his eyes are looking at the floor.

“Wait, you thought that didn’t you,” Jongdae pauses, “you thought I was using you to get into his pants.”

Minseok gulps, “I didn’t mind, it’s not the first time,” Minseok pauses and covers his mouth, his eyes bulging at the realization.

“, I didn’t mean it like that.”

Jongdae remains silent. His heart is beating hard against his chest as a myriad of emotions flow from each muscle of his body. Guilt, disgust, pain, annoyance, churning violently through his body.

“I didn’t think that you were using me to get into his pants, I just thought that it seemed a great opportunity for you, so I didn’t mind.”

It hurts more, Jongdae thinks, when it comes out of Minseok’s mouth. He can’t really blame him for thinking that. Jongdae’s only over brought guys home, he had no reason to think otherwise.

“I don’t think ill of you, if that’s what you think. I just thought I’d help you out.”

Jongdae shakes his head, “I’m sorry for being a roommate.”

Minseok is shocked, he doesn’t know what to say as he stills after Jogndae sudden apology.

“It’s not your fault for thinking that. I brought Sehun because I wanted to brag about you, how I’m friends with you, how we’re chummy, how we’re super close. I wanted to brag about being your friend not because you’re popular, but because I genuinely am so ing proud of you.”

It’s Minseok’s turn to be speechless.

“Now, I realize I don’t even deserve to be your friend. Not when I only talked to you so to use you for after months of being roommates.”

“Hey, I guess that wasn’t the most ideal way to become friends, and I genuinely thought you were a for a bit, but we’re friends now, so stop worrying about it.”

Noticing that this wasn’t working, Minseok put his arm around Jongdae and tried to shake him out of it.

“Just look at it this way, now you can prove to me how good of a person you are.”

Jongdae scoffs, “Can you stop being so nice, it’s running my sulking.”

Minseok smiles, “I like you better when you aren’t sulking.”

Jongdae raise his head gives Minseok smile of his own, “Thanks for being such a nice person, even if I’m .”

“Someone has to be the morally superior or wouldn’t function.”

Jongdae rolls his eyes, “Whatever, I feel like going home, let’s go. I’ll pay for the cab as part of proving to you that I’m a great person.”

The ride home is peaceful, Minseok eventually falling asleep on the window after just five minutes in transit. Jongdae just smiles as he sleeps, noting how adorable his roommate looks when he sleeps.

Once they arrive he maneuvers a groggy Minseok out of the cab as they climb the stairs to their room. Once they reach their floor they find that in front of their door stands a solitary figure bundled up in a thick coat and a large stroller bag beside him. They move closer, the figure noticing the sound of their footsteps as they come closer.

When the stranger realizes it’s Jongdae and Minseok, he takes off his hood to reveal a boy with a youthful face and large, sparkling doe eyes under a mop of wavy blond hair. He looks like he’s fifteen, if Jongdae’s honest, but the subtle greys around his eyes and the subtle wrinkles across his forehead say otherwise.

But before Jongdae can interrogate the man, he feels Minseok bolt straight for him. He sees the excitement radiate out of him as he engulfs the stranger in a tight hug, sees the radiant smile that seems to be permanently etched on his roommates face as he gathers the other in his arms. Jongdae sees the satisfied smile doe eyes has as he melts into Minseok’s embrace.

Jongdae sees and feels something claw in his gut.

He’s never seen Minseok that excited before, never seen him so content and happy, never seen his smile seem like it was going to split his face in half.

And as they disengage and exchange greetings, Jongdae can’t help when he coughs bitterly on the side.

Minseok doesn’t notice, but the stranger does. For some reason it causes the clawing to intensify.

“Hi, my name’s Luhan,” he smiles. It’s big and lively—youthful. It feels too bright and out of place against the cold night.

And as the dregs of bitterness, or maybe the Moscow Mule roil violently in his gut, Jongdae manages a greeting of his own through gritted teeth.

“Hi, I’m Jongdae, pleased to meet you.”

A/N

Sehun being a drooling mess gives me life.

Jongdae and Minseok being cute and flirty with each other is the best thing ever. Jongdae is yet to fully understand Minseok, but he’s getting there. Then there’s the case of Luhan. Who is he? What is he to Minseok?

I really enjoyed this chapter, I hope you guys enjoyed it as well.

Please share your thoughts on their development, Sehun being a fangirl, and what you guys think Luhan’s going to be in the story.