December 2008

            The perks of bringing along a wealthy heir were the private V.I.P rooms and the amazing customer service. Every so often, they would come into the room and check on our well-beings. And when we wanted to order more things, they had given us a button to buzz them at the kitchen. Both Jong In and I were aghast when the waiter began cooking our meat, but Sehun seemed unfazed.

            “Dig in,” Sehun said after the waiter had left us to help ourselves. Jong In and I exchanged eye contact, still amazed by the treatment we were receiving. Rich people and poor people are seriously from two different worlds. The difference between the two classes is astounding.

            Both Jong In and I hesitated when we picked up our chopsticks.

            “If you’re here to watch me eat, then suit yourself,” Sehun commented, already eating his third slice of meat. Jong In reached into the sea of meat first, picking out a piece of pork cheek. Popping it into his mouth, he smiled.

            “This is delicious.” It was his words of consent that I began eating.

* * * *

            “Let’s play a drinking game!” Jong In suggested. By now, we’ve eaten everything we possibly could consume. Now, we were just washing down the fat with liquor.

            “I can’t really take my alcohol that well,” Sehun stated as he brought a cup of water up to his lips. He downed all the liquid in one shot, quenching his thirst.

            “Its fine, neither can Hana,” Jong In pointed at me.

            “You shouldn’t be speaking either,” I countered, “last time you barfed after drinking three shots of Soju. If anything, I can handle my alcohol better than you can.”

            “Whatever,” Jong In rolled his eyes. “Okay, so basically we count the numbers consecutively. However, for multiples of three, we must clap in place of the number. We can’t say it. If you do say it, you have to take a shot of Soju.”

            “Sounds simple enough,” Sehun nodded.

* * * *

            “Let’s stop playing this,” Sehun proclaimed after drinking his fourth shot of Soju. Turned out Sehun wasn’t really good at drinking games. He tended to forget the rules after each round, forcing Jong In and I to take turns re-explaining the game.

            “Well let’s finish drinking this at least,” Jong In gestured to the untouched bottles of Soju. “We wouldn’t want this to go to waste, would we?”

            “I’ll stay sober,” I announced, “There has to be at least one of us who is not intoxicated.”

            “Hana, I don’t think—“ Jong In began protesting.

            “Mr. Lee will take us home,” I cut Jong In off with a smile, “don’t worry about it. I’ll call him ahead of time, so he can be waiting by the time we finish.”

            And, so, just like that, Jong In had succumbed to the tempting alcohol on the table.

* * * *

            After the two males finished the bottles of alcohol, I decided it was time to leave. Mr. Lee was waiting outside, but someone still had to pay the bill. Of course, being the only sober person out of the three, I was chosen to pay.

            “How much is it?” I said, taking out my wallet. There goes a month of money for myself, I thought. The waitress merely shook her head, denying my attempt of payment.

            “Mr. Oh Sehun has already paid for it, as he had reserved a room earlier this week.”

            “Oh,” I mumbled, “thanks.” The employee’s vague answer only left me more curious. Was Sehun planning to ask me to dinner to celebrate the upcoming year? I suddenly felt guilt consuming my insides out. Sehun didn’t have feelings for me, did he? He just viewed me as a friend, correct?

* * * *

            “Thank you, Mr. Lee,” I said, balancing Jong In with my arms. Shifting my weight to one leg, I threw his arm around my shoulder as I hoisted him up. He sure was heavy for a male of his age. But I couldn’t blame him. He was intoxicated.

            I turned to thank Sehun, but he was knocked out. “Tell Mr. Oh that I said thank you. And don’t forget to remind him to take some aspirin. Judging by the amount of alcohol he consumed, he’s going to get a really bad hangover tomorrow morning.”

            “You take care of Mr. Kim as well,” Mr. Lee replied.

            “I will,” I promised. I casted one last glance at the sleeping figure of Sehun before slamming the door shut. “Let’s go, Jong In-ah.”

* * * *

            Finally, with much difficulty, Jong In and I reached our apartment’s front door. Propping  Jong In against the wall, I dug into my pocket to fish out keys. Upon feeling the cold metal against my skin, I struggled to fit the key into the hole in the dark. As I twisted the key, Jong In began mumbling.

            “Mmm, Eun…”

            “Just wait a little longer, Jong In,” I opened the door and helped Jong In into the apartment. After slamming the door shut, I collapsed onto the floor. I could only handle so much weight during an hour. Jong In had soaked up all my energy – I was the sun, he was the solar panel.

            “Hye, heheh, you look different to…day,” Jong In slurred as he weaved a strand of my hair around his index finger. At this small gesture, my heart began accelerating.

            “Let’s…go to sleep,” I suggested as I removed his finger from my hair. But he suddenly reached out and clung to my neck. Digging his face into the crook of my neck, I could feel Jong In’s breath dissolve into my skin.

            “No…don’t leave me, Eun Hye.” Before I could even react, Jong In dived in and placed his lips over mine. Every muscle in my body froze. After all these months of musing over Jong In’s lips and quietly observing him, I never expected our relationship to turn out this way. Had he not said a different girl’s name, I would have enjoyed the moment a whole lot better. But something told me Eun Hye was an important girl in Jong In’s life.

            Everyone has their own past. A tatt