You watched as the shot glasses were filled, eagerly waiting with the others standing at the table. Once the liquor was poured, you grabbed a glass and brought it to your lips. You drank it all at once and then slammed the glass back down on to the table. The harsh liquid burned your throat going down and left a warm feeling in your stomach.
"One more!"
A chorus of agreement rang out as everyone gathered around again but you moved away from the table. You knew if you kept going, you would be passing your limit. Instead you grabbed a can of soda and made your way to the living room.
This room seemed to be even more crowded than the kitchen. Several people milled around talking, and there looked to be a very exciting game of poker going on around the coffee table. You found an empty spot by a wall and leaned against it.
"Hey."
You smiled at the male that joined you. "Hey."
Himchan moved to lean against the wall next to you. "Ready to do some shots?"
Scoffing, you rolled your eyes. "You'll have to wait. I already started."
"Why didn't you wait for me?" he pouted.
"You're the one that showed up late." You took a drink of your soda.
"I had to make a detour." he told you and indicated towards the coffee table.
You looked over and realized who two of the participants were. Youngjae yelled angrily when Daehyun threw his cards and then took the pile of pennies in the center of the table. Shaking your head, you shared a look with Himchan while the two of you laughed at their antics.
"Yongguk's here too."
Your heart skipped a beat as you inhaled sharply. "Oh." you uttered, feigning indifference despite feeling your face heat up.
Himchan grinned and snicked, well aware of the massive crush you had on his friend. Yongguk was completely oblivious, though you didn't really blame him. He was taken. Or at least, most of the time he was taken. His relationship with his long time girlfriend wasn't the best. They were constantly fighting and breaking up, then days later they would get back together. And as luck would have it, they had just broken up again last week.
You found your gaze wandering around the room, taking in every person. He would still be upset, right? Maybe you could comfort him. Perhaps even suggest he not get back together with her. You could do that much. Be a friend to him despite the two of you not being very close.
"." Himchan suddenly cursed.
You glanced over at him curiously and noticed he was looking down the hallway. You followed his line of sight and then your heart plunged downwards in to your stomach. Apparently Yongguk's on-and-off girlfriend was at the party too, and apparently they were already back together with the way they were making out.
Quickly looking away, you swallowed thickly to compose yourself. You had resigned yourself to only being friends long ago, but seeing him with the evil witch was unbearable. If only he would be with someone else.
"Let's get a shot." you said while grabbing Himchan's arm. You dragged him in to the kitchen and over to the table just as another round was being poured.Both of you took a glass and when you finished, you set it down and waited for it to be filled again.
This time Himchan grabbed your arm and attempted to pull you away from the table. "I thought you already had some?"
You pulled your arm free and took the shot glass. "You'll give me a ride, right?" Then you downed the harsh liquid and felt your stomach roll from the amount of alcohol in it.
Himchan sighed but let you be and headed to the fridge. You gave him one last glance before turning your attention back to the next round of shots being filled. That's when you felt a presence next to you and you held your breath.
"Hey." Yongguk greeted with a big, gummy smile.
You forced a smile on your face and nodded at him. He turned away but you kept staring at him, noticing how happy he seemed. Then you hurriedly took another shot.

With one arm wrapped around Himchan's shoulder, you staggered to his car. He helped you into the passenger seat and when you struggled to fasten your seat belt, he chuckled and did it for you.
"Don't laugh at me." you whined, which of course only made him laugh more.
You snuggled down in your seat and closed your eyes. It helped make the world not spin quite as much. Now to just make it home so you could sleep it off.
Loud noises made you wince and you quietly groaned. You could make out Daehyun's and Youngjae's voices in the back as doors were slammed closed. Then you felt the car moving.
"I'm dropping them off first." Himchan informed you.
"Yeah." You attempted to drown out the loud laughter coming from the backseat.
After a while, the car came to a stop. The noisy males said their farewells and it was finally quiet. You reached down and grabbed the seat handle, leaning the seat backwards so you were partially laying down.
"What are you doing?" questioned Himchan.
You shifted a bit to get comfortable. "What's it look like?"
Himchan let out a playful scoff. "Why'd you even drink so much?"
You almost didn't answer as you felt a tightness in your chest. Like the words you wanted to say was stealing the breath from you so you went ahead and let them out. "You know why." Sighing, you quietly added, "He went back to her."
"Uhhh..."
Opening your eyes, you looked up at Himchan to see him somewhat surprised. Of course it's not like you really talked about your feelings for Yongguk much. Even when he would tease you, you would merely change the conversation.
You rolled your head to the other side and looked up at the night sky through the passenger window. "I can't stand seeing him with her." You sighed heavily. "It's just the same thing over and over again."
Himchan said your name, but you ignored him. You had to get this off your chest.
"It's just so hard seeing him like that, cause you already know what's going to happen. Their relationship is horrible. They shouldn't be together."
You felt your friend pat your arm. "Okay, okay. That's eno.."
"It's true!" you exclaimed, cutting him off. "It'll be good for a while, then they'll start fighting again, and then they break up and he's heartbroken. It's just the same all the time!"
Closing your eyes, you took several deep breaths to calm yourself before continuing. "And the worst part is that he thinks he's happy, but he's not. That's not happiness. It's misery. Grasping at tiny moments of calm between the storms."
The next thought you had made a sharp pain in your chest, like a knife was stabbing you in the heart. Tears welled up in your eyes and you willed them not to fall. "You know what I want most? I want him to be happy. To just be happy. To be with someone that truly cares about him, and appreciates him, and never takes him for granted." You swallowed thickly, trying to get rid of the lump in your throat. "Even if it's not with me. I can live with that as long as he's happy. That's the only thing in the world that I want."
It felt good to get all that out but at the same time, there was a heaviness in the air. Like you had said something you shouldn't have. You didn't regret voicing your feelings though. And tomorrow you'll wake up and forget this night ever happen.
The car slowed to a stop. You stayed laying in the seat with your eyes closed, letting yourself wallow in your sadness as the seconds tick by.
"We're here." Himchan stated.
Surprised that you were already home, you opened your eyes and shifted to undo your seat belt. You stopped though when you noticed the surrounding buildings. This wasn't your apartment.
"Thanks for the ride."
You gasped and sat up just as you heard the car door open. You twisted in your seat to see Yongguk get out of the car and close the door before walking away. Then you whirled around to stare at Himchan. "Wha..."
"Sorry." the male offered with a hint of sadness in his eyes.
Tears rolled down your cheeks as you brought up both of your hands to cover your mouth. "What did I just do?" you sobbed.
Himchan reached over and rubbed your back. "It's okay. Let's get you home."

The morning light burned your eyes and you buried your head under the pillow. You attempted to fall back asleep but memories from last night began to fill your brain. It was definitely towards the top of your list of 'worst days ever'. Not only seeing Yongguk get back with his girlfriend, but then practically making a fool of yourself. Going on and on like you did without realizing he was sitting behind you
Groaning, you pushed the pillow aside and sat up. There was no way you could ever face him again and you resigned yourself to avoiding him in the future. Even if it meant becoming a hermit and living with a dozen cats.
After showering and dressing, you made your way to the kitchen. You got a glass of water and swallowed some aspirin for your head before turning your attention to the coffee machine. As you opened the canister that held the coffee though, you let out another groan. It was empty.
"Well, even hermits have to grocery shop." you muttered to yourself while glaring at the sun coming in from the window. Then you slipped on a pair of sunglasses and grabbed your purse.
When you were a couple of blocks from the store, you saw a smiling face that only made your mood more sour.
"Hey." Himchan greeted as he walked up to you.
You replied by punching him in the arm.
He jumped back and rubbed his arm. "What was that for??"
"For last night." you stated. "Why didn't you stop me?"
"Hey, I did try." he countered. "What did you want me to do? Tell you to shut up and cover your mouth?" Then he indicated for you to follow him in to a store.
You glanced up at the sign to see it was a bookstore before following him in. "I'm never gonna be able to see him again. So ing embarrassed."
Himchan laughed and turned down one of the aisles. "It'll be fine. He probably thought it was cute."
You scoffed at that idea. "Bad mouthing his relationship? Yeah, sure. Real cute." You surveyed the books and pushed your sunglasses up to sit on your head. "What are we doing here?"
"Looking for a book." he replied and then he told you the name of it. "But it's not here."
You checked the spot where the author should be. "Maybe they misplaced it?" you suggested.
As he started searching the shelves, you went around to the next aisle to check there.
"Himchan."
It felt like a bucket of cold water was poured on you as you inhaled sharply. There was no mistaking that voice.
"Damn you look like ." Himchan teased with a chuckle.
"I didn't sleep." Yongguk stated. "I need to talk to you."
Wanting to avoid him, you started to slowly tip-toe away.
"I said I would meet you.."
"It's about last night." said Yongguk, interrupting his friend. Then he said your name.
You froze in shock, barely even breathing.
"I just kept thinking about everything she said and... And I... I don't know. I just..." stammered Yongguk.
"Uhhhh..." Himchan uttered. "Okay, let's go talk some.."
"Everything she said is just..." Yongguk let out a frustrated sigh. "She's right. About everything. I'm... I'm not happy. I kept thinking that maybe things would change, that it would work out and I could be happy but... I was wanting something that wasn't there. But more than that, when she... said the other stuff... I just... I can't..." He trailed off but the annoyance in his voice was obvious.
"Can't what?" questioned Himchan.
There were a few moments of silence, with your heart thundering in your chest, before Yongguk finally responded.
"I feel like I'm going out of my mind, cause I can't stop thinking about her."
Your eyes widened and a chill went down your back. Was that a confession?? But... how?? He never showed that kind of interest in you before. And what about his girlfriend? They had gotten back together.
"That's why I didn't sleep last night. I kept thinking about every time I saw her. From the day I met her and... and what she said last night... About the way she feels... I... I just... I think maybe..."
Suddenly Himchan burst out laughing, earning a loud groan from Yongguk.
"This isn't funny." Yongguk snapped. "I'm going crazy and I don't know what to do."
Himchan's laughter died down. "Okay, okay. Sorry. This is what you should do; ask her out on a date."
"Really?? I mean... what would I even say? Cause it's not like she actually meant for me to hear everything. Don't you think it might be awkward? What if she says no?" Yongguk frantically fired off.
Himchan chuckled. "Don't worry. You're good."
"But.."
"Don't worry." insisted Himchan. "You. Are. Good."
You furrowed your eyebrows as waited for someone to say something, then you jumped in fright as Himchan started laughing again. The sound traveled, as if he was walking, until you saw him peek around the corner at you. A huge grin was on his face as he moved so he could look down both aisles at the same time.
"You two are perfect for each other." Then he disappeared down a different aisle.

You felt your face heat up, especially when another person appeared from around the corner. Yongguk was blushing as hard as you and there was a surprised look in his eyes as he stared at you.
"Uhhh... I... I didn't mean to." You indicated towards the other book aisle.
"Oh, uh, yeah. It's... fine. Umm..." He ran a hand through his hair and his lips. Then he closed the distance to you. "Listen, about last night."
"I'm sorry." you blurted out. "I didn't mean... I didn't know you were there."
He shook his head. "No don't. You didn't do anything wrong."
"But I did." you argued. "I shouldn't have said... About you two."
"No, really. Please. Himchan and the guys, they've tried talking to me before but I didn't..." He shrugged his shoulders and rubbed the back of his neck. "I... guess I needed to hear it from someone else."
That made you blush again, which caused him to blush as well and a shy smile formed on his face. You couldn't help but smile as well as you pressed your lips together.
"Um... so.... I... I know this may be a bit weird but, um...." He cleared his throat and awkwardly shifted where he stood. "Could I take you out some time? Lunch, or maybe just coffee?"
Your heart fluttered in your chest and you swallowed. As you opened your mouth to answer him though, a thought made your smile go away. "But what about... your girlfriend?"
His eyes widened and he rapidly shook his head. "Oh no, she's... I mean, last night yeah, but I broke it off with her this morning. Permanently."
"Oh." you uttered. "I'm sorry."
He didn't say anything to that. Just stood there quietly staring at you. What you saw in his eyes though had your face heating up and you shyly glanced down at the floor for a moment.
"There's this coffee shop a couple of blocks down." he said with an amused smile. "Are you free right now?"
You swallowed once more, your throat going dry. "Yes." you replied with a small nod of your head.
His smile grew even bigger. "Great."
Another random thought struck you at that moment and you gasped as your face fell. "Oh wait! Himchan.."
"I'm fine!" Himchan called out from the next aisle over. "You crazy kids go have fun!"
Both you and Yongguk laughed at that, then he stepped aside and indicated for you to go with him. The two of you walked through the bookstore to the front doors, where you winced as the sunlight hit your eyes. Yongguk held the door open for you as you slipped your sunglasses back on.
"Hell of a hangover?" teased Yongguk as he started down the sidewalk.
You walked beside him and scoffed. "You look as horrible as I do."
"Hmmm." he hummed as he made a show of examining you. "No, I look better."
You barked out a laugh and playfully pushed him. As you pulled your hand back though, his hand shot out and grab yours. You were so taken aback by his actions that you came to a stop. You stood there staring at him as he held your hand, clearly embarrassed and yet not wanting to let go. Then you squeezed his hand and started walking again.
The atmosphere between you grew awkward, each of you stealing quick glances at the other, until you began to giggle. He blushed while shyly smiling, making you giggle more. And then he was giggling as well.