[CONTENTID1]                  [/CONTENTID1]

[CONTENTID2]

Baekhyun, why did you order that?” Sehun asked, face contorting in disgust. “It looks like .”

Baekhyun gasped. “Excuse you! This ‘’ is delicious, you should try some.”

“Uh, no thanks it’s not for me.”

“Suit yourself,” Baekhyun quipped, slowly shoving another spoonful of slimy, acidic soup into his mouth. “More for me!”

“Ew,” Jongin cringed, his throat threatening to gag and hurl up something even more repulsive than Baekhyun’s soup. “No one wants to see that, Baekhyun.”

“Yeah,” Sehun agreed, “no matter how y you try to look while eating it, it doesn’t look any more appetising.”

“You guys are jerks,” Baekhyun sighed, making sloppy patterns in his soup.

Sehun looked expectantly across at Jongin for him to relieve the group of friends from suspenseful silence. However, Jongin just sat there in utter silence; staring into nothingness as if his brain had forgotten to function that day.

“Uh, so, um,” Sehun stuttered, not having enough will to say anything. He looked over at Baekhyun, who seemed to be shoving generous spoonfuls of soup into his gaping mouth.

“I heard that the movie theatre opened up again last week,” Jongin said, a sparkle lighting up in his eyes – a contrast from his dazed expression just a few moments ago.

“Really? You mean the one Victoria worked at?”

Victoria’s movie theatre was a popular destination for most teenagers and couples in the town; she prided on her business like it was her child. She was particularly fond of Jongin – and whoever he brought along with him, of course – and always wore her neatest cardigan whenever he would visit. Unfortunately, when Victoria’s grandmother’s dementia took a turn for the worse, she had no choice but to temporarily close her theatre to spend her final moments with her.

Sehun rested his chin in his palm. “I suppose the poor woman must have passed away,” he sighed.

“We should go there soon,” Baekhyun smiled, wiping the corners of his mouth with a regal napkin his mother had given him last Christmas.

Jongin opened his mouth to agree, but then thought of someone who he thought needed to get out and have some fun more. Sehun’s eyes shifted to Jongin.

“I understand,” he said to him, “I wouldn’t like to go with Baekhyun either.”

“Hey!” Baekhyun pouted angrily, spinning round to give a harsh slap to Sehun’s shoulder. “If you didn’t have me, you would be that lonely loser in the back of the movie theatre!”

“But you always talk during the movie,” Sehun rolled his eyes, and his face resumed back into a straight expression. “And besides, I can ask someone to go with me, I don’t need you.”

Baekhyun turned to Jongin in desperation. “You’ll go to the movies with me, won’t you, Jongin?”

Jongin – as much as he didn’t want to hurt Baekhyun’s feelings – shook his head and smiled apologetically. “Sorry, Baekhyun, I was actually going to ask someone else.”

“Who?” he asked, flailing his arms. “Who are you going to ask?”

Jongin’s cheeks rapidly rose in temperature, and his shy gaze didn’t meet Baekhyun’s prying glare. “Uh, y-you wouldn’t know him if I told you.”

Baekhyun backed down; slumping down in his chair with a self-pitying sigh. “I just wanted to go with someone…”

“Why don’t you ask someone else you know?” said Jongin sympathetically, and reached out to pat him on the shoulder as a sign of comfort (but sadly couldn’t stretch his arm across that far). "You could go with Chanyeol. He's not going with anyone."

“Chanyeol?”

Jongin smiled. "Yeah, Chanyeol. Listen, I know you go everywhere with Jongdae but I'm sure Chanyeol would love to go with you."

“Well, I guess so, but–”

“Then it’s settled,” Jongin grinned, “you can go with Chanyeol and I can go with Kyungsoo!”

Sehun’s attention snapped back to Jongin. “Who’s Kyungsoo?”

Jongin’s face turned bright red, he hadn’t meant to say the name out loud. That was a big mistake on his part.

He took his phone out of his pocket, wanting it to spring to life, as he acted as if he hadn’t heard the question. His eyes flicked up every now and then, and every time both Sehun’s and Baekhyun’s eyes were focused intently on him.

Sehun did something rare and his lips formed into a neat smile – no crooks or splits. “Who’s Kyungsoo, Jongin?” he asked again, Baekhyun nodding.

“Definitely no one you need to know ever,” Jongin said with wide, skittish eyes.

Baekhyun did some thinking, and his face lit up like a lightbulb. “Oh, so it’s a date, is it?”

Jongin choked on his saliva and broke out into a hysterical coughing fit. “No, no, no. Absolutely not.”

Jongin was a terrible liar – and it shone greatly in his expressive face. A lot of excuses that Jongin intended to use to cover himself up had perished in the awkward silence that he used instead to ignore the question entirely.

“So who were you planning on asking, Sehun?” Baekhyun asked. God bless Baekhyun’s puny, deceivable brain.

Sehun glared at Jongin; he clearly hadn’t been let off the hook. “Baekhyun,” he sighed, “just because I