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Seungri’s Apartment
Sunday, May 6th, 2012.
4:58pm
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"Ji?" Seungri pushed his way through the door, panting as he set his bike inside the hallway and quickly scanned his apartment for his friend.

"Ji? You better still be here or I swear I'll beat you with a shoe!"

Right on cue his friend stepped around the corner of his kitchen and waved him over. His state was less panicked than it had sounded on the phone which made Seungri's shoulers relax a little as he walked further into his apartment.

"What's going on Ji? You sounded a lot more....hysterical on the phone," Seungri grabbed a granola bar and slowly walked over to his couch waiting for an explanation.

"He's a detective Ri. An actual detective. Like...who the even hides that kind of occupation? Especially from someone you've been topping for the past five years?" Jiyong began to ramble as he plopped himself down on the opposite side of the couch. "Seriously, what is this? Mr. and Mrs. Smith? As if he's some undercover secret agent. He's a detective! It's not even crime scene investigator. I wonder if he has a trench coat..." 

"Five months isn't even close to five years Ji, he probably had a reason. Detective business isn't always exactly the best occupation out there. Remember Buffy and Angel? Practically detectives and look how that turned out," though Seungri did have to admit that the whole thing seemed suspicious.

"How did you even find out anyway? I thought you swore to never speak to him again. Did he contact you?"

"He sent me a very plain message asking to go out for coffee. Coffee! I almost said no because I so do not go crawling back to ex-lovers. But.....It just happened. Turns out he has a small amateur agency with his friend. They both have criminal justice backgrounds so poof, cute little detectives. That break hearts. And have stupid hair." Jiyong took a deep breath and decided to pout for awhile thinking about what decisions he needed to be making.

"Detectives. With criminal justice backgrounds. Ooookay. That didn't come out of left field or anything. Did you even know this when you were together? Or was this some hidden double life that was never brought up?" Seungri couldn't help but feel nosy as the whole situation was just interesting. Break ups, detectives, adorable gay couple. Perfect romance suspense novel in the making!

"He mentioned something about a real creep harassing some guy. Said he was working on the case when the guy just disappeared. Apparently he was worried the creep had caught on to him and broke up with me to protect me. Protect me! How cliché can you get? I'm not Cinderelly. Last I checked, there was no down there. Not to mention even if there was, I could still kick all on my own. I just...ugh!" Jiyong emphasized his entire rant with a well executed face to pillow dive.

"Not that women can't kick . Just...y'know," Jiyong mumbled into the pillow.

Seungri just leaned over and patted him on the shoulder.

"On the bright side, he wasn't cheating on you. He's a somewhat good-looking detective. Maybe there's a uniform involved? Why not try to work things out? He was good to you and I've never seen you so happy with someone. I'll even...go shopping with you. For a look-at-what-you're-missing outfit." Seungri tried not to cringe at the idea of shopping with Ji, but he knew when his friend wanted something but was too stubborn to admit it.

Too many romance novels ended with dire consequences of putting things off due to stubbornness. He refused to let his best friend be a damsel.

In a Victorian era dress. With a powdered wig. And ruffles.

Seungri let out a snicker thinking Ji would either pull that look off or look like a pissed off cat.

"Really? You would?" Jiyong brought Seungri back to reality with his question. He looked too hopeful for Seungri to ever think of backing out on this one.

"You know I will. I wouldn't have said so if I didn't. What do you think? Tomorrow? You could get something to knock his socks off the next time he sees you," Seungri then gave Ji his brightest grin and tackled him in a bear hug.

"You deserve to be happy my favorite squishy dramatic comrade. All will be well in your world once again," he proceeded to squish his cheeks to try and get him to smile again. Too much negative went on this past week. He just wanted something to go right, even if it was all for Jiyong.

As Jiyong jumped away from him and began planning out their day of shopping, Seungri just sat back and relaxed as he let his friend get more and more excited.

But there was just one thing he still couldn't get out of his head.

"Hey, can I call you Lady Jiyona?"

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Seungri’s Apartment
Monday, May 7th, 2012.
8:13am
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Seungri had managed to call in and arrange to have the day off from work so he could go shopping with Jiyong. He even managed to run to the bank and withdrawal a small amount of savings just in case he might get something.

Maybe.

It could happen.

He just had a little over fifteen minutes until Jiyong was due at his apartment and they'd go in his car down to the mall. Seungri couldn't help but look forward to time away from his apartment and his life in general. Even if it was for Jiyong, he felt like it was a little adventure away from the boring reality that was his life.

He sighed and checked the clock on the table beside his couch. 

8:26 am

Seungri was beginning to feel antsy. He had nothing to do while he waited for Jiyong and couldn't help but feel a little awkward just waiting in his apartment.

Feeling like an awkward panda. By myself. In my own apartment. For no reason. Nope. Nothing wrong with that.

He wandered over to his window and decided to watch for Ji's car instead of staring at his walls for the next ten minutes or so. 

Seungri was mentally beating himself for not taking more care with his schedule. His schooling was falling behind and he knew that unless he did some serious studying, he might not pass his classes. Which was not an option. 

As he calculated what days he could use to study specific topics for his finals he heard the roar of an engine and glanced down to see Ji had finally arrived. He gathered his worn canvas shoulder bag and made sure his wallet and keys were secure inside. 

He left his apartment and ran down the steps to meet with Jiyong, excited to leave his house even if it was for shopping. His bag thumped against his thigh as he hopped down the steps and out the front doors of his building. Jiyong was sitting in his ridiculously nice car messaging someone on his phone. Seungri had his suspicions that he was talking to Seunghyun.

After staring bemusedly at Jiyong for a moment, Seungri leaned in and tapped on the window waiting for the door to be unlocked. Jiyong gave him a cheesy grin and unlocked the doors, already bouncing in his seat from excitement.

"Plan is in motion, Ri. I repeat, plan is in motion! Tabi and his partner, business partner that is, will be at Café Noku around noon so we have plenty of time to find some killer outfits. He'll begging to have my beautiful self back in no time." 

Seungri was only a little worried at the creepy cackle Jiyong let out after revealing his plan. Knowing he'd have to be the wingman to go to the café made him slightly uncomfortable. He just hoped Seunghyun and Jiyong truly worked things out in the end without any more problems.

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Men's Clothing Store, Mall
Monday, May 7th, 2012.
9:45am
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"Hmm, I don't know. I love these leather pants but at the same time those black skinnies make my legs look better. Ri? What do you think?" Jiyong asked, holding the black pants to compare.

"I like the black ones," Seungri said casually, not being able to help himself from teasing Jiyong.

It only took a few seconds of thought before Jiyong sent him a glare. "They're both black, Ri!"

"I know, I know. Go with the black skinnies. They look more comfortable. Comfort implies confidence and uality," because Ri knew from all of his romance novels that the men went for those who were effortlessly y.

Jiyong's eyes lit up with laughter, almost knowingly, as he put the leather pants back and went searching for a shirt. He bounced from one display to the next always pulling something out and studying it for moments before shaking his head and moving on to the next candidate.

Seungri hadn't really bothered looking for himself and instead amused himself by going around and seeing if anything stood out. Shopping wasn't his thing. He preferred quiet days spent inside reading his novels and cuddling into his blankets. Too many people and he got uncomfortable and horribly awkward.

Something caught his eye the second he stood next to it. It was a simple dark grey letterman jacket with white lining. On the front left it read 'One of a Kind' and he immediately knew it was for Jiyong. He quickly found Jiyong's size and began his search for his friend.

"Ji. Ji. Jiyong!" Jiyong was so involved in studying a white t-shirt that read 'BOY' on the front he didn't even hear Seungri the first few times his name was called. It wasn't until Seungri finally whacked him on the shoulder that Jiyong finally noticed his friends excited face.

"This. You have to wear this."

Jiyong's confusion was quickly wiped away at the awe he felt when he saw just how wonderful the jacket truly was. He wasted no time grabbing the jacket and taking it, along with the t-shirt, into the dressing room.

Seungri couldn't help but grin proudly at finding such a perfect jacket for his friend. He only hoped Seunghyun understood the message as well because Jiyong truly was one of a kind. If he wasn't such a brotherly figure, Seungri probably would have held romantic feelings for him as well.

As he waited for Jiyong to come out of the dressing room, Seungri began to peruse the clothing once again. this time he actually found something that he liked. It was a simple dark grey cardigan that looked incredibly comfortable. He caught himself the sleeve and let out a small sigh at the soft texture. 

Biting his lip in thought, he searched for his size and proceeded to search for a shirt that would look alright underneath it. Within a few moments he came across a deep blue thin t-shirt that matched well with the cardigan. After admiring his combination of blue and grey he decided to go crazy and try for some pants too.

Seungri looked towards the dressing rooms to see Ji still inside. He decided to be quick and grabbed a dark grey pair of skinny jeans and rushed to the dressing rooms before he was seen. The last thing he wanted was for Ji to have him parade around in his new outfit, especially if it ended up looking horrible. 

He slipped into one of the small dressing rooms and got down to business. His game face was on and dammit he was going to actually feel what it was like to be confident from a mere outfit. 

Seungri toed his shoes off and pulled his pants off in order to shimmy into the pair he'd grabbed on his way into the dressing room. They felt somewhat stiff but the price for looking good isn't always reasonable. After tossing his shirt aside he grabbed the thin blue garment and pulled it on. He then pulled the cardigan on and buttoned the bottom buttons before taking a deep breath and turning to face the mirror.

As Seungri looked at his reflection he could feel his mouth stretching into an elated grin. It was actually rather perfect and for the first time he didn't feel like the frumpy kid who washes dishes to support himself. He felt like a confident and mature man.

He quickly changed out of the outfit just so he could surprise Jiyong later with his fashion sense that rarely showed itself. His usual extreme casual look was going out the window today and he was going to be one badass wingman. A mental high-five was delivered before he finally walked out of the dressing room and quickly walked to the front counter to ring up his purchases.

Jiyong was still in the dressing room by the time Seungri was finished paying for his clothes. He was almost scared to knock on the door his friend was behind due to how long he'd been in there. 

"Ji? You still in there?" Seungri knocked once with his knuckle before stepping back and waiting for his friend to answer. He looked around to see if any other rooms were occupied. It felt weird talking in the dressing room area.

"Ri, this is in the top three best outfits I have ever worn," Jiyong stepped out of the dressing room and did a highly feminine twirl showing off his limber figure.

"Do you agree, or do you agree? Because I agree," Jiyong then proceeded to grin and dropped the girly act. He looked truly happy for the first time since the breakup. 

Seungri was glad to see how things were turning out and hoped the good vibe would continue on through the meeting at the café. 

"What did you buy Ri?" Jiyong seemed to finally realize his friend had actually bought something for himself and tried to open his bag to look inside.

"Nope! It's a surprise. I'm going to wow you with my fashionista skills. You will be in awe of it. Anticipate my friend. Anticipate," Seungri said playfully as he hid the bag behind his back and watched Ji quickly step back into the dressing room to change out of the clothes. He looked at his watch to see how long until they had to head to the meeting point. There was at least two more hours.

Seungri's shoulders slumped as he realized Jiyong would probably want to shop around for the next couple of hours while he himself had already found something and wasn't looking forward to being dragged around. 

Maybe the bookstore...

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Bookstore, Mall
Monday, May 7th, 2012.
11:23am
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Seungri had actually convinced Jiyong to make a last stop at the bookstore. He was determined to get a new book bag so he could start making productive trips to the campus. His bag was falling apart at the seams and despite the oh so edgy punk look it made, it was still frightening thinking his crap was going to fall out anywhere at any time. 

He was trying to be quick as he knew Jiyong would consider murder if he made him late for the big entrance. 

After quickly grabbing a reasonably priced black book bag he began skimming the graphic novel aisle. Despite Ji always teasing him about his romance novels, it wasn't the only thing he read. Usually.

Seungri snatched the volume he needed of High School of the Dead before checking the time and rushing over to the romance aisle.

As if he'd ever be able to resist.

This particular store always stocked a small but worthy section of gay romance. His eyes immediately settled on Dangers in the Night and he skimmed the back of the book to decide if it was a keeper. The cheesier the better in his opinion; though he was kind of sick and tired of the whole vampire craze. Now, werewolves and mate mentality stories, oh yes, those are truly romance novels. 

Without a second thought he gripped the books and headed towards the checkout stand and, after paying, began his search for Jiyong. They had planned to change into their newly bought clothing before heading off so Seungri made the sudden decision to change first then find Ji.

He quickly found the restrooms and entered a small stall where he hung his new book bag on the door hook and began undressing. After folding his old clothes and stuffing them in his new bag he began wiggling into his jeans. Buttoning the fly and sliding his shoes back on, Seungri then grabbed the blue shirt and cardigan and make quick work of putting them on. 

Checking to make sure he didn't drop anything in the small stall, God forbid he drop his wallet, he nodded in satisfaction and slung the bag strap over his head to settle on his shoulder. He walked out of the stall and did a quick check in the mirror to assure his appearance was worthy of being Jiyong's wingman. His hair was a little flat but there wasn't much to do for that. 

As he was making his way out of the restroom he felt his pocket vibrate and knew it was Jiyong. He dug in his small pocket and answered the phone, pausing outside the bathroom entrance, while scanning the crowd for his friend.

"Hey Ji."

"Where you at Ri? We've gotta leave now!"

"I'm outside the restrooms. First level by the bookstore. Calm down, we've got time."

"Oh I see you!"

With that Jiyong ended the call and left Seungri awkwardly standing there as he waited for his friend to run up to him. Luckily he didn't have long to wait as Jiyong appeared coming down the escalator a few feet away.

Seungri began walking up to the escalators only for Jiyong to throw his hand out to make him stop. Jiyong then put his index finger up and twirled it, wanting Seungri to turn around, as he inspected his new outfit.

"Well, well, well. Looks like someone's been hiding his sense of fashion under a pile of textbooks. What next? Are you going to start riding a motorcycle and go clubbing?" Jiyong said with a wolfish grin, glad to see his friend looking so well dressed instead of in his usual worn t-shirts and baggy jeans.

"Oh shut up. It's not like I'm wearing a tux. What d'you think? Worthy of wingman status?" Seungri smiled back at him and they began walking towards the entrance.

"More than. Maybe I should leave you in the car so Tabi doesn't go for you instead of me."

"Stop being cheeky and prepare yourself for the grand entrance that'll make him grovel before you and beg forgiveness. Or whatever you said your plan was," Seungri ducked the hand Ji swung at him and laughed.

Before long they were in Ji's car and headed towards the café. He had tossed his bag into the back and mentally prepared himself. He hoped it wouldn't be awkward as there were many factors that could steer it in that direction. Would things be thrown out in the open right there or would they just flirt and save it for a more private conversation? Would Seunghyun's friend be nice or would he be the bad cop? 

Seungri took a deep breath and tried to relax. Worrying wouldn't get him anywhere and would probably just make things worse. 

Confidant wingman. Confidant wingman.

It seemed like only seconds had passed before they pulled into a spot near the café. He looked over at Jiyong and watched him close his eyes and take a small breath before straightening his shoulders and opening the door to get out. He followed and gave Jiyong a smile of encouragement as they headed towards the entrance of Café Noku.

They walked confidently into the sweet smelling café and only paused a moment to locate the target. Seunghyun was chatting with a dark haired male who's back was facing towards them. Seunghyun had barely glanced their way before doing a double take and quickly shooting up from his seat. Jiyong took the cue and began walking towards the table with an easy stride. Seungri fell back two steps behind him as he made eye contact with Seunghyun's partner.

He felt himself get warm as the mans gaze traveled down and back up his body. He averted his gaze to the wall behind the man and kept the pace with Jiyong who had almost reached the table. 

Seunghyun started intensely at Jiyong for a moment before pulling the chair out for him.

"Hello Seunghyun. How are you?" Jiyong said, settling into his chair.

Seungri stood only for a second longer before quietly settling down into the chair next to the dark haired man.

Seunghyun's gaze narrowed at Jiyong for a moment before he relaxed and leaned back in his own chair. 

"I'm doing well, Ji. Now that you're here," he replied, only having eyes for Jiyong.

Wow. 

"Ji, Seungri, this is my friend and colleague Taeyang. Taeyang, this is Jiyong and Seungri," Seunghyun seemed to remember that there were other human beings on the planet besides Jiyong and himself.

"Nice to meet you both," Taeyang said, his voice smooth and just on the edge of deep. 

Seungri looked at Jiyong who nodded at Taeyang before looking back at Seunghyun.

"Nice to meet you too," Seungri threw out there, not sure as to what else he should say.

There was a few moments of pause before they realized it was slightly awkward with no one speaking. Jiyong smiled and then gracefully stood from the table.

"Who wants coffee? Ri, I know your order. Taeyang, would you like anything?" Jiyong easily broke the ice and soon Seunghyun offered to go up with him with Taeyang's order. 

Seungri smiled at them as they walked together towards the front counter and then remembered he wasn't alone at the table. He softly cleared his throat before looking over at Taeyang.

"So, you're a detective?" Seungri felt his voice crack embarrassingly and couldn't help but go red from it. 

Taeyang just smiled and nodded.

"I'm a criminal justice major at EU. Seunghyun is really the brains of the operation as he's already graduated. You could say I'm earning experience. We just do private investigating, nothing huge with crimes or murders. More like husbands cheating on wives and the like."

"Wow. So are you busy a lot? Do you have a trench coat?" Seungri couldn't help but ask about the trench coat. Too much Inspector Gadget as a kid.

"We surprisingly have quite a few clients. It's just the two of us so we try not to take on too much. How about you? Do you work?"

Suddenly it seemed like Seungri's world came to a stuttering halt. He could picture himself telling this immensely attractive investigator his profession.

"Well, I'm a dishwasher...I do help cook sometimes. Can't make an omelet to save my life though."

"Oh, that's nice...." Taeyang says as he begins to search for Seunghyun to come and save him from the conversation.

"Um, no! I'm just a student. Business major. Not much excitement there," Seungri said, smiling somewhat sheepishly while having an inner struggle over his sudden lie.

He knew there was nothing wrong with being a dishwasher. Nothing wrong with supporting himself with a legitimate a job. But in front of an attractive stranger who's a detective, it's intimidating. Almost embarrassing.

Seungri couldn't help but feel small in his clothes he spent what little savings he had on. He knew he'd beat himself up for it later for feeling shame in something he should take pride in. But that's later and right now Taeyang would probably be utterly unimpressed with him if he knew his true self.

He'd probably never see him again anyway.

And where the hell was Jiyong? Four coffee's do not take that long.

So....Hi strangers. 
Apologies for taking so long with this chapter. I hadn't even realized how long I had truly taken.

Forgive me? I finally had them meet!

Idk. Is this chapter disappointing? It's a bit free of creepy things. For once Seungri got to just go out and relax. Well, until he met the adorable Taeyang.

I do love hearing feedback from everyone! I'll try and get a new chapter out sooner than last time. 

I LOVE YOU ALL.

Thank you for subscribing and reading my story. It's probably not what you expected but you're sticking around a little anyways.

Maybe I'll get a poster up of Ami and a certain friend of hers for next chapter~ What do you think?