“We know” they say at the same time.

And Sungyeol feels all of his composure turn to dust.

(He was so incredibly stupid to make that comment about Myungsoo’s able dimplesー

So incredibly stupid to ruin things before they even beganー

And now everyone at Infinitea is going to know that he’s some dimple-obsessed freak, andー)

“We know that you like Myungsoo,” Woohyun clarifies.

“And we’re going to help you win him over,” Momo concludes.

Sungyeol’s brain comes to a screeching halt for the second time that day.

“Judging by your silence, you must have no clue how obvious you were being earlier,” Woohyun elaborates, grinning so widely that Sungyeol can perfectly make out the sharpness of his canine teeth.

“Which is actually pretty understandable, seeing as how oblivious Dongwoo oppa and Lizzy unnie are,” Momo continues. “But Woohyun oppa and I like to think that we actually notice things around Infinitea, and we definitely noticed you making moon eyes at Soo oppa.”

Sungyeol audibly swallows, only half understanding the situation that he’s unexpectedly walked into.

“Hーhow...” Sungyeol starts and then stops, redirecting all his remaining mental power into putting on the performance of a lifetime for the two hyenas grinning before him.

“How could you say something like that on my first day? Myungsoo-ssi is practically a stranger to me, how could I make moon eyes at him during my shift,” Sungyeol argues, trying his best to sound convincing. “You both saw how hard I was working today, I hardly had time to breathe! Besides, even if I am interested in Myungsoo-ssi, why would I do anything to make a move on him while Sunggyu-ssi is watching me like a hawk?”

“But that’s the thing, Sungyeol-ssi!” Woohyun intones, his grin becoming even wider. “Even if you weren’t aware of your own actions towards Myungsoo, Momo and I saw it clear as day, and Sunggyu hyung definitely noticed.”

There’s a slight pause before Sungyeol groans audibly, no longer even trying to deny his obvious interest in Myungsoo. He feels the possibility of his future relationship with Myungsoo, the possibility of his dream wedding with Myungsoo, slip away from him in the most anticlimactic way possible, gone before he even had a chance to appreciate it due to his dream boy’s overprotective demon of a brother.

“Why are you telling me this,” Sungyeol deadpans, abruptly miserable.

“Did you not hear the part where we said we would help you win him over?” Woohyun reminds him, still grinning that wide Cheshire cat smile.

“Look, Myungsoo oppa barely gets the chance to even talk to a cute guy due to Sunggyu’s overprotectiveness,” Momo explains. “And as his friends, we think it’s practically criminal that a guy as sweet and good-looking as Soo oppa keeps getting sabotaged by his own brother. And Soo oppa even told us earlier about how nice you areー”

Sungyeol’s head snaps up so quickly that he feels something in his neck snap painfully. “He said what?”

“Uh, he said you were nice. He said that his friend Howon’s roommate is sweet…” Momo begins, trailing off when she notices the confusion on Sungyeol’s face intensifying. “Sungyeol-ssi,” Momo restarts hesitantly, “is there any reason that that surprises you?” she questions, her large honey eyes peering at him from under her long blonde bangs.

Sungyeol stays completely silent, internally struggling with whether or not he should tell them anything about the mortifying incident from yesterday.

“Look, Sunggyu-hyung is going to play off the fact that he knows you like Myungsooー But only for today,” Woohyun goes on to explain. “We need to get you and Soo talking as soon as possible, because after the closing shift we’ll have to be intervening constantly for you two to have any time alone. So if there’s anything you want to tell us about your relationship with Myungsoo, the guy you only met yesterday but are obviously in love with, you should really tell us now.”

Sungyeol takes a moment to take in Woohyun’s curious but sincere dark brown eyes, then makes the mistake of looking over at Momo, who looks like she’s trying to peer into his soul through sheer will-power alone.

Sungyeol takes a deep breath, swallows his pride, and then proceeds to have an awkward conversation about all the ways in which he managed to make himself look like a hungover idiot in front of his dream boy.

Starting with the dimple comment.

***

It’s unbearably silent in the beginning, so silent that Sungyeol can hear the sound of his own pounding heartbeat, can hear the sound of blood roaring in his ears as his heart pumps at double speed.

Sunggyu had walked by earlier, his little eyes looking particularly disdainful as he glared at Sungyeol and Myungsoo sitting side by side, but he had said nothing.

Sungyeol knows that this is one of his only chances, possibly even his last opportunity to apologize and establish a connection with Myungsoo before his demon of a brother begins openly breathing down their necks.

But Sungyeol’s mind is completely blank as he folds yet another one of Infinitea’s soft white towels and adds it to the rack. He absently stares at the image of himself and Myungsoo sitting side by side reflected in the countertop, observing his own slightly distorted reflection staring back at him from the dark granite.

Surprisingly, it’s Myungsoo who breaks the silence.

“Howon hyung tells me that you’re majoring in theater,” Myungsoo says softly, almost timidly as he lays down another towel. “I’ve always wondered what it was like to major in the performing arts.”

Sungyeol, whose mind is still functioning at just a fraction of his full mental capacity, jumps at the opportunity to break himself out of his own tense trance.

“I’ll tell you all about it then!” He says enthusiastically, unintentionally flashing his wide, gummy smile at Myungsoo. “Majoring in the performing arts is like majoring in anything elseー at least as far as how we’re graded. I mean, we still have the same assessments and exams as everyone else, but we also have performance reviews, which is cool because we perform in front of audiences,” Sungyeol rambles, all the while helpless to control the goofy grin that he’s aiming directly at Myungsoo. “And I’m actually majoring in acting. Hoya just likes to tell people that I’m majoring in theater because he knows that it annoys me, and annoying me is one of his greatest passions in life.”

Myungsoo laughs then, a short, quiet sound that has Sungyeol’s heart palpitating so hard and fast that he thinks it may be the sign of an impending seizure.

“That sounds so much more interesting than what I do, Sungyeol-ssi,” Myungsoo admits somewhat shyly. “I’m a math major,” he clarifies, still bashfully keeping his eyes down toward the tow