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Sunny Sides Up'One way to get the most out of life is to look upon it as an adventure.'
- William Feather
It was unusually quiet. Midterm season was around the corner so it should’ve been bustling with stressing college students who would rather drown in their own tears than sit in a cold exam hall the next day. This late afternoon, however, was the exact opposite. Nayoung was happy she attended night school because their exam regulations were different, hence her being able to work in one of the supposedly busiest periods of the year.
Her mind, though occupied with many thoughts, was hardly with the struggling students.
It had been four days since her little meetup with Minseok, but in the back of her mind it still bothered her. Him appearing out of nowhere around the same time as Jinyoung indeed seemed a little suspicious, but fortunately Nayoung didn’t have the time to worry about the issue.
Someone made sure of that.
Still vigorously busting the empty tables at The Grind, Nayoung heard the chime of the bell above the entrance.
Speaking of the devil, she thought when she spotted a familiar lanky male.
Nayoung frowned because it seemed like Chanyeol was in a jumpy mood and even nervous. She greeted him, earning a curt nod before he took a seat in one of the empty booths by the window. His eyes shifted from the entrance to Nayoung, back to the entrance, then to the back door of the cafe. They lingered there a little while longer before he averted his eyes and entwined his fingers on the table.
This nervous display left Nayoung amused because she began understanding why he was here in the first place.
Purposely and amused, Nayoung didn’t move over to his booth to take his order. She still was made very aware of his presence because, for one, the prying eyes in the back of her head kept her very on edge. And two, the uncomfortable shifting against the leather seat Chanyeol was occupying sounded way too loud in the quiet cafe.
She let him be and instead helped a customer that entered not long after Chanyeol, and continued cleaning the rest of the tables.
After ten minutes of still not having ordered and being annoying, Chanyeol ‘finally’ caught Nayoung’s attention. She sighed and walked over to his booth.
“If you’re here with a purpose, just be out with it because I have stuff to do and don’t need some creeper following my every move,” she explained surprisingly calmly, leaving Chanyeol flushed in his seat. “Did you really think you were that subtle?” she added and couldn’t help but let out an amused chuckle.
As if trying to find the words, Chanyeol rubbed the back of his neck and muttered, “Well, I was trying--”
“--and failing,” Nayoung finished for him and crossed her arms, “but I must say you hid your height pretty well.”
Chanyeol mocked her childishly and ran a hand through his dark locks, sighing. “Shut up. I need a favor,” he said once he had finally collected himself. His act changed when he glanced around the cafe before settling on Nayoung again, a cocky look on his face.
Nayoung was surprised by this flip but didn’t mention it, mainly for the sole reason she was about to reject him with.
“I don’t know you--!”
“And you’ve made that very clear during our first meeting. But we will never get to know each other if we only keep meeting whenever I’m with Daisy,” Chanyeol interrupted and cocked an eyebrow at Nayoung. The latter frowned at this, making him realize what he just said. “Kim,” he said dismissively like he hadn’t just said something weird.
“Anyway, my favor,” Chanyeol said, pulling Nayoung back to the conversation, “Join me for a fun night.”
At this suggestion, Nayoung frowned deeply, her jaw dropping in shock. What the hell was he asking?
Chanyeol caught on and rolled his eyes. “And I realize that came out completely wrong,” he said and sighed, rubbing his eyes after witnessing the scandalized look on Nayoung’s face, “I meant, we can go to a cafe or arcade to get a little more friendly with each other.”
This sounded a lot more plausible and realistic to Nayoung, allowing her heartbeat to go back to normal but still sit uncomfortably in her chest.
“I also figure it’d be quite awkward with it just being us so I’ll bring a friend, which will probably be Jongin since you know him,” Chanyeol said, “You may bring someone as well if that would make a difference for you.” He glanced around after saying this and noticed that someone had stepped into the cafe. Chanyeol slipped back into his coat and stood up from his seat, readying himself to leave again.
Nayoung was still left in thought. A group thing with Jongin sounded fun, but also terrifying at the same time. Chanyeol was right, though, when he said that one couldn’t become friends with someone if they didn’t meet them regularly.
This, however, left her with the struggle of figuring out who to bring with her.
As if Chanyeol had read her mind, he spoke up again.
“This friend of yours, I’m easy. Male, female, I’m fine with anything,” he said as he wrapped his scarf around his neck. “Maybe male?” he said, a distant look in his eyes, “short would be nice. A brunet or something. Nice teeth and twinkling eyes that light up the sky perhaps?” Chanyeol finished his extremely detailed image of her possible friend, but waved his hand, “I don’t know, I’m just babbling. Who am I to decide who you should ask to join us on a date-group thing or something.”
Nayoung narrowed her eyes, suspicious, and was just about to say something when she heard the backdoor open with two bickering voices--well, one annoyed and one amused voice that silenced upon entering.
Chanyeol’s eyes widened at the new guests and he turned back into his fidgety self, and averted his gaze back to Nayoung almost pleadingly.
“So tonight? Good, alright, this place closes at nine so I’ll be here around that time with Daisy. Jongin. Jongin. I’ll see you then? Yeah?” Chanyeol babbled all the while he was stepping back to the entrance, escaping. Nayoung glanced behind her, spotting Baekhyun and Yixing standing behind the counter, watching them with interest. Nayoung’s eyes lingered on Baekhyun’s form, who stood with his arms crossed but a subtle smile on his lips, amused as he watched Chanyeol fidget at the entrance.
Sighing, Nayoung turned back to Chanyeol and nodded. “Fine.”
“Great! Bye!” Chanyeol said as his eyes lit up. He nearly ripped the door from its hinges after getting the OK and left the cafe as fast as his legs could carry him. Once again, silence had returned to the cafe. Yixing and Baekhyun remained quiet as they watched Nayoung shuffle towards the counter and join them behind it.
Yixing was the first one to speak up. “Friend of yours?”
“Apparently,” Nayoung said and glanced at Baekhyun another time, recognizing the flash of interest in his eyes. “Baek.”
“Yes. To everything you’re about to ask, my answer is yes,” Baekhyun said, making Nayoung snort. She pushed her hands into the pockets of her apron as she thought of his answer.
Chanyeol did have a loud voice and really needed to control his volume.
While Nayoung was lost in thought, Baekhyun turned to Yixing. “We finish at eight, right?” he asked. Yixing nodded confused.
“Good,” Baekhyun said and leaned his elbows on the counter, “an hour should be enough to become killer attractive.”
That evening, Yewon joined the trio at The Grind, mainly because the pastries were to die for and she just loved herself a good cup of Joe. Munching on some cake, she lingered at the bar where Nayoung and Yixing were trying to figure out what was up with their coffee grinder. Baekhyun was seated next to Yewon, lazily stealing bites from her food whilst he should actually be walking around and asking customers whether they were comfortable.
Glancing around for a bit, he saw that most of them were either reading or in a conversation with another person, so he figured they were alright for now. Soon his gaze landed on Yewon, her frown to be exact.
“You’re eating delicious cake, friend. Why the long face?” he asked her before taking another bite into his mouth. Yewon propped her head into her hand and stared at Nayoung bickering with Yixing.
“I think I might be doing something very stupid, but there’s nobody to stop me from going even further,” she said cryptically, leaving Baekhyun to frown as well. He realized that it might’ve been something more serious, but he couldn’t help his mouth.
“Acknowledging you’re doing something very stupid is the first step to recovery, so good job,” he tried joking but when Yewon didn’t respond like she usually did, his expression fell. He glanced at Nayoung and propped his head into his hand. “Why...is nobody stopping you?”
Yewon buried her face into her arms at his question. “I have no idea,” she said with a sigh, her voice slightly muffled. Baekhyun nudged her side and offered her a smile to make her feel better when she side-eyed him. It helped because her own frown turned milder. Baekhyun was such a bright and loving guy and always knew the right things to say.
Yewon internally sighed at the unfortunate fact that his preferences weren’t exactly towards her, or any female in general.
Just as she showed Baekhyun a smile of her own, Yewon felt her phone buzzing on the counter. She checked who had sent her a message and when she noticed the name, her frown returned.
“Speaking of stupid,” Yewon said and clicked the message away. To Baekhyun’s surprise, she began packing her things and slipped into her coat.
“Will you be alright?” Baekhyun asked her, his worry evident in his voice. Yewon shrugged.
“We’ll see,” she said with a subtle smile and squeezed Baekhyun’s shoulder softly before calling for Nayoung. “I’m gonna head out.”
“Oh, already?” Nayoung said approaching the two while wiping her hands on her apron. She glanced at Baekhyun.
“Yeah, still got some reading to do,” Yewon explained with a small smile.
“Alright,” Nayoung said, returning her smile and nodded. “I’ll see you tonight then?”
“Probably,” Yewon waved over her shoulder as she left, disappearing through the entrance into the dark abyss outside. Nayoung watched her friend leave and turned back to Baekhyun, when she noticed his lost look.
“Everything all right?” she asked him, suddenly suspicious of why her friend had just left. Baekhyun didn’t hesitate and nodded before stretching.
“Yeah. Hey Zhang?” he called for his boss.
Yixing looked up annoyed at the lack of respect from his employee, “What.”
Baekhyun chuckled before walking over to his boss behind the counter. “Youngie and I are going to clock out in a bit. You sure you’ll be able to handle it all alone?” he cooed as he pinched his boss’ cheeks.
Yixing couldn’t appreciate the gesture and smacked his hands away. “Obviously. I’m the one running this damn place,” he answered annoyed and nodded at Nayoung, “When your princes arrive, I’ll keep an eye on them, but hurry up. I’m not a damn baby sitter.”
“You really need to lighten up, Xingie,” Baekhyun said again and dared to ruffle Yixing’s curly hair. “If you weren’t so grumpy all the time, I’d take you out on a date to show you what real fun is.”
“So thoughtful,” Yixing sarcastically remarked and pushed his employee’s hand away again.
“Always,” Baekhyun winked at his boss before hooking his arm through Nayoung’s, “now let’s go make ourselves prettier than we already are.”
After work, both moved to Baekhyun’s nearby apartment to freshen up and prepare for their group thing, as Chanyeol had called it. They took a shower to wash away the built-up stress from constantly working the past hours, and changed into casual outfits. They didn’t speak much, but this was mainly because of Nayoung’s piling nerves. The time of the meetup was nearing and Nayoung couldn’t help but run through every possible scenario in her head to be prepared for the unknown.
Sighing to herself as she was buried in her scarf, the two made their way back to the cafe. Chanyeol’s car was parked next to the curb of The Grind, Nayoung noticed, and her heart picked up its pace. By the time she also spotted the lanky male and Jongin through the large window of the cafe, her heart was pounding frantically, rushing blood through her ears which drowned out Baekhyun’s voice that was calling for her. Jongin spoke animatedly, looking like he had no care in the world as he smiled at his friend and leaned back into his chair.
Nayoung took a deep breath, held it for a second before releasing the built up air and shook her head lightly. This is okay, I’m okay, she mentally prepared herself and glanced at Baekhyun, who was wearing an amused grin.
“Shut up,” Nayoung muttered and began walking to the entrance of the cafe.
“Didn’t say anything,” Baekhyun responded amused in surrender, lifting his arms.
“I’ll go get them,” Nayoung said and rolled her eyes. She pushed the glass door to enter the warm hall. Luckily her cheeks were already flushed because of the cold weather outside because the moment her eyes locked with Jongin’s, a heat began creeping up from her neck. Jongin didn’t notice and paused his conversation with Chanyeol as he got up and smiled at her.
“Hi,” he said when she was close enough. Nayoung couldn’t believe how calm he was acting but smiled to cover her nerves.
“Hi,” she replied, but soon found herself admiring Jongin. He was dressed so casually but still managed to look breathtaking. He was undeniably handsome, but the gray long-sleeved shirt, washed ripped jeans and sneakers really acted as the finishing touch to perfection. Unfortunately, his poofy hair--which was possibly her favorite feature--was mostly covered with a black beanie.
Almost lost in his ensemble, Nayoung quickly averted her eyes and scanned their surroundings.
“Where’s Yixing?”
“You mean your boss?” Jongin asked, his voice sounding like music to Nayoung’s ears. “He left shortly after we arrived, saying you guys could lock up perfectly on your own.”
At this, Nayoung’s jaw dropped as she recalled her boss’ words that he ‘would keep an eye on their princes’. “So much for keeping you guys company,” she said with a scoff and shook her head.
Jongin chuckled and slipped into his coat. “He said he trusted that we wouldn’t rob or trash the place.”
“Of course,” Nayoung said again and shook her head at her boss’ behavior. Usually Yixing would act pretty responsible and always have the last word, but today it was like he was out to get his employees.
Jongin shrugged and laughed. “I like him.”
Nayoung thought it sounded amazing.
She couldn’t savor in the melody, however, because she felt someone appear next to her, far too close for comfort. Upon looking at the presence, she found out it was a very nervous-looking Chanyeol.
“Is the package secure?” he whispered to Nayoung, though his voice still sounded as deep as usual and the act did absolutely nothing for his volume. Nayoung was about to answer when someone pushed between them.
“I don’t appreciate being called a package,” Baekhyun said and instantly walked off to the counter. Feeling caught, Chanyeol glanced at Nayoung with a deep worried frown, but decided to throw his pride out of the window by following after the short male. Immediately, he began spouting apologies as he hopped after Baekhyun, but the latter simply checked the counter and moved outside again. Obviously, Chanyeol followed after him, still trying to get his attention.
Jongin chuckled at the scene before locking his gaze with Nayoung’s. “Shall we?”
Nayoung nodded with a subtle grin and walked over to the entrance to lock up The Grind. The lights died, leaving the cafe in complete darkness, and Nayoung made sure to remember that Yixing was an as she shoved the last lock onto the door.
She then hopped over to Chanyeol’s car and slipped into the backseat again, much like a few days ago. Neither Chanyeol nor Jongin had bothered to tell their guests where they were headed; Chanyeol had tried to be funny by calling it ‘galavanting into unknown territories’, but Nayoung was pretty sure that was simply called ‘kidnapping’.
Luckily the drive wasn’t long. However, instead of focusing on where they were headed, Nayoung was surprised by the fact that Chanyeol seemed a lot more calm than before--coolly almost.
His eyes were fixed on the road as he lazily hummed to a tune. Nayoung also noticed that Baekhyun was less than amused by this lack of attention. His gaze trailed off into Chanyeol’s direction on multiple occasions and the way his lips were pressed together showed that he was getting annoyed.
Silently laughing, Nayoung mindlessly glanced to her side, finding Jongin watching her. She forced her smile away and frowned, as if asking what was up.
Much to her annoyance, Jongin simply smiled before looking out of the window again. Nayoung was left flustered.
Weird, she thought to herself, but was soon distracted by the district they had entered. Chanyeol had turned into some busy street that seemed like the source of all nightlife. Neon signs hung from brick walls, forming names Nayoung hadn’t heard of before, and the streets were filled with people even though it was quite early in the evening.
Soon, Chanyeol had found a spot to park the car. The four got out, instantly surrounded by the jumbled sounds of people laughing, music booming and the wind howling. Thankfully the weather had cleared up in the past days, so they wouldn’t be tormented by the constant rain.
Nayoung exchanged looks with Baekhyun when they walked around the car to join the others. She was no stranger to going out and having a good time on a Saturday, but this situation was completely different. She felt awkward because she was out with people she usually wouldn’t go out with, minus Baekhyun who was the ruler of vodka.
“Oh come on!” Baekhyun’s voice caught Nayoung’s attention. She followed his amused eyes and ended up looking at some led sign covering a building in front of them. Baekhyun let out an obnoxious laugh. “The Red Dynasty? Really? That’s the best they could come up with? Imagine the other options that didn’t make the cut.”
“You shouldn’t judge a book by its cover,” Chanyeol said and walked past Baekhyun.
The latter frowned at him. “Could you be quiet? You were doing an outstanding job so far.”
Chanyeol laughed at this, inevitably noticing the venom in Baekhyun’s words. “I’m trying to teach you about life here,” he said, but Baekhyun just rolled his eyes and darted past Chanyeol into the building.
Still too amused and focused on the two bickering males, Nayoung jumped when she felt a hand clasp onto her elbow. Jongin held her gently and showed her a smile before leading her inside. Nayoung remained silent, too surprised to respond coherently. Chanyeol was the last to enter, but she still noticed him biting his lower lip.
No matter how confident he had seemed to be before, right now Nayoung could tell that this was a nervous habit he had picked up somewhere.
Maybe this night would be informative after all.
Once they were inside, a large hall opened up in front of them. Nayoung realized that they found themselves on a balcony looking over the poolhall. Two sets of curving stairs led to the underground hall downstairs. The level was filled with rows and rows of green velvet tables, Nayoung counted at least twenty.
“Wow,” she said in awe. Jongin let out a soft chuckle at her amazement.
Chanyeol was the first to walk away from the group to the left set of stairs and descended to the bar that was lined up against the whole left wall. He waved at the barman once he was close enough to recognize who was standing behind the counter.
“I got the usual banked out for the night,” the man said with a lopsided grin and adjusted his glasses.
“Thanks,” Chanyeol said and leaned over the counter to fistbump the guy and ordered a drink while he was at it. Once downstairs, Jongin greeted the man as well with a simple nod and a smile.
Nayoung looked around for a moment, but dared to nudge Jongin. “The usual?”
He hummed. “Our table.”
He smiled at her before leading them to the middle of the hall. After taking a sip from his drink, Chanyeol followed after the two with Baekhyun trailing behind him silently. A row of wooden racks were located between the pool tables, holding dozens of cue sticks ready to be used. Chanyeol got out two and handed Jongin one.
“Know how to play?” Jongin asked Baekhyun who was standing to the side with Nayoung. He glanced at Chanyeol who, surprise, had no eyes for the situation at hand as he was slipping his hand into a glove.
“No, but I’m very competitive,” Baekhyun spat and grabbed the stick Jongin was holding and moved around the table. He made sure to glare at Chanyeol as he passed him and began gathering the balls and the cue.
Jongin chuckled at this and looked at Nayoung. “What about you?”
She hesitated before shrugging. “I’m decent.”
“Competitive?”
“Not really.”
“Then this is going to be an interesting evening,” Jongin said with a wide smile, but didn’t bother explaining what he meant with that. Once more, Jongin simply chuckled as he slipped out of his coat and scarf, and turned to Chanyeol who was busy dulling the tip of his cue stick with chalk.
“Two against two or do you want to check levels first?” Jongin asked his friend casually like it was something they discussed regularly. Chanyeol didn’t respond as he followed Baekhyun’s movements closely, eyes hooded.
“The black one is supposed to go in the middle, sweet cheeks,” he said, commenting on Baekhyun’s composition of the pool balls. He walked over, removed the plastic triangle and rearranged them, much to Baekhyun’s annoyance.
“I can handle it!”
“Whatever you say.”
“One on one it is,” Jongin laughed and glanced at Nayoung, waving for her to join him. “Come on, this is gonna be good.”
He pulled Nayoung next to him when she had taken a few steps forward.
Nayoung felt herself heat up, but managed to crack a smile. Maybe she had nothing to worry about after all.
AN: [10.8.16] it has been a while, but i havent forgotten about this website. life just got in the way. thank you for sticking with me, guys!
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