“Stop playing around,” she turned to leave when he grabbed her arm and held her close

Ha Kyung was frozen stiff at the proximity her face was to his chest; too close. She could almost hear his heart beating and she had to slow down her own breathing. She had never in her life been this close to the opposite . Why was Heung Soo doing this to her now?

“I’m not playing,” he said seriously as she looked up at him then lost her nerve and looked at the floor again

“Way to spring a confession like that on a girl. I almost feel as if you’re joking or you don’t want me to be hurt by Nam Soon so you feel the need to suddenly bring up feelings I’m sure the entire universe didn’t know you had,”

Heung Soo was never the one to really share his feeling with anyone other than Nam Soon and especially not to a girl. But if he had to be honest, honestly he had slowly and very slowly developed feelings for Ha Kyung ever since high school. The only reason he didn’t act on it was because he thought Nam Soon and Ha Kyung liked each other, only neither of them acted on it. And he told himself that if he ever saw her again that he would tell her how he felt.

“I’m not a talker I admit. I’m not charming like Nam Soon…”

“Please don’t compare yourself to him. Everyone has different thing they are good and bad at. You don’t need to do this. I’m stressed out enough as it is,”

“What did you think I would do after I told you?”

“I don’t know. Pursue me?”

“Only if you want me to,” she was taken aback

“I never thought of it,” she looked him dead in his eyes then started to pace while biting on her lip, “Hell I never truly thought of Nam Soon,” she ran her fingers through her hair but Heung Soo didn’t believe her about her not thinking of Nam Soon in the romantic sense

“Honestly?”

“Honestly,” she determined to make him not bring this up

“Honestly,” he stepped closer to her, “You look me dead in my eyes and tell me you never had feelings for Nam Soon,”

“I don’t get you. You confess to me which is weird but now you want me to confess to you that I like or liked Nam Soon. Why would you want me to do that? Wouldn’t you want the girl you like only liking you?”

“That’s why I want to know the truth. I was honest with you which is so out of character for me,”

“Who are you telling,” she was frustrated. She thought she had truly buried all of this, “Alright you caught me. Yes I’ve thought of it over the years but then I had realized that’s all I could do was just think but not act on it. I wasn’t ready to be with anyone let alone him. I had to find myself first and I’m sure he had to do the same,”

“And now?”

“What about it? He’s with that thing. It pisses me off,” she was angry and tears started to form

“What about me?”

“What about you? You know seriously I still can’t wrap my brain around that,” she wiped her eyes as some tears escaped her face

“I didn’t mean to make you upset,”

“Well I’m upset now,”

Heung Soo wasn’t sure why he did what he did but he instantly pulled her into a hug and wrapped his big arms around her. She was shocked. Nam Soon who heard and saw the whole exchange was shocked. Heung Soo rested his head on top of hers.

“I thought you might need this. I don’t want to see you cry,”

Strangely enough Ha Kyung didn’t object. She finally admitted the feelings she had for Nam Soon but knew it wouldn’t happen and Heung Soo admitted his feelings but knew it wouldn’t happen. So he thought for the both of them a hug would suffice. And then it did because Ha Kyung wrapped her arms around him and held tighter.

“Well can we stay like this just for a little while,” he smiled in her hair

Ji Hoon was showing Kang Joo how to work the cash register when Nam Soon came from the back with a huge frown on his face. Ji Hoon noticed.

“You ok?”

“Yeah,” he went to take the order from some customers

“What’s his problem?” Kang Joo asked

“I don’t know,”

“Well he came from the back. What’s back there?”

“Just the freezers,” then it dawned on Ji Hoon, he looked shocked at Kang Joo and grabbed her hand to go to the back of the restaurant. They didn’t get far when they found Ha Kyung and Heung Soo hugging rather tightly. Kang Joo was about to make some noise when Ji Hoon placed his hand over and dragged her from the scene.

“What were they doing?” Kang Joo said to a surprised Ji Hoon

“How should I know? I didn’t know they liked each other,”

“They don’t,”

“Well then why were they hugging? Oh wow that’s what Nam Soon must have seen,”

“Listen in all my years of knowing Ha Kyung she has never expressed any kind of interest in Heung Soo; none ok,”

“Well why were they hugging?” he tried to get her to see his point

“Maybe she was upset about finding out Nam Soon has a girlfriend and she started to cry and he was comforting her,” she smiled because she was satisfied with her explanation

“Or they like each other,” Ji Hoon was more satisfied with his, “Well had she never expressed interest in Nam Soon?” he folded his arms

“Well not really but she did get his number before school was over…”

“But she never called him and that was 2 years ago. If she really liked him, don’t you think she would at least send him a text message or an email?”

“Well it’s not like she kept in touch with Heung Soo either so your theory doesn’t add up,”

“I got an idea,”

“What?” she smirked

“Why don’t we just ask them,” he smiled

“Alright he’s your best friend as she is mine. We’ll just ask them,”

LATER AT NIGHT

Ha Kyung and Kang Joo were at the restaurant eating pork and Ha Kyung was drinking a lot of Soju much to Kang Joo’s disappointment. She had only witnessed Ha Kyung drunk 2 times and both times it required her to call a cab and drag her to their apartment. Ha Kyung wasn’t a calm drunk. She was a scary drunk and a very very touchy feely drunk.

“Ok I think that’s enough for you,” Kang Joo took the last cup away from her. She had consumed 8 shots of Soju, “Why are you drinking so much? Did something happen?”

“Why are boys so confusing?”

“I don’t which boys you are talking about?”

“Heung Soo you won’t believe what he told me,”

“What?”

“He likes me. Image the shock I was feeling. And then he asked me what do I think about him? I’m like really, I can’t even fully admit my feelings to Nam Soon but you asked me how I’m feeling about a guy I hardly talked to in high school. The nerve of some people,” she tried to take another shot but Kang Joo blocked her

“So you admit it. You like Nam Soon,” she was happy

“It’s pointless now. He’s dating Hye Mi,”

“This is true,” she was down, “So why were you hugging Heung Soo if you hate him so much?”

“You saw that?” Ha Kyung pouted

“Yeah me and Ji Hoon saw,”

“Crap. I don’t hate him; I was just frustrated and confused and flattered?”

“So you hugged him because you were all those things?”

“Actually he hugged me because I started crying,”

“Why?” she was worried

“Because I admitted about Nam Soon, knowing nothing could happen and he hugged me. He said he didn’t want to see me cry,”

“And you let him hug you?”

“At first I was shocked but then it felt nice. I have never been that close to a man before and it felt good. It so good I didn’t want to let him go,”

“So does this mean you like him too?” Kang Joo was on the edge of her seat

“No it just means I like male hugs,” she laughed loudly and grabbed the last bottle of Soju and destroyed it much to Kang Joo’s horror

The restaurant they were at was only 3 blocks away from their apartment and Kang Joo hated to waste money so she dragged Ha Kyung the best she could home. The only problem was they had to past Bliss to get home and it was about closing time. She so desperately didn’t want to run into her new bosses with Ha Kyung hammered. Timing was everything but unfortunately time was not on their side. Kang Joo was on the block of Bliss when she slipped and she and Ha Kyung fell on the sidewalk. Thankfully a Good Samaritan picked them up. Too bad that good Samaritan was Heung Soo followed by Yi Kyung, Ji Hoon and Jung Ho.

“Drunk already. You girls haven’t even started work yet. Not looking good,” teased Jung Ho

“Oh shut up or are you going to help,” Kang Joo snapped, “I’m so mad at her right now. I don’t even know why she drank so much,”

“Maybe she was trying to wash her sorrows away. Heung Soo told me he told her he liked her,” Ji Hoon whispered to Kang Joo

“I know she told me too as she drank 3 whole bottles of Soju, all by herself,” Heung was trying to get her on her feet. Finally he decided to carry her home

“Why didn’t you stop her?” asked a concern Yi Kyung

“You’ve never been with her drunk. She is scary and emotional…”

“And kissy,” said a wide eyed Ji Hoon

“What?” they all turned to Heung Soo and Ha Kyung to find her totally invading his personal space. She had her legs wrapped around his middle with her hands in his hair, roughly attacking his lips. And if things couldn’t get any worst; after locking up the store; Nam Soon just so happened to come out at that moment. All eyes went to him to see the look of dreadfulness on his face.