It had been a week since Namjoon first turned up at the office, and he and Seokjin had already fallen into a routine. One -usually Namjoon- would usually arrive earlier than the other and would get drinks at the company cafe (an iced mocha for Namjoon, a bottle of mineral water for Seokjin) and go to the office and work on something-or-the-other. On the rare occasions that they arrived at the same time, they would get a few muffins or banana bread in addition to the drinks and head up to the office to work.

After a particularly lazy Monday morning, Seokjin suddenly realised something. He sat bolt upright in his chair.

Namjoon glanced at him, his fingers stilling on the keyboard. “What is it?”

“I just realised, I haven’t thanked you for driving me home yet.” Seokjin stared at Namjoon with alarm in his eyes.

Namjoon’s face shifted from confusion to realisation to an expression approaching horror. “What- nonono, you don’t have to thank me at all!” He held up his hands.

Seokjin shook his head. “I’m treating you to dinner tonight, and there’s nothing you can do about it.” He closed his eyes and nodded resolutely.

Namjoon half-rose in his seat, alarm spreading on his face. “No, I couldn’t possibly accept- anyone would have done the same-”

Seokjin cut him off by pointedly fixing Namjoon with a glare. “You can’t not accept. If you somehow manage to not accept, I will feel guilty until you do accept, and I’ll keep annoying you until you do accept. So save us both some trouble and accept.”

Namjoon took a second to process the sentence, then slumped back into his chair. “...Okay. Thank you, Seokjin-shii.”

Seokjin grinned, pleased. “My pleasure.”

________________________________________________________

Seokjin and Namjoon sat across from each other, mulling over the menu they were sharing. Seokjin had chosen a little Japanese restaurant that he was familiar with (Namjoon insisted that he choose a place to eat). The atmosphere was cozy, with brick walls, cushiony sofas instead of chairs and dim yellow lighting.

Seokjin tapped a finger on the menu. “It’s too cold for sushi, so how about udon? Or do you prefer ramen?”

Namjoon, bewildered at all the new names, stammered, “U-um, you choose. I’m fine with anything as long as it’s warm.”

Seokjin peered at Namjoon. “Are you sure? I don’t want to order something you might not like.”

Namjoon glanced at Seokjin, then back at the menu. “...Um, I do like eating beef.”

Seokjin called over a waiter and placed his order (tempura udon and takoyaki). He looked at Namjoon. “Do you want a beef ramen? It comes with gyoza- fried dumplings, I mean- on the side.”

Namjoon nodded dumbly, his mouth watering at the prospect of beef. “Are you sure it’s not too expensive? I could pay for my food if-”

Seokjin cut him off with a wave of his hand. “I said I’d pay. Treat this as a thank you for getting me back to my house safe.” He smiled at Namjoon.

Ten minutes later, steaming bowls and plates of food were placed on their table, as well as a complimentary bottle of sake. Namjoon stared, only having seen such delicious-looking food as pictures on foodie blogs. He looked up at Seokjin.

“A-Are you sure it’s okay for me to eat this?”

Seokjin smiled and handed over a pair of chopsticks. “Of course.”

He took a pair for himself and cracked it apart (the ends came out uneven). “Let’s eat.”

Namjoon smiled, and cracked his own chopsticks apart (the ends also came out uneven). “Yes, let’s.”

Author’s Note:

...ye-e-a-a-a-h… this chapter is a bit weird… haha whoops (I had fun writing about the food tho YUMMY OH MY GOD I GOTTA GET ME SOME JAPANESE FOOD AGAIN //CRIES//)

FYI! FOOD

• tempura udon is udon noodles served in hot broth/topped with tempura (it’s supposed to be called tanuki udon but i didn’t want to interrupt the flow of the chapter by making you guys look up tanuki udon)

• takoyaki is fried octopus balls (they so yum :Q)

• beef ramen is beef ramen (hehe)

• gyoza is fried dumplings with a thick doughy skin? cover? whatever the outside is called (THEY SO DELICIOUS WHAT CAN I SAY I LOVE FOOD)

• sake is a rice wine (i’ve never had this before rest assured people)
   

I’m not really happy about the end of this chapter… it’s a bit weird, so yeah oops haha //hides//

btw, did my writing style shift? this chapter feels a little different from the others… it also feels a bit rushed in comparison to other chapters...

*awkward out*

P.S mUCH SHORT CHAPTER MUCH??