It's been over two weeks since the incident. The police blocked off the roof for investigation but the hospital was functioning as normal. The Police Commissioner kept some officers around after, but once it was determined that Kang-Dae wasn’t coming back. The officers’ assignments at the hospital also ended. The incident was kept under wraps, so the details about a dangerous escape convict never made the news. What ended up being reported was drowned in an ocean of information.

“...that’s all for today’s weather report. Next up…”

“Still nothing,” Solar sighed, placing her phone down on the bathroom sink. “I wonder if they’re up.”

Solar put her hair into a high ponytail and headed for the kitchen to prepare breakfast. She glanced at the messy room and let out a sigh. This is going to take a while to clean. She looked over at Moonbyul and giggled. I wonder how she’ll react when she wakes up.

“Can I help?” Whee-In asked, smiling brightly.

“Please,” Solar returned the gesture.

“What are we making?”

“Something for their hangover.” Solar looked at the people still sleeping on the floor.

“I saw some ingredients for kongnamul-guk (bean sprout soup) in the fridge. How about that?”

“Good idea.”

“Last night was crazy.”

“That’s an understatement…” Whee-In let out a long sigh.

==============================================

THE NIGHT BEFORE

“CHEERS! TO YOUR HEALTH!”

The raised soju bottles clashed against each other before they were devoured. Solar, Whee-In, Seung-Ho, and Dong-Yul took a few sips while Moonbyul, Hwasa, and Jade drank till the last drop. Whee-In glared at them. Dong-Yul cheered them on. Solar shook her head and sighed. Seung-Ho was trying to convince them to slow down but they ignored him.

“Can’t you guys have a normal get-together without a competition?” Whee-In remarked.

“Where’s the fun in that?” Hwasa exclaimed, slamming her empty bottle on the table.

“We’re celebrating them getting discharged. Not trying to put more people in the hospital!”

“You worry too much. We’re just having a bit of fun.” Hwasa assured.

“She’s right!” Jade chimed in. “If we’re doing it, we gotta live a little. Let loose, you know? Besides, we’re sleeping here tonight, so what’s the harm in having a little fun?”

Hwasa nudged Whee-In, “please,” she whimpered cutely.

What am I gonna do with her? Whee-In could only sighed, “I guess there’s no harm in just A BIT,” she emphasized.

“Alright!” Easy-peasy. Hwasa raised her voice in excitement and Whee-In smiled.

Solar turned to Moonbyul and said, “you shouldn’t overdo it. You’re still healing.”

“Sorry,” Moonbyul rubbed the back of her head, “I forgot.”

How could she forget something like that? Solar shook her head in disbelief, “it’s fine to have fun. Just be careful.”

She’s so cute. “I will,” Moonbyul petted Solar’s head, “don’t worry.”

“I’m not a kid,” she tried to swat Moonbyul’s hand away.

Dong-Yul nudged Seung-Ho as they watched Solar and Moonbyul. “Jealous of Solar?” he questioned excitedly.

Seung-Ho almost spat out his drink, “W-what?”

“I’m asking if you also want Moonbyul to treat you like that.”

“W-why would I?”

“Because you two, you know…kissed,” Dong-Yul gestured with his hands.

“It’s not…”

“What are you two whispering about over there!?” Jade yelled, “come and join us!”

“Coming!” Dong-Yul happily replied.

Moonbyul turned towards Seung-Ho, “are you joining us?”

Seung-Ho glanced at her lips before replying, “ah…y-yeah.”

“Your face is a bit red. Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah…it’s probably the alcohol.”

“Low tolerance?” she raised an eyebrow.

“Come on, you two! We wanna start!” Hwasa rushed before Seung-Ho could answer.

“Coming, coming. Keep your pants on.” Moonbyul replied, sitting down next to Solar.

“Ready to lose?” Hwasa smirked.

“In your dream,” Moonbyul scoffed.

They played spin-the-bottle, and the choice was between a dare or a challenge. If a player refused, they had to take two shots of soju. If they failed, it was one shot. However, if they succeeded, then the challenge issuer would have to take two shots. If a player refused more than three times consecutively, they would have to drink one bottle. The first few rounds were more or less tamed.

Moonbyul and Hwasa challenges were similar, mostly physical activities; such as, arm wrestling, dance off, pull-up, etc. Solar and Whee-In refused to participate in most of it. Seung-Ho was a surprise contender in arm wrestling. He couldn’t beat Moonbyul or Jade, but ended in a tie with Dong-Yul. Jade ended up winning but it could have gone either way. In the dance-off, everyone was in awe with Moonbyul and Hwasa so they couldn’t pick a winner.

When it came to dares, Hwasa couldn’t really think of what she wanted, so she dared the others to act like any aquatic creature. Once she was drunk however, she started telling them to say something bad about someone they liked, aka, Moonbyul to Solar or vice versa. Of course, Moonbyul turned it around and dared her to do it to Whee-In, they all lost on that front. As for Moonbyul, once she was drunk, she insisted that people pole-dance, however she kept forgetting there was no pole to dance on.

Whee-In would always begin her turns with, “I dare you to confess your innermost desire,” accompanying it was a sinister grin, before telling them that she was joking. The others weren’t really sure if she was just joking, so they didn’t take her up on it. Her challenge was to do a cute, y, or handsome pose. The person must choose a pose and announce it beforehand. Then it was up to the judges’ honesty. Since there were five judges, Whee-In was not allowed to judge her own challenges, the player needed three votes for it to be considered a success.

Even before everyone had too much to drink, the chances of Whee-In losing was lower than fifty percent. Unless, of course, they wanted to vote against her. Everyone was honest, beside Hwasa, who wanted to play with fire. Once they were drunk, she was almost guaranteed to win every round. The reason was simple. They couldn’t remember which pose was announced, so Moonbyul, Hwasa, and Jade would almost always choose to fail the participant if they were judging.

Once it was the drunkards turn to be put on display, Hwasa announced cute but always ended up with y. Moonbyul said y but did a cool and handsome pose. Jade laid flat on the floor, rolled around a bit, stared at the ceiling and then rinsed and repeated. When Jade did that, Moonbyul and Hwasa cheered her on and with Dong-Yul’s vote, she was the only success in Whee-In’s challenge. By this time, Whee-In, Solar, and Seung-Ho had already switched over to drinking water and the drunkards drank whether they won or lost.

Solar dares and challenges were the same, to walk with their eyes closed and find their way to the front yard without walking into anything. It wasn’t hard to do since the distance was short. This outcome meant she had to drink a lot in the beginning, however Moonbyul helped her. The others protested at first, but Moonbyul reminded them that there was no rule against drinking for someone else.

With Moonbyul drinking for her, Solar was only a bit tipsy by the end of the game. As for the others, once they became inebriated, Solar’s challenge was a lot harder. They would trip over their own feet or wobble into anything and everything. Solar thought the stages of drunkenness were pretty entertaining to observe.

Seung-Ho couldn’t participate in most of the physical activities, since his leg was still on the mend. The others gave him a pass if it was too strenuous. By the end, he probably consumed the least amount of alcohol. He, Solar, and Whee-In watched as the drunkards screamed into their invisible microphones, singing whatever it was that was popping into their heads. Although Dong-Yul was only half as drunk as the others, he joined in on the craziness anyway.

Jade and Dong-Yul kept daring people to kiss anyone in the circle. They wanted to see if anyone would actually go for it, especially Moonbyul and Seung-Ho. Of course while sober, Moonbyul groaned when it was their turn. Hwasa thought it was fun at the start and hilarious when she was drunk. Whee-In and Hwasa kissed without problem. Moonbyul and Solar might have gotten closer but they haven’t reached the point of casually kissing again. Seung-Ho just shyly drank his soju. Jade and Dong-Yul also took their shots when they were put in the same situation.

Eventually, Solar, Whee-In, Seung-Ho, and Dong-Yul went to get some fresh air while the other three continued to party. It didn’t take long before things got quiet, which made them worry so they went back inside to check. Jade was sitting still admiring the scene in front of her. Hwasa was leaning over Moonbyul, one hand on the floor to support herself, the other gently lifting Moonbyul’s chin up to meet her gaze. Moonbyul was propped up by her elbows. Her jacket draped half-way down her arms.

“What are you doing?” Whee-In pulled Hwasa off.

“Noo~ fuuunnnn~”

“I think you had enough for one night!” She dragged Hwasa into Moonbyul’s room and closed the door.

Moonbyul was dozing off when Solar and Seung-Ho went to check on her. “How are you feeling?” Solar questioned.

Moonbyul smiled hearing Solar’s voice. “Huuuggg~” she said with a big grin, her eyes still shut. She grabbed Solar’s hand and pulled her closer. As she embraced Solar, she commented, “Y-yooouu boneyyy~ buuuttt it’s aaa mmmkkk, yoouu cooomfy.”

“Um Moonbyul, that’s Seung-Ho you’re hugging,” Solar tried to pry her off but her grip was too strong.

“Hmm?” She looked at Seung-Ho’s face then down to his chest. “Flllaatt! I heeelp,” she patted his chest a few times before passing out. Her head leaning on his shoulder.

“...” Seung-Ho was rendered speechless.

“Let’s grab some blankets and pillows,” Solar suggested, looking over at Jade and Dong-Yul already fast asleep.

“Good idea,” he smiled, laying Moonbyul down.

They tucked everyone in before making themselves comfortable. Seung-Ho was lost in thought, unable to forget the image of Moonbyul falling asleep in his arms. Glancing in Solar’s direction, he saw the smile on her face as she played with Moonbyul’s hair. He sighed softly and smiled, I really can’t compete.

==============================================

Moonbyul felt the warmth of the person next to her and smiled. She pulled them closer and snuggled against their back. It’s warm. She smells nice. We haven't shared a moment like this in a while, she smiled brightly as the thought crossed her mind. She hugged them tighter and her hand brushed across their chest. Pausing for a moment, she thought, something is missing… She squeezed it a few times and thought, it’s kind of firm… It can’t be… Did I…? Did we…? Nooo! Why did I put myself in such an awkward situation!? She sighed. My head hurts. I really should stop drinking so much.

Unsure of what to say when she opened her eyes, she hesitated. Damn it, what should I do!? What do you do in a situation like this!? As she was debating in her head, she didn't realize her hand was still groping his chest. I can’t hide forever. It’s now or never. She took a deep breath, making sure it wasn’t too obvious that she was already awake.

“Mornin,” the star struck eyes stare back at her with anticipation.

“Oh, it’s you.” Moonbyul sat up, rubbed her temple, and sighed. “I feel like crap,” she whispered.

“What do you mean, ‘oh, it’s you’?” How could you say that after what you did?” Dong-Yul puffed up his chest. “What? Is it not big enough? Not soft enough?”

“What are you talking about?”

“You took advantage of me and…and now you’re brushing me aside like nothing happened,” he weeped dramatically.

Moonbyul glanced over in his direction, rolled her eyes, and sighed. What did I wake up to?

“Jade~” he called in a cute maidenlike voice. “Look how she’s acting!”

“There, there,” Jade petted him as he pretended to cry on her shoulder. “Moonbyul, you’re being too heartless.”

“Me!?” She raised an eyebrow. “What did I do?”

“You can’t just use him and throw him away like this. You have to take responsibility.”

“That’s right! You tell her Jade,” Dong-Yul nodded fervently.

“Responsibility for what?”

“For me, silly,” he said shyly. “You were so strong and gentle.” He tapped her shoulder flirtily, giving her goosebumps. “I don’t regret our time together.” He giggled like a young girl in love.

“I do,” she responded without skipping a beat.

He latched onto her arm, “Noo~, don’t say that with such a cold look on your face.”

Devil takes me. It’s too early for this. “Get away,” she tried to push him off.

“Give me another chance! I’ll do anything! Anything you want~!”

“Don’t want it.”

“Don’t leave me~. I need you~.”

“Tough luck.”

“You’re so mean~.”

“Not the first day you know me.”

Solar placed the food down and Moonbyul looked at her like a lost puppy. She giggled and said, “alright, stop teasing her. Food is ready.”

“Aye, aye,” Jade and Dong-Yul replied enthusiastically and thanked her for the meal.

“By the way, you sound pretty disappointed earlier,” Jade nudged Moonbyul.

“When?”

“When you woke up and saw Dong-Yul.”

“Was I?”

“Yeah, who did you think I was?” Dong-Yul raised an eyebrow.

“Solar, of course.” Whee-In chimed in. “Who else could it be?”

“But she, you know,” he d his chest to demonstrate.

“She did, huh?” Hwasa gave Moonbyul a suspicious look.

“What?” Moonbyul met her gaze.

“Were you disappointed he’s not Seung-Ho?” she said mischievously, nudging Moonbyul.

Moonbyul choked on her soup and Seung-Ho bit his tongue. Solar and Whee-In told them to stop with the teasing and focus on their breakfast. They chatted and laughed, enjoying a fulfilling meal together.