Take One

“Hey, I’m Donghae.” Donghae reaches over to shake the hand of the man who will be pretending to talk to him for the rest of the day. It’s silly, perhaps, but he’s stupid excited to be a part of a movie, even though he’s in the background. The scene is in a diner, and he and this other guy, a short blond hipster looking type, have to pretend to be having an easy conversation over coffee whilst the main characters share a meet-cute.

“I’m Sungmin.” Sungmin’s handshake is firm and warm, and he smiles brightly. “This is pretty crazy, huh?” He settles back in his seat, the worn leather of the booth creaking slightly against his figure. Donghae grins back at him.

“So, how’d you hear about this?” Donghae asks.

“An ad on the college website. No experienced required and two hundred bucks for the day. Sounded too good to resist. You?”

“They were flyering at the café I work at. Always wanted my fifteen minutes of fame.” Donghae grins again, easy and free. His eyes crinkle slightly and his mouth curves upwards, looking almost sinful in the late afternoon sun. Sungmin fiddles with his empty coffee cup, picking at the lid.

“Do you believe this though? As if two people could meet over coffee and just fall in love.” Sungmin snorts, fidgeting slightly, almost knocking his coffee cup over. Donghae reaches out a hand to steady it, and his fingers just brush over Sungmin’s knuckles.

“Crazy, right?”

Take Two

“So I’m not sure what I want to do, but I want to do something that makes a difference. I know every art student probably says that, but I don’t want to go all commercial and sellout.” Sungmin shrugs.

“You utter hipster. Because making money is so terrible.” Donghae mocks him gently.

“You know what I mean. I don’t want my art to be made into prints for like, Urban Outfitters or something. I want it to mean something.”

“I get you. I kinda wish I had that sort of drive myself. I tried college, you know, but I just, I guess I wasn’t ready for it. Didn’t know what I wanted to do. So I work at my friend’s shop and it’s all right, she goes pretty easy on me and the hours are good, I get plenty of quality time with wathing dramas and that. Yeah, it’s all right I guess.” Donghae shrugs, and his smile seems a little dimmer.

“Hey, you’ll think of something. You know Vincent Van Gogh didn’t start painting ‘til he was twenty seven?” Sungmin says.

“No . Well, maybe you’re sitting opposite the next Van Gogh.” Donghae grins, back to full volume. Sungmin chuckles.

“Maybe someone will take one look at you on set and cast you in their next movie.” Sungmin laughs. “Darling, I must have him, his smile are to die for!” He puts on an affected voice, much higher than his usual one. Donghae cracks up.

“My smile are to die for huh?”

Take Three

“I’m not saying you’re wrong, I’m just saying you just give her a chance.” Donghae says, a furrow in his brow.

“Dude, with the best will in the world, I’m not going to start listening to Hyuna.” Sungmin parries back. Donghae pouts.

“So you’ve never danced to change when it’s on the radio? Never?” Donghae argues back. Sungmin ducks his head.

Donghae brandishes his coffee cup triumphantly in Sungmin’s direction.

“See! I knew it. No-one can resist the power of the Hyuna.”

“I’m admitting nothing.” Sungmin says, eyes on the table.

Donghae sings under his breath. Sungmin aims a kick at Donghae’s ankle. Donghae yelps. They both get a stern look from the director who calls cut on the scene.

Take Four

“You almost got us thrown off set.” Donghae says, playing up his puppy dog eyes.

“You’re the jerk that started singing.”

“You kicked me!” Donghae pouts, faux-wounded.

“You know those little dogs that get carried around in handbags?” Sungmin asks.

“Yeah?” Donghae replies, intrigued.

“That’s what you sounded like.” Sungmin sticks his tongue out.

“Oh my god. First you try to injure me, now you’re insulting me. What even.”

“You sing to strangers a lot?”

“Only when I’m spreading the good word of Hyuna. Or when I want them to swoon.”

Sungmin goes red.

“No swooning here.” He lies.

“Shame.” Donghae says, and sticks his tongue between his teeth in a mock leer.

“You’re awful.”

“Tell me about it.”

Take Five

“So that was the second time I broke my nose, and they said that even if they reset it it would always have this bump, and yep, here I am, two years on, and my nose looks like this. It’s ridiculous. No wonder I can’t get a date. I’m like a nose monster.” Sungmin drags a finger down his nose, which, whilst prominent, is actually quite cute in Donghae’s eyes.

“It suits your face. Anyway, you shouldn’t be getting into fights.”

“You shoulda heard what they were saying. I couldn’t not.”

“Is there an alleyway in Seoul you haven’t gotten beat up in?”

“I’m trying to get them all done before Christmas, then I’m moving onto another city.”

“Are you like, a crazy person?” Donghae grins.

“Did you just quote V For Vendetta at me?”

“As if you recognised that. No, , of course you did, vigilante justice, getting beaten up in alleyways, of course you did. I bet it’s your favourite film.”

“’snot.”

“Really.”

“Okay, so maybe it is a little bit. But come on, ‘Ideas are bulletproof’ – I mean, what a line.”

“He dies at the end.”

“I’m not gonna die.”

“Better not.”

Take Six

“I’m just saying, graphic novels aren’t just for kids.” Sungmin puts his coffee cup down heavily. Donghae rolls his eyes.

“Superheroes in tights? Yeah right.”

“Have you even seen The Walking Dead?”

“Well, yeah.”

“Well the comics are even worse. Would you let a five year old watch it?”

“No.”

“There you go then.”

Take Seven

“Lee Minho though.”

“Lee Minho’ arms though.” Sungmin splutters as he pretends to take a sip from his coffee.

“The things I would do to that man.” Donghae looks out of the window wistfully.

“Is that your type then? Muscles and blood?” Sungmin asks, definitely not fishing.

“Eh, I’m easy. Sometimes I like cute blonds with no sense of self-preservation.”

Sungmin hides his head in his hands.

“Who says I meant you, punk? Though in fairness, I’d hate to be stuck in a zombie apocalypse with you, you’d always be running off and saving people. We wouldn’t last a day.”

“Oh yeah, because you’re mister survivalist extraordinaire. “ Sungmin bites back.

“I’ll have you know I can put up a tent.”

“Woo, we’re saved. Hallelujah, he can put up a tent. Truly we are blessed.”

“I was going to let you share my sleeping bag. Might have to reconsider it now.”

“For body heat?”

“Yeah, sure, that.”

Take Eight

“I think I’d go mad if I was an actor.” Donghae comments, flicking a glance over to the two people who are supposed to be falling in love to their right. “Repeating the same lines over and over.”

“And staring lovingly into someone’s eyes for that long, I swear I’d develop a twitch about half an hour in.” Sungmin grins.

“Ol’ twitchy Sungmin, that’s what they’d call you in the industry.” Sungmin cracks up. The director gives them a Look.

Take Nine

“So where you headed after this?” Donghae asks, casual as you like.

“Home, probably, though I might swing by the comic book store and see if they’ve got the new Revival in.”

“You’re a complete geek, you know that.” Donghae smiles at him, eyes dancing with merriment.

“Yeah, because your plans are what, watching drama and takeaway?”

“Well yeah. But I was gonna lie and come up with something cooler than that. I could be going to dinner with some dashing young thing.”

“Nobody’d have you.”

“Rude.”

Sungmin sticks his tongue out.

“You keep doing that I’m going to bite it off.”

“Interests include watching drama and cannibalism. Oh yeah, you’re a real catch.”

“You know you want your tongue in my mouth really.”

Sungmin headdesks. “That. Was. Terrible.”

“Did it work?” Donghae asks, as the director yells cut and makes his way over to their table.

*

“I can’t believe they didn’t pay us.” Donghae grumbles, hands in his pockets, walking along the sidewalk besides Sungmin. They’ve no clear agenda to where they’re going, but there’s a nice Chinese place a couple of blocks away which Donghae’s hoping to tempt Sungmin with.

“We were the utmost professionals.” Sungmin replies haughtily.

“Indeed. Obviously we were too good. Taking attention away from the ‘stars’” he air quotes, “with our good looks and scintillating conversation.”

“If that’s what you call it.” Sungmin bumps his shoulder against Donghae’s.

“I’m naturally charming and adorable. And very, very interesting.” Donghae argues back.

“Shame you’re having such an off-day then.” Sungmin quirks an eyebrow.

“I was going to offer to feed you. I might not now.”

Sungmin looks up at Donghae.

“Yeah?”

“Yep. But you’ve blown your chance. Anyway, cannibal, remember? I eat the rude. I’ll just have to eat you instead. And to think, there’s this lovely Chinese place up ahead.”

“I’ve been craving Chinese all week.” Sungmin says thoughtfully.

“That’s a shame.” Donghae says casually.

“Yeah, I guess so.” Sungmin shrugs, looking anywhere but Donghae.

“Hey Sungmin.” Donghae stops and nudges closer to Sungmin. Sungmin looks up at him.

“Wha-” he manages before Donghae’s lips are on his. He’s still for a moment before pressing back, his hands coming up to cup Donghae’s cheeks. They stand for a moment, pressed against each other, blocking the sidewalk, Donghae’s lips moving skilfully against Sungmin’s, before Donghae pulls away.

“Just had to check something.” Donghae says.

“What’s that?” Sungmin asks, flushed.

“You. Had to check that you, you know, were you.”

“Eloquent.”

“I’m normally better than this. Have Chinese with me?”

“Are you going to sing at me or imply cannibalism anymore?”

“Probably?”

“Then how can I say no to that?”

“You know, you dress like a hipster, but you’re a damn punk, you know that?”

“Well, you’re a jerk.”

“A jerk who’s buying you dinner.”

“Well, I guess that’s all right then.”

“You only want me for my charm.”

“Oh damn, you got me.”

“I feel so used.”

“Hey, Hae?” Sungmin slides his fingers between Donghae’s and squeezes. “Shut up.”

“Okay.”