♧ NINE ♧

[A/N]: HEADS UP! This chapter contains alcohol & booze and uhh...craziness pertaining to alcohol & booze. Though I'm personally not an advocate of heavy drinking. You may now read on!

Early into the night, the streets of Myeongdong were still very much alive and extremely packed with people. Citizens and tourists alike were busy doing their last minute dining and shopping. Store keepers were doing their very best to attract last-minute customers and sell off the remaining stock of the day to boost their sales or make quota. In fact, people were too preoccupied with their own personal proceedings to notice an unusual pair standing rather idly by one of the walls; a sharp contrast to the hustle and bustle of the area.

Seulbi was currently doing her very best to fan an extremely winded Sunggyu. “Are you a hundred percent sure you don’t have asthma or any underlying lung problem?” she asked out of concern. "Heart problem?"

“Positive.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to see a doctor?”

“J-Just give me time to breathe.”

Today’s light to moderate ambulatory activities included: one, a crowd counterflow; two, a trip down to the lobby via the elevator; and three, walking three blocks down before Sunggyu started looking dyspneic. She had to lug him around for a short distance before they managed to get to less crowded area with a free wall he could lean on.

“I’m going to ask Shimgoon to take you to a doctor for a stress test. If he deems you clear, then I’ll have to ask Howon to start bringing you to the gym. Your stamina is poorer than Sungyeol's.”

Once his breathing had returned back to normal, he turned his attention back to her. “Yeah, yeah. You should call the driver and ask him to pick us up here instead. I am not going through that thick of a crowd ever again.” True enough, even the areas around the hotel entrance were swarming with people. To think London boy wasn't even an international celebrity or anything.

Seulbi shoved her hands in her coat pockets, only to find them empty. “I left my phone at the restaurant. Why can’t you call the driver?”

"I'm out of battery."

"What sane person carries around a handphone that's out of battery?"

"You're one to talk! What's the point of even purchasing the latest iPhone if you're just going to dispose of it so casually?"

“Well, don’t complain. You suddenly started dragging me away, I had no time to grab it off the table."

A mini stare-off ensued after that. Bored and tired, Seulbi just casually broke eye contact, tucking her hands behind her as she leaned on the same wall he had been leaning on. She made sure to put a good deal of distance between them to avoid blowing their little dispute out of proportion. The two stood there wordlessly, watching as people continued to rush past the spot where they were.

"How are we getting home?" Seulbi finally spoke up, breaking the silence.

"We can always take a cab back," Sunggyu suggested nonchalantly.

And it was back to square one with this game of infuriate-the-hell-out-of-each-other. The way he looked at her irked her. Some gentleman he was! Was he seriously expecting her to cover the cab fare? It was getting harder and harder for her to maintain a calm expression in this kind of situation as the seconds ticked by.

"I left my wallet back at the restaurant as well. Why don't you pay for our cab fare instead?" she gritted at him.

He pulled his own wallet out of his back pocket, thumbing through it. "I don't have enough cash on hand."

Sigh. Useless irritant.

Sunggyu definitely did not like that expression she was showing, but he was too tired to even argue with her at the moment. "What do you want me to do about it, then?"

"Leave them. With your condition right now, I really can't let you go back in there." The last thing she wanted was him passing out; her grandfather and aunt would definitely throw a fit. And it looked like Sunggyu would put his foot down if she insisted on getting them herself. "We can check back tomorrow. There's nothing important in that phone nor in that particular wallet anyway. Luckily, I only brought one card. It shouldn't be too hard to have it cancelled if it does end up stolen."

He felt rather bad after that. All of this was technically his fault. He had pulled her out of there without even having a set plan in mind and now they were extremely inconvenienced due to his shortcoming. "If it helps, I think I still have enough to carry us as far as two districts away--"

Something immediately clicked inside Seulbi's brain. "That's okay! It's more than enough!"

"What?"

"The hotel, Sunggyu! We could take a cab to the Olympus and call our driver from there. I can call in to have my phone line disabled, my card cancelled and--"

An uncanny gurgle audible only to her cut her off midway of her sentence, but even if Sunggyu didn't exactly hear it, he was able to deduce by the way her hand shot towards her stomach almost as abruptly as she stopped speaking.

"Starving, aren't you?" he teased.

Seulbi blushed. She was about to open to retort at him but her stomach started gurgling again

"You're lucky we still have extra cash to blow on. Let's go get something to eat before heading to the hotel. You'll have to pay me back when we get home though," Sunggyu suggested, and he motioned for her to come with him. His hand shot up to support his lower back as he began to limp-walk away.

Easy fatigability, dyspneic and low in stamina with lower back pain were definitely not characteristics of a healthy young adult.

"Hey Sunggyu, how old are you again?"

<<<< >>>>

“Don't complain. This is the only decent thing I can afford right now."

Sunggyu had originally planned to take her to one of the street stalls for street food because that would have saved him a great deal of cash, but decided against it in the end. He figured that someone of her status would be totally put-off by something that "sanitary". Lee Seulbi, on the other hand, had stopped listening to him. The heiress was too enthralled over the iconic golden arches as they stood right outside the fast food joint. Anyone who would actually stop to look at them could get creeped out by the girl's intense staring. 

"What, don’t tell me you’ve never eaten at Mcdonald’s before?” Sunggyu huffed, noting her very strange behaviour.

“I have," she replied, nodding in such an absent-minded matter that was coo-worthy, had Woohyun been there with them. "Sorry, it’s just that I haven’t eaten here in a long time.”

“Well today’s your lucky day. Come on! You're not the only one who's starving.”

Luckily, there was no cue at the counter. Sunggyu immediately made a beeline for the nearest one and placed in his order.  “Hi, I’ll have a Quarter Pounder with Cheese, large fries and large drink on the side…”

“… and a Big Mac meal, upsized as well!” Seulbi piped as she reached the counter.

That earned her a wide-eyed stare from him. He has never heard her sound this excited over food before. Scratch that, he's never heard her sound so excited. Ever.

"Hey. Have you no mercy on your stomach?"

Seulbi's pea-sized stomach probably couldn't handle it, capacity-wise. That, and it being too much for his wallet to handle. They didn't call it the 'Big Mac' for nothing after all; her meal was more expensive than his. He's never even had the luxury of buying himself a Big Mac because he couldn't afford it back then.

"So that would be one Quarter Pounder with Cheese meal and a Big Mac meal, both upsized. Would that be all?"

"Yes, thank you!" Seulbi replied to the girl attending to the counter, sealing it before Sunggyu could even start complaining.

He grumbled as he pulled out his wallet, handing the cashier the exact amount of bills. "You're paying me back once we get home. And don't say I didn't warn you if you do end up throwing up. I'm not going to care," he hissed back, but she had run off with their tray containing their food and drinks to find a free table. Shaking his head, he picked up the remaining tray.

Once Seulbi had started eating, Sunggyu couldn't peel his eyes off her, not even for a second. 

It felt like he had invited a Tyrannosaurus Rex over for dinner-- her appetite was voracious! She took in really big chomps at a time, and in a span of a few minutes, she was polishing the remaining bits of lettuce after she had completely devoured the entire burger in its double patty and triple bun glory. His own burger remained untouched, cradled in his hands for the whole duration.

"Are you going to eat that or what? It's rude to stare," she finally asked him.

Sunggyu completely ignored her insult, still in a state of disbelief as to what he had seen. "Has anyone ever told you that you eat like a man?"

"You're not the first. Someone said the same thing once-- Soo thinks it's-- err..." Seulbi began before abruptly cutting herself off. Luckily, Sunggyu failed to catch her little slip. "Why, does it bother you? I can finish bigger burgers in the United States all to myself.”

“Now you're bragging? How are you possibly still lean? Are you sure you're not harboring some insidious metabolic disease?”

“It’s not like I eat Big Macs on a three-times-daily basis. That would be a complete waste of food," Seulbi huffed, grinning once she had finished writing her name on the tray paper, using up all three packets of ketchup.

"Says the person who's currently making a mural out of ketchup packets."

Behind her prim and proper image, Lee Seulbi, Sunggyu realized, had quite the eccentric quirks. The non-creepy kind, of course. This was the side of her that her cousins must have found so endearing.

"I think it's more entertaining to eat my fries like this," she mused, dipping a couple of fries as she re-traced them through the trail of ketchup.  "It's no wonder why Sungjong wants to choke you in your sleep. You tend to nitpick so much on the smallest of details, I guess that's what helps you pick up and formulate things so easily. Though it's unusual to see Mr. Kim Sunggyu take action without a proper game plan. You were in a wild state of panic when you pulled me out today. I wonder why..."

She knew.

Even if it was hinted in a scornful manner, it implied that she had a full grasp of what had happened earlier. What was he even expecting? Of course, Lee Seulbi wasn’t a ditz who couldn’t put two and two together. He shrugged, trying to maintain a cool attitude about it. “Look, I really don’t know what issues you and the rest have with that guy. I don't know what you had going on between you and that guy as well, and I really don’t intend to pry, but God knows what could have happened had I allowed you two to meet head-on. Damage control would have been such a pain in the ."

"I guess you're right," said Seulbi as she nodded in agreement. Sunggyu was unable to fathom the way Lee Seulbi's mind worked. Right now, she was more interested in her fries (whilst shooting side-glances every now and then at the next table's chocolate sundae) than the near-encounter. Normally, girls would cry and sulk about it, but here she was looked absolutely fine. And gluttonous.

His tone turned more serious this time. "More importantly... are you okay?”

Seulbi gave him a mischievous grin in response. Then and there, Sunggyu had decided that this was the last time he was going to ask her about things that were for mere formalities' sake-- she always had that tendency to twist the things he said to her favor. “So you do care about me after all. You’ve grown rather attached to me, haven’t you?”

“D-D-Don’t get your hopes up! Woohyun practically bullied me into keeping watch over you 24/7 in his steed!”

“You're more self-righteous than this. Why are you suddenly letting a younger Woohyun push you around?”

Technically because he's my boss now, he pays me to be your fake cousin and there's nothing I can do about it?

When he made no response, Seulbi sighed, finally giving in to his previous question. “How could I not be? I just finished an entire Big Mac to myself, there’s no way I’m not okay. Tell that to him too if you plan on reporting it back. Though I'd suggest you'd avoid it altogether if you don't want him to blow up at you in misdirected anger.”

He decided then that he'd hold her responsible for that answer. “Then that’s good to know. Comforting crying children isn’t exactly a stronghold of mine."

"Crying child... you wish," she scoffed, dismissing him before he could return a snide remark. "You're not the only one with dry eye syndrome-- anything regarding Abeonim is an exception to that. Anyway, eat. Just eat so we can go home already. We could have been at home by now had you been more efficient about this."

Sneering at her, Sunggyu took one big aggressive bite of his cold Quarter Pounder to display his infuriation. It didn't even taste that appealing anymore because he had left it out in the open for too long, but food was food so he kept eating in bitterness anyway. Damn Lee Seulbi and her weird appetite. Damn her weird eating habits. Damn her snide remarks as well. Each condemnation, he punctuated with an equally angry bite off his burger.

"Thank you."

It was so soft he had almost missed it. Sunggyu almost choked after accidentally swallowing an unchewed chunk, looking up to see Seulbi biting her lower lip, her attention focused on her hands as she drummed her fingers together in a repetitive manner.

"Back then, I promised myself that I'd be more mature about it-- that I'd be able to greet him with a smile on my face the next time we'd meet again. Tonight made me realize that I wasn't as ready as I planned to be, and that I need to re-think the whole situation once more," she admitted quietly. "So thanks for saving my behind back there. You don't know how much I appreciate it." 

Her change of tone was the first thing that he had picked up. It came out softer, much gentler. He's only heard her direct this to her grandfather, so to be addressed likewise...

Sunggyu cleared his throat. Although her sincerity made him feel shy, he had an image to keep up. "No need to thank me," he dismissed coolly, "Cousin obligations; it's what I'm bound to do for the rest of my life anyway. But mind you, I have my own brand of going about it that's much different from your sickeningly sweet cousins, so start getting used to me."

"I am," Seulbi replied softly, taking interest in the rest of her fries once again. "You're a breath of fresh air."

"I-I'm going to get more ketchup!" he announced loudly to hide how flustered he was. With that, he hurriedly made his way to the counter.

I think it's you who I need to get used to.

<<<< >>>>

"The bank called to confirm some purchases which I had absolutely no idea about. Apparently, they were yours. Staggering amount aside, I let you borrow that credit card for emergency purposes until you got an account of your own and this is how you return my kindness?!?"

Sunggyu had to pull his newly-charged handphone away from his ear. Woohyun had been trying to reach his dead phone for the past hour and a half and was now screeching his frustration once he had picked up. Was it his fault that they only managed to reach home a good ten minutes ago? And besides, if not for that unexpected encounter, Seulbi would have paid for it fine.

"Mind you, it really was used for emergency purposes!"

"And what's this about me being banned from Pierre Gagnaire for a month? What in tarnation did you do to sully my name like this?!?"

"It was really an emergency, I swear to God! Why are you being so prissy-- is it your time of the month?"

"Yes, because period jokes are so mature! Emergency, emergency-- that's all I've been hearing! Well then, let's hear it!"

Sunggyu hesitated, remembering Seulbi's warning. Over the line, he could sense that Woohyun was about to implode any minute now, so it was definitely not a good time to casually mention London boy. "That's classified information," he finally murmured. "I'd tell you, but not while you're this pissed off because it would only piss you off even more. So calm the down, it's been a rough day for everyone."

"I'll have you know, this is coming off your next pay check."

Unbelievable. Woohyun, douchebag extraordinaire, had just dropped the call on him. To make his day even better, Lee Sungjong had just brushed by him without even a 'hi' or 'hello'.

"Hey Lee Sungjong, have you become this big-headed? Where have all our years of friendship gone? You're not even going to greet your hyung anymore?"

"Don't talk to me."

Did he just sass at me? Sunggyu could only blink as he watched the younger boy storm into the Lee mansion's family room were the two currently lazing in. He followed the younger boy inside, just to hear him wail out to Lee Seulbi as he marched up to her.

"Oh dear, here we go again," Seulbi sighed, shutting her MacBook Pro, which she had just been using to block access to her iPhone.

Furious, Sungjong threw his satchel down onto the ground, repeatedly hopping and stomping on the sling. Next, he had grabbed a pillow and had started slamming it repeatedly against the couch, even giving it a huge elbow drop in the end. Sunggyu and Seulbi could only stare as the boy continued to manhandle whatever he could get his hands on. 

"What's wrong with him?" Sunggyu whispered, approaching with caution. One false move and he'd end up like that poor pillow from earlier if he got into the younger boy's way.

"It's nothing new, don't worry. He comes complaining like this every chance he gets."

"About what exactly?"

Seulbi shook her head, "My monster of a cousin."

Sunggyu could see where this was going: Nam Woohyun. He would have said Lee Seulbi A.K.A Spawn of Satan, but that wasn't an option in Sungjong's books. The two of them were on really good terms, so that left Woohyun. He wasn't surprised though, he completely understood where Sungjong was coming from. He had just been nagged for a credit charge he didn't mean to make, after all.

Sungjong let out an uncharacteristic roar as he returned to wrestling the pillow. "He infuriates me, that no-good, snot-faced... guuuuh! How do you even stand him?!?"

"I'm most likely biased since I'm his cousin and all-- sure Woohyun knows just the right buttons to push, and he does have a tendency to get carried away with his teasing. I can completely see why he grates on your nerves because I've experienced that too," Seulbi tried to explain. "But he means well..."

"Really?"

"... depending on the circumstances. What did he do this time?"

"I had to tick each and every place off my list permanently because he kept insulting the owner, saying it was too dingy, too cramped; he even suggested getting a sanitary permit for one of them! So we finally find this perfect appartment conveniently near the East highway. It's close to the hospital, the train station, the mall and a bank-- it was in a completely prime location and he looked like he would have agreed to it; I was so close to closing the deal with the landlady, but no! He had to go off and flirt with the opposing bidder. In the end, he gave the appartment to her, saying she needed it more than I did! And it doesn't mean that just because he's not hungry, I'm not hungry as well. He completely ignored dinner, and what time is it? Ten in the evening?"

"Where did you say it was?"

"East Highway. You know, where the big billboards are?"

Ah, I see the problem now.

Sungjong huffed. "I already have an annoying dictator-hyung in my life, I don't need another one!"

"The nerve-- hey, I'm right over here, in case you didn't notice!" Sunggyu barked.

"Hyung, please! I'm already as ticked off as it is!"

Seulbi sighed, getting up from the couch before pointing to Sungjong. "You. Cool it off and head to the kitchen, now. Get them to fix something up for you," she told him before turning her attention to Sunggyu, "And you. Please try not to piss him off while I'm gone."

"Hey, Lee Seulbi, you can't leave me alone with-- he'll murder me! Where are you headed?!?"

"I'll go talk to Woohyun."

<<<< >>>>

"It's me. Can I come in?"

"Just a sec!"

Seulbi could hear muffled footsteps on the other side of the door. "Special delivery for Mr. Nam Woohyun. One grilled chicken and pesto sandwich, less mayo, extra tomatoes, on toasted focacia bread. Just the way you like it," she announced casually once he came out to greet her. "There's no way I'm letting you skip dinner, Mr. Nam. Not on my watch."

Woohyun couldn't help but break out into a smile at the thoughtful gesture. "Come in! I have something for you too." Walking over to his mini fridge, he had pulled a small box out. Seulbi's eyes lit up in joy and excitement once she had recognized what he was holding.

"Chewy Junior!"

"I know they're not up to par with Dongwoo's legit cream puffs from France, but I hope this will do. The fine lady assigned on the last shift refused to sell to me and I really fought tooth and nail to get my hands on this, mind you."

"Wow, you really went out of your way for me?"

"Anything for you, cara mia."

Ignoring his cooing, Seulbi quietly accepted the box, setting it down on the nearest coffee table before grabbing her cousin around the midsection and hugging him tightly. "Thank you, thank you, thank you! You're the best, mon cher!"

He was feeling much better already after seeing Seulbi genuinely elated. That little declaration of love was the perfect cherry on top. It had been subtle, but the girl had been feeling a little down-in-the-dumps as of late, just when she had finally gotten her much needed peace after that emotional rollercoaster brought about by their grandfather and Sunggyu. "It's rather lonely if I eat alone..." Woohyun mused, airing out his intentions discretely.

Seulbi had beaten him to it, already making herself comfortable on his couch while she focused on the box of cream puffs that he had brought for her. "Did I say I was leaving? Of course I'm not going to let you eat dinner alone."

"Are you really here for me, or for the cream puffs?"

They made small chit-chat and Seulbi made sure to hold the topic off until she had ascertained that Woohyun had eaten at least 75% of the meal, lest he lost his appetite once again. "Sungjongie..." she began carefully, "He came over today and is unbelievably pissed off at you."

"If you were here to chastise me about that in the first place, you should have done so earlier."

"I wanted to hear you air your side first before I pass judgement."

Woohyun shrugged. "Everything was my fault. I'm sorry, I was careless," he droned in insincerity, his mind clearly on other things right now as he shifted to mechanical eating.

There was no way she was allowing him to drop the conversation like this. Seulbi tried a more direct approach. "Is there anything bothering you lately?"

"No. None at all."

"Nothing, huh? But now I can't even say the words East highway nor billboard around you without eliciting any violent reaction from you, am I right?"

Woohyun's eyes widened. If she knew about that billboard, then that totally defeated the purpose of hiding it from her and the three others. "Y-You've already seen it?"

Seulbi twiddled with her fork, sighing. "Way ahead of you, Namu. While you took the usual way home after Sunggyu's hospital visit, I took a few shortcuts. It's too big to leave unnoticed. Sorry for keeping it a secret."

The two sat there in silence for quite sometime, having touched on a rather sensitive topic for them both.

"He was at Pierre Gagnaire today," Seulbi admitted. "He got lucky. If it had been any of the three of you, you would have marched up straight to him to beat him up and it could have caused a big commotion. I didn't meet him face-to-face though... Sunggyu had enough sense to pull me out."

So this was the emergency he was talking about earlier. That made Woohyun feel uncomfortable about what had happened earlier. That should have definitely earned the poor guy a raise, not a deduction.

"Telling you to not feel bad about it would be very hypocritical on my part. Just don't take it out unjustly onto Jongie nor on Sunggyu, they've done nothing wrong. Instead, I'll step in as your trustworthy emotional punching bag. I'm pretty resilient, if you haven't noticed? I'm a really good listener too," Seulbi comforted. "At least this much I can do for you."

And that was all he really needed for comfort. Woohyun gave a small smile in gratitude. Glad that he was feeling better, the girl turned back to her remaining cream puffs.

"Major eww, you're so sappy!" he mocked just to make the atmosphere feel les awkward.

Seulbi stopped halfway of stuffing the whole thing into , "I don't even sound like a ditz! And at least I'm on the toned-down side! You're king of it, hands down-- no, I'll melt! Only one hug per day!" Swiping the box that held whatever was left of her dessert, she made a mad dash towards the door to get out of his room. "Just let me finish my cream puffs in peace!"

His cousin was so cute. She reminded him of a pissed-off kitten whose meal had just gotten interrupted. "Bee," Woohyun called out nevertheless, chuckling.

"Hmm?"

"I want to make it up to the two. But I'll need your help. Howon's, Yeol's and Dongwoo's, too."

<<<< >>>>

Sunggyu was on his way back to his room after breakfast when Seulbi called out to him. "Be ready by eight o'clock tonight."

"Huh? What for?"

A closed-lipped, dimpled smile crept up on Seulbi's face. "We're going out to party," came her casual reply.

"What's the occassion?"

"That's a secret."

And that was how he found himself standing in front of the full-body mirror in his walk-in closet, dressed to the nines. So when Seulbi came in sporting a casual printed gray Marc Jacobs pull-over, a black skirt over the usual black high socks and brown pennyloafers, he felt rather embarrassed of what he was wearing.

"You get an A for effort, but you might want ditch the tie, the suit... everything, actually," Seulbi advised.

"It's not a formal social gathering?" Sunggyu blinked in disbelief.

"Not you too? It's not like we frequent evening galas and balls; on the contrary, we dread attending those! Too stiff and boring!" Woohyun snorted as he entered with Sungjong in tow, who had just changed out of his own suit and tie for something more casual as well. "It's the usual college party that kids go these days." 

"Why don't you wear your hair like this more often, Seulbi? It suits you more," Sungjong commented, playing with the tips Seulbi's hair, which had been tied into a messy ponytail. The heiress merely shrugged and fiddled with the strap of her camera bag.

They never even knew she had side bangs! Definitely, it was much more fitting for her age. Sunggyu had thought of the same thing but the younger boy took the words right out of his mouth. He wasn't peeved though-- he'd rather die than admit it to Lee Seulbi's face.

In the end, he had gone for a jacket over a long-sleeved flannel and some black jeans. Jungyeop had seen them off, not before giving them the usual grandfatherly reminder to try to be at their best behaviour and not break things. Now they had boarded the car to head off to the planned venue. "Where are you taking us?" Sunggyu asked as he was the last one to get into the back seat of Woohyun's Audi.

"You're making it sound like we're a bunch of kidnappers," Seulbi pointed out in amusement. "Just around. We fixed up our clubhouse."

"You own a private clubhouse?!?" the two at the backseat chorused. "How big is this place anyway?"

"You two should really get out more," Woohyun advised. "We've been so busy lately, but we'd really like to tour you around when we get the chance. There's much to see here!"

The Lee cousins had turned the main function room into a mini party/clubbing area with Dongwoo's help. House music was blaring through the speakers and boom bass; strobe lights flashed through the area. They even had a glowing bar counter, foosball and beer pong table, and a DJ controller. But what was most eye-catching was the big dangling gold lettering overhead that read:

CHEERS, SUNGGYU AND SUNGJONG!

A bunch of party poppers went off, spraying loads of confetti in the air, surprising the two. A few bright camera flashes (care of the Seulbi's DSLR) went off as well to capture the moment. Hoya, Sungyeol and Dongwoo were already at the venue by the time they got there.

"You guys have really outdone yourselves this time!" Woohyun commended, awed by the area set-up. "This place looks like it could compete with Gangnam!"

"What took you guys so long?" Dongwoo cheered. True enough, the three had gotten too impatient to wait for everyone, so they've already started pouring out some of the drinks for sharing amongst themselves. "We couldn't keep our hands off the vodka, sorry."

"Is this one of those wild house parties where everyone gets drunk, goes bat crazy, and ends up with a Bengal tiger in the bathroom and a few missing teeth the next day?" Sungjong asked, apalled. He had no plans on taking part in that kind of pointless nonsense. Maybe he'd reconsider though if he was the only one sober enough-- there would be so much to laugh at.

"This isn't The Hangover, Sungjong. Come to think of it, we've never gotten that wild, no, but I can't deny that there were times when we'd had our attendants come over to pick us up when some of us were too wasted," Hoya mused after setting his shot glass down. "This is how we unwind, by getting together amongst us cousins. Why go out when we can hang out together like this?"

"Will there be other guests coming over?" Sungjong asked loudly over the music.

"It's just us! This was all hyung's idea: a welcome party for you two!" Sungyeol greeted them with a big gummy grin. They were surprised to see that he had this many piercings: a series of earring studs lined the whole curve of his left ear.

"I almost didn't recognize you! You should just totally ditch the glasses!" Sunggyu and Sungjong chorused, surprised by the pleasant change of image.

"SEE?!?" the rest chorused from behind him.

"You're all making me self-conscious! Keep it up, you guys, and you'll be partying with no music, I swear."

Dongwoo approached each of them to hand each a glass of champagne. "We're not forcing you to drink though if you really don't want to. No pressure. Seulbi doesn't really drink too," he eased, making sure they were alright with it.

"No problem here. I've worked at a bar before so it's fine," Sunggyu responded, accepting it. "Jong?"

"Well, it would be rude not to take part in a welcome toast," the younger boy mused, accepting the glass as well. Dongwoo had been so kind to lessen the amount before he did so though.

Seeing that everyone was ready, Woohyun gave Seulbi a little nudge, which she automatically protested to. "Me? I've never done it before-- you do it! I don't even like the taste of champagne!"

"As future CEO and head of the family, you'll have to learn how to do ceremonial toasts. You'll be doing it more often in the future. Go on, just try."

Shyly, she cleared and on cue, Sungyeol lowered the music a little to give her her moment to speak.

"Hi. I'm not sure how this goes since it's always Woohyun who's done it before-- but wow, it's been awhile since we've gathered like this. We've always been so busy lately with our own personal schedules, it's a little sad that the only time we get to really bond is over stocks, equities and company reports. Over the past few weeks, we've all been tested greatly with Abeonim's health condition. Despite all that, well, here we are because we managed to pull through it together!"

"I hope tonight's celebration would not be all about the fun, the crazy, and the drinks-- it is my sincere wish that this would serve as a much-needed friendly reminder that even though we don't see each other on a 24/7 basis despite being next-door-neighbors, that even though we fight and bicker sometimes, by the end of the day, we've all got each other's backs. This, of course, holds true as well for our newest additions to the family, to whom I extend my warmest welcome to. I'd like to think you're blessings in disguise; we couldn't have gotten through these latest hardships without your patience and support," Seulbi said, raising her own champagne flute. "So tonight, we drink to Sunggyu and to Sungjong. To family. Here's to growing and making more memories together. Cheers!"

"CHEERS!" the rest chorused, clinking their glasses together before they drank in unison.

"Shall we make tonight one for the books? Without further ado... hit it, DJ Yeol!"

Grinning, Sungyeol kicked the volume up a notch in response as he hit up his first mix of the night while Hoya and Dongwoo took their brewing dance battle to the dance floor. Woohyun looked on proudly as his little project slowly came to life. Seulbi had been snapping away on her dSLR before Hoya had pulled her to join in on the dancing. Seulbi, not wanting to be pulled on this alone, literally dragged Woohyun along with her.

One could see by the interactions that the group was really tight-knit. It was no surprise since they've grown up together. To be let into their little circle so willingly was definitely unexpected, but very much appreciated.

Sungjong looked on, enthralled by how much fun they were having despite the small number of people present. "You coming to dance, hyung?"

"I don't dance," Sunggyu declined politely, raising his hand. Sure he's been at bars, but he's always been backdoors, never on the dancefloor.

"Neither do I. But what's a welcome party for us if we're not even taking part of it?" Sungjong piped. "Come on!"

<<<< >>>>

"Easy. Watch your step."

"Don't boss me around!"

"Would you look at that? Intoxicated, and still you manage to be so snarky."

Seulbi had to cut their party shortly before 2 AM for the three had gotten rather out of hand after having one too many drinks. Although being part of the sober committee had its perks, it had its downside too. Sungyeol thought it was fun to hide one pair of his sneakers into the highest place possible. Until now, said sneaker remained unfound. Hoya had deliberately submerged his whole head in the remaining bowl of punch. Woohyun would not stop blabbing about anything and everything under the sun, and that whole time, Sunggyu was making sneaky attempts of strangling him. Once she had gotten everyone and everything back in order, everyone was sent home. Dongwoo was staying over at the Lee's for the night and although he was hit as well, volunteered to care for the two younger boys. Likewise with Sungjong, still perfectly sober, who was in charge of Woohyun.

That left her to play servant girl for this extremely cranky, sulky egotistical drunk man-child.

Shimgoon was there to greet them, holding something very familiar. "Your phone and wallet, young miss," he announced. "This came in earlier from one of the supervisors of Pierre Gagnaire. He said it was turned over by the customer seated on the table beside yours. Said customer also requested to have it sent here."

She found that strange. There were no customers next to them that night. "Did he say who he was?" Seulbi clarified.

"I'm afraid not, miss."

In the end, she quietly accepted the items. While she mulled over them what to do with them now, she had left Sunggyu in the care of Shimgoon, asking him to take the boy up to his room. This was too suspicious for it to be suddenly returned like this. Seulbi decided she was going to have Sungyeol look over her phone as soon as possible to see if it's been tampered with. Or better yet, she'd buy a new unit altogether.

All this while she had been pouring herself a glass of water in the dining area when in waltzed a still stumbling Sunggyu, who had greedily grabbed for it. Seulbi grabbed her own glass quickly enough with both hands to keep him from pulling it away. "Why aren't you in your room yet? This is mine," she gritted.

"I need it more, I'm parched," Sunggyu pouted, pulling on it with more force, "Give it to me."

"This is my usual drinking glass, there is no way I am sharing saliva with you, cousin or not!" Seulbi insisted, pulling the blue colored glass back towards her.

The two were currently engaged in a stupid game of tug-of-war over a glass of water. By now the glass had completely lifted from the counter as they continued to fight over it. Seulbi gave one last yank, throwing Sunggyu off his balance, sending him slamming clumsily into the kitchen counter. He fell with an unceremonious thud, groaning.

Seulbi sighed, proceeding to helping him up. God, this was going to be a loooong night.

<<<< >>>>

"Take me to the balcony, my loyal subject!" Sunggyu slurred once they got to the second landing.

His big ego got even bigger when he was alcohol-infused; he had taken to ordering her around like he was some sort of king. Seulbi found herself complying 80% of the time, because he would sulk if she didn't and she thought he made a really bad impression of an octopus when he pouted. There were times like this though when Seulbi had to put her foot down and refuse with a stern no; steering him in the opposite direction, with much difficulty. She had thought her troubles were over the moment she entered his loft-type room, only to remember his bed was another flight of stairs away. Sunggyu childishly wiggled his foot to kick his high-cut sneakers off. The heiress had to hold his foot down to untie his shoelaces before allowing him to continue.

She was lucky that Sunggyu could still walk fine and all she had to do was supervise him to make sure he didn't fall. If she could just knock him unconscious and drag him carelessly across the floor though, that would have been much better.

"Three more steps, careful," she told him. He had swayed and tripped, pulling her down with him. "I said careful!!"

With God's grace, their long walk to forever ended. Sunggyu literally fell face-first and died on his bed.

"I don't feel well," he gurgled out another order before she could even leave, "Blanket." Seulbi yanked it from beneath his legs and put it over him. She had to greatly restrain herself from strangling him with it.

"Is there anything else can I do for you, your highness?"

"Yes. Water."

Note to self, drunk people lacked the inherent ability to understand sarcasm. She stomped down the flight of stairs, going towards his mini-fridge to pull out a tumbler of water before marching back up and handing it over to an already waiting Sunggyu. She sat on the edge of his bed as she waited on him to finish. "Done?"

Nodding, he handed the now-emptied tumbler back to her. "You're pretty."

Now where did that suddenly come from? Seulbi figured it must have been the alcohol talking.

"And you're drunk. Nice talking."

Sunggyu ignored her previous remark and scooted closer. "It suits you. Why don't you wear your hair like that?" he inquired, tilting his head slightly to the side as he continued to observe her.

"What if I want to tie it in a bun?"

"What if I don't want you to tie it in a bun? What if I don't want it in a ponytail either?" he countered, reaching over to pull the elastic away from her already loose ponytail. To make it worse, he had even ruffled her hair to .

Seulbi was livid. Flustered, she pulled her hair back into one big hasty side twist before making a wild swipe in the air in attempt to grab the elastic back. In his intoxicated state, even had the atrocity to make sure it was far off from her reach. "Don't make me knock you unconscious, I'm seriously considering it right now!" she threatened darkly.

In the end, Sunggyu had gone to the extreme length of chucking her hair tie off the second landing. "Why would you even--?!?" she screeched at him but he had grabbed her by both her shoulders, making her face him. By now her hair had really fallen loosely around her face. "Hey, let go. I said, let go!"

"Much better," he whispered, seemingly proud of himself.

The girl felt a tad bit dissapointed. All this while, she had believed that he wouldn't be one to put her up on such a high pedestal, unlike the rest of her cousins but here he was, doing just that. Little did she know that she was completely reading it from a wrong perspective.

"You're really pretty," Sunggyu whispered again, his tone serious now, "I--"

He was now uncomfortably close, his face a mere couple of centimetres away from hers. Seulbi’s eyes widened in response to the sudden change in proximity. "You... what?" she dared to ask.

Instead of giving a proper response, Kim Sunggyu gave an almighty heave.

Lee Seulbi backed off immediately away from his bed at the warning sound, but it was too late. Sunggyu had managed to throw up over her shirt, her right shoulder and the tips of her hair receiving most of the bulk of puke. She stood there in great shock, while Sunggyu grinned stupidly up at her as if nothing happened. Warm semi-liquid that reeked of alchohol continued to ooze down her shirt and she shuddered and nearly gagged. It was going to take forever to clean this up, let alone get the stench off her.

There was no way she was just going to smile back and let this pass.

"KIM SUNGGYU, WHAT THE ACTUAL--?!?"

 

Sunggyu swore that the massive headache he woke up to the next morning, with last night's events unrecalled, wasn't just from the hangover.

Author's Note: For those of you that didn't know-- Sungyeol did a DJing stint during OGS tour, and in this year's Pepsi CF. But I'm sure most of you already knew that. Infinite is highly multi-talented, gosh. I have no regrets in coming across this group!