The street is bustling with lots of people get off working that early evening. The weather of late summer is just perfect to enjoy the city before it went to windy and ruined some this youngsters looks. Taeyeon just finished one squeezed class at the dancing studio. She can’t help but humming since she walked out the glass door and leaving the concrete building a block behind her.

Her day went smoothly—so far—as her schedule rolled out as planned. This morning she had one elective class of interior design which set to revamping the interior of an old Hanok house, she’s very excited about it as the research is rather in line with her thesis topic. She stopped by the campus library to retrieve some digital material and pick up a book she reserved two weeks ago before teaching the jazz hip-hop in the afternoon with the other instructor.

However, one day can’t be too good for some people including Lee Taeyeon. Her phone is dead before her eyes when she’s thinking to make a call.

“I guess I’m eating by myself again tonight,” she sighs as she walks to the tteokbokki stand at the end of the street.

“Taeyeon?” she spins her heels to find Suho’s face adorned by the biggest grin she ever saw, “What are you doing here?!!”

“I just finished teaching and bout to head home. The studio is over there,” she pointed to the direction behind him.

“I almost didn’t recognize you with short hair!”

“Ah, this,” she awkwardly touching her head, “Yeah, this summer is just too much for me. Had to shed some strands to keep it cool.”

“It does look cool! How are you, by the way? I’m so glad we bumped each other like this!”

“I’m doing fine. Very well, quite, actually. My th—“

“Hold on. Have you had something?”

“What?”

“Dinner I mean.”

“Oh, I was planning to grab some to go on that food truck before home.”

“Perfect! Join us!”

“Us?”

“Lee Taeyeon, you little poodle!” before Suho can answer the question, someone is shouting screechingly loud from the sea of people, making eyes are all on him, “What are you doing there?!”

Changmin’s marching over their direction and Suho’s bitter face reappeared to match his eye roll.

“Oh, ,” she muttered almost inaudible when she caught Kyuhyun and Minho are also approaching.

“She happened to be in the neighborhood when we bumped. I asked her to join us already.”

“Sounds great! You should! We have lots of thing to catch up after you left the group chat.”

“Well, can’t be missing you guys too bad if I need to concentrate on my thesis,” she grins awkwardly, “I have to graduate this fall or the next semester comes from my own pocket.”

“Then my treat it is tonight.”

“Excuse me?”

“You heard the man, he’s buying our tonight’s dinner actually. Dude lost a bet this afternoon.”

“Fancy to see you here, woman.”

“Oh, uh, hi, Kyuhyun!”

Hearing a very familiar voice, Minho’s forced to lift his eyes from the screen before him. The face greets him probably looks as flustered as he is at the moment.

“I swear to God it’s just a coincidence, I’m about to go home,” she blurted out of nowhere and mentally cursed herself for doing so.

“And I can’t send home a kid with empty stomach. Let’s go, Taeyeon!”

“Don’t mind Minho,” Kyuhyun points to stiffen Minho, “It’s Suho’s treat anyway. Dude can shut up and eating quietly. Right, Choi?”

Minho finishes typing something quickly on his phone before slipped it back his jacket. He shrugs and walks ahead all of them.

“Whatever,” he pauses and turns to Suho, “Just remember you’re paying and no taking my card at the end because this kid raise an eating monster inside her belly, trust me.”

He winks and marches to the restaurant they’re planning to have their dinner.

“Ah, I remember Soojung also mentioned about it once. Perfect timing to bump into us tonight, Taeyeon!”

Kyuhyun smirks and pushes her to the restaurant’s direction while Suho’s trying to not showing the regret too obvious.

***

Suho’s POV

Did he just pull the chair for Taeyeon? Or it was just him being his usual gentleman?

Well, Minho was considered in a good mood the whole day, despite the unbearable work load, so I think it’s possible to do so. To think about it, actually the man has been in a good mood lately.

Also, he’s certified gallant to begin with, so I guess this is normal? Was it already too long since the last time I saw him with a girl?

“How’s the thesis, Tae?”

She somehow looks nervous, my question was not that complicated, though, but her face clearly showing she’s tiny bit dejected.

“It’s okay, I guess? Nothing really bothered me about the thesis, I’m actually receiving lots of help. You can say, I’m positive and confident enough about it.”

“Yoo! That’s really great compared to last time we talked about it!”

Changmin raises his hand for a high five which she takes it very well. Much to my surprise, Minho smiles while listening to it in silence.

“Why are you smiling?”

He stops playing with his phone after hearing my question.

“What?”

“Why are you smiling? Just now. You’re smiling, right? Are you texting with someone? Who is it?”

“Should I cry then?” he snorted and returned to his phone as if nothing happened, “I’m not spending any penny tonight, of course I’m smiling. What else?”

“I don’t know. Maybe some secret you didn’t tell me?”

“Well, it’s called secret for a reason, Dude. What’s wrong with you? You were fine before. Well, not fine, more like conceded being the loser. Did you change because Taeyeon? Now that there’s another stomach to feed, you start being sulky and trying to put everything on me?”

I’m clearly not ready with the whole speech rolled out Minho’s mouth. My instinct went to Changmin and try to exchange some look with him but of course that idiot just stares at me with his dumbest expression.

And with Kyuhyun completely engrossed scanning the menu, Minho’s grin arises as his triumphant gesture, “Order a lot, Tae.”

“Eh?”

“Don’t you worry about the bill. Suho will take care everything. I know you’re mad with desserts, so as an advice, two are bare minimum here. Five are better.”

“Yaaa! Choi Minho!”

“Shut up, Kim Junmyeon. Man is right. I’m starving. When I can call the waiter?”

I look at Kyuhyun in disbelief, it’s very rare of him missing some detail like this. Or it’s just me, then?

“Don’t you find it weird that this stupid frog being too gleeful?”

“Nope. Dude lives to eat. You forget?”

“And work.”

“And exercise.”

“Touche,” Kyuhyun raised his glass to Taeyeon’s remark.

“Hey!!”

“Hey!!”

Shouting in unison, Minho and Taeyeon burst into laughter before my eyes and I swear to God Minho’s never been this happy. But why these two morons didn’t see that?

“I’m ordering quatro formaggi truffle pizza. And no. You cannot change my mind, Kim.”

“I swear to all my dogs at home, imma put some cyanide on your plate, Shim.”

***

Kyuhyun’s POV

Since when Minho pouring drink for other people beside Minjung?

We are waiting for our order to be served, and while Taeyeon and Changmin busy talking about their friend—well, more like Taeyeon’s friend and Changmin’s latest obsession—the bread sticks basket came along with water and other condiments.

Minho naturally poured some water into his glass. And much for my surprise, he put the glass next to Taeyeon’s plate and took hers as an exchange for his.

“Thanks.”

Taeyeon doesn’t even look at Minho as if she saw all those things and it’s normal. Does she not remember the gruff guy Choi Minho is or what?

So I stretch my hand so my glass was right in front of Minho’s face and as expected, he snarled right away.

“What the heck, Dude?”

Busted, he tried to be charming and all just now, didn’t he?

“Me too.”

“You have your own hand.”

“But you’re closer to the jug.”

He looks like he’s ready to slap the back of my head anytime or at least wanted to argue more but the man just bites down his own words and served me the water anyway.

“Thanks, Man,” I purposely wink to which is quite successfully intrigued him judging from his barfing mimics, “So, Taeyeon. How’s life lately?”

“Busy as hell,” she laughs wholeheartedly just as I remember, “I guess I really spread myself thin these days.”

“When will you graduate?”

“Hopefully end of this year. I love learning, but I am so done with this graduate school. I gotta earn money now. The tuition here is no joke! Should have stayed in London!”

“We should be there when she graduated!”

“You just want to meet Krystal.”

“What’s wrong with meeting my girlfriend?” Changmin raises some objection, “You should date as well, Choi! So you know how to be human. Seriously, do you want me to ask Krystal to hook you up with one of her friends?”

“Taeyeon you mean?”

Suho seems like he’s reading my mind. I check on Minho, but man just grunted on his seat.

“First, I’m not looking for any hook up. Second, I knew Taeyeon already. Third, Krystal is not going to introduce or even hook any of her friends up to me nor to any man ever exist.”

“Aaaannd… Choi Minho is back.”

“Where did I ever go?”

Minho’s eyes look like he’s about to flip the table any moment, much more to my liking. I got used to him being brusque, in constant suppress rage, and this type of stone cold man. The happy version of him was almost erased from my memory, and to be honest, sometimes it scares me slightly.

“Don’t you miss this, Taeyeon?”

“Miss what? Choi Minho being an actual Choi?”

“Ouch!”

Changmin pretends as if someone stabs him right on his heart. It’s Suho’s turn to raise his hand for a high five with Taeyeon. She looks to her left to see how Minho would react. When she grins, though, I swear to God, Minho’s eyes turn soft. That’s weird.

Especially when he’s then aware about his surrounding—me—can see him any moment, he casually sipping his water and starting to nibble on the bread stick.

“You know what, Choi? Sometimes it’s very hard for me to understand you.”

“Hmmm?”

I can see Suho’s eyes drilling my side, as if he knew something. That’s it, I will most definitely texting him after this because Minho is pretty much—if it’s not obviously—whipped over Taeyeon.

“No, nothing. Where is this pizza? I’m famished!”

***

When the food came, Suho immediately devours the delicacy like it’s not anybody’s business. It’s been a very long day at the office, and some intense meetings take such place in a hectic day were very exhausting. Even for a chill cyborg like Kyuhyun, who’s now busy stuffing his mouth with pizza and chopped steak. Changmin too is not an exceptional, he is very occupied both with his food and phone. One time he’s slurping his aglio olio, the other time he’s almost kissing his screen.

Minho’s about to ask the waiter for the desserts menu when his phone blink, notifying a new message. He flips the phone—Minho always put the phone face down to limit any distraction yet still very sensitive with the vibration or the LED alert—and the name appeared on it makes his eyebrows taut together.

“Tae.”

“Yeah?”

He looks around quickly to check what his friends are doing before half whispering to her, “Something’s wrong again with your phone?”

“Oh!” she only remembers now about the dead gadget in her tote bag, “Out of battery. Why?”

Minho shakes his head and quietly slides his phone closer to Taeyeon’s vicinity, “I think that’s for you.”

Taeyeon tilts her head in confusion, so Minho points to his phone with his chin while casually slicing his chicken parmigiana. When she got the signal, she immediately stretched her neck closer to where the phone laid, and the words written on it make her gulped secretly.
 

From Eunsook:

Hi, Minho. My annoying sister is currently not answering my calls. So I thought I will just text you. Are you available for lunch this weekend? If I ask Taeyeon, she would most likely say you’re busy or she has no time or smth like that. So, let me know, will you?

“What the actual heck? Is she crazy or what?”

“Well, I’m in if you’re in.”

“Seriously?”

“Yeah, why not. I’m not paying, right?” he finishes with a wink, completely off guard with the other three sharing the table with them, completely captivated by the flushed beauty on Taeyeon’s face.

“Paying what?”

Taeyeon startled by Kyuhyun’s sudden question but Minho composed himself rather quick and calmly replied.

“The desserts. Suho’s treat is including the sweets right? Taeyeon wants some to finish her meal.”

“Wait, what?”

Taeyeon slaps Minho’s arm in reply. The later light chuckle quirks Changmin. Minho’s rarely joining their group slaps show—the term Minho invented whenever Suho and Changmin start arguing with their hands—let alone didn’t say anything when someone beat the crap out of him.

Where the heck is his terrorizing side eyes? Changmin though.

“Yaaa! I said dinner! Not your whole meal plan that can actually feed the entire village!”

“Dinner course should include the desserts! I always have sweets after my meals!”

“Since when?”

Suho doesn’t realize he almost knocked Minho’s cool when he innocently throw his wonder. The other three seem miss the way Minho’s adam apple bobbed when he’s gulping the invisible lump blocking his airway. But not Taeyeon. She didn’t miss the very subtle tremble on his side profile.

During their course of relationship, Minho learns that Taeyeon is an avid fan of desserts. Without realizing, he picks up the habit along the way and craving sweets more than he used to be. Which his best friends find it quite surprising.

“Are you happy enough if I said that my age finally caught up with me? Just wait until it happened to you!”

“Watch it, Kim Junmyeon. You’re next,” Changmin teases him, earns him some curses from Suho, “Since we’re hopping to the dessert train, I’d like to order crème brulee.”