∞⇢

FRIDAY, 6:14 PM

“YEAH TASTE MY WRATH YOU MOTHAF*CKR!”

He exclaimed and his extremely loud voice filled my eardrums making me close my eyes as I extended the smallest patience I had left for me not to hit him.

This has always been his idea of hang-out.

We were in his room since we both finished our class schedule early today. He asked me to hang out telling me it’d take my mind away from the quote and quote heartbreak. It had been about two weeks since my ill-fated relationship with my ex ended. Yes, I was sad but not because it ended. If there was one emotion that the breakup caused me, it was anger. Every time I thought of him, I felt like looking for him and giving him a high five on the face with a chair.

Well, not wanting to spend any more of my time getting mad at my ex and condemning myself for falling for him, I agreed.

Seated next to him, my eyes were fixed on the large monitor in front of him. I watched how his character chased his opponents in the game he was currently playing.

“DIE YOU !!”

Baekhyun yelled all of a sudden yet again, scaring the daylights out of me which made me accidentally drop my phone on the floor. Fed up by his spur of the moments outbursts, I reached to take his headphones off. The said act of course earned a surprised look from him for a millisecond before he glued his attention on his game again.

“What.” He muttered.

“You’re too loud!” I nagged. “Don’t you think you’re too passionate about your game?” I added, my eyes furrowed in annoyance.

“I should be.” He reasoned out as his fingers were busy working on the keyboard. “You see that?” He pouted his mouth to point to the last enemy he was chasing on the game. “That’s Han Jinseo, of course, I’d be passionate to shoot and kill him. I’m going to tear him into pieces.”

My brows relaxed, suddenly wanting to laugh at his reply.

Next thing, my eyes were glued to his finger torturing the mouse as he continuously ran after Jinseo in the game. He was chasing him on the hills, hiding on the tree trunk to take cover before shooting again and again. A second after, I had grown engrossed with the chase that was taking place before my eyes. He grabbed the big bike nearby as Jinseo seemed to have ridden a car on the other side.

“You better make sure that jerk doesn’t get out alive,” I demanded as I fixed his headphones for him.

I also moved a bit closer to him to focus on the game too, investing a bit more emotion than necessary.

“Yes, you’re Highness.” I heard him say accompanied by a smirk. “Easy stuff.”

I watched how his face turned serious first, his eyes had that intense glare, and his mouth twitched every time his virtual vehicle made a turn. It was funny how childish we were at the moment, naming one of his opponents after my ex and making sure to finish him.

He stopped outside an abandoned house where Jinseo’s vehicle was too. Baekhyun entered the house and I was beginning to feel tense, scared that Jinseo would suddenly appear and shoot him first.

“Ya, be careful.” I reminded him, tugging on the hem of his shirt.

As he expected, he didn’t reply as there was no way he could have heard me. He concentrated on his every move and I would hold my breath from time to time in anticipation. He climbed the stairs and proceeded to search every room. Don’t die, don’t die, don’t die I chanted in my head, my eyes growing wide and narrow at times as the rooms lit up and then turn dark once more.

“Where is that prick now, damn it.” He hissed when the last room turned out empty as well.

Then, all of a sudden, jerked and ran downstairs. He must’ve heard something before his character stormed through the stairs and hallways. Finally getting to the main door of the house, he found Jinseo already taking his leave. Baekhyun groaned in frustration as he chased him with bullets.

I held my breath as Baekhyun continued to fire at the vehicle Jinseo used. My heart felt like exploding all the time. One, two, three, four… I lost count of the shots he fired before I saw a red spot on the screen indicating that he was able to successfully hit and kill Jinseo.

“AAAAAHHHH!” We chorused as soon as the notice flashed that he won the game.

For some reason, I felt as victorious as he was. We both stood and raised our hands to celebrate like it was something to be joyful for. When we faced each other, I didn’t think twice to pull him into a hug and jumped like kids, not breaking the hug. We continued to laugh boisterously for a few seconds until it died down and made me think. The whole thing kinda made me feel better, no not kinda. It did. It did.

It was childish but it was therapeutic to be able to get back to that jerk virtually. The way Baekhyun’s hand rubbed the back of my head caught my attention.

“You okay?” I heard him ask in a more serious tone.

I took a deep breath.

“Yeah,” I muttered with a slight nod.

We slowly broke the hug and I automatically sat on my chair once more. Spacing out for a second before I was brought to my senses when he spoke.

“ You, Han Jinseo.” He hissed.

Our eyes met for a second before he proceeded to also sit on his chair. He darted his eyes to the monitor of his computer once more.

“Yeah, him,” I replied in a weak tone, absent-minded.

My mind was blank for the next moments.

“C’mon.” He muttered. “Let’s get outta here.” He shoved his hands inside his pockets, eyes on me.

“Where are we going?” I wondered.

“The offer to buy you a whole fridge of soju is still up for grabs.” He said as he offered his hand.

Looking up at him, I saw how that small smile on his face always showed up whenever he had the intention of comforting me. Spending almost two decades of my life with him, I was assured that he already knew what he was doing.

Convinced, I extended an arm to reach for his offered hand as I got up.

“Yeah. But first…”

“Chicken.” We chorused.

It always amazed me how he could read me so well.

∞⇢

We walked to the famous hang-out place in the neighborhood. As agreed, we dropped by a famous chicken restaurant for dinner. I didn’t exactly know why but it had always been his rule to make sure we both don’t drink with an empty stomach. We spent about an hour there, enjoying the best-served chicken in town, according to him. Well, they have the best chicken.

Then we headed to In Between which is a fusion of a bar and a restaurant. This was our go-to place whenever we were in the mood to drink. The first floor was an area where people could dine while the second floor was solely designed for those who’d like to get themselves a bottle or more. The second floor had an extended rooftop-like exterior where a few tables were positioned. The ceiling was bare and only had dim yellow light bulbs that served as artificial stars. Since it was spring, the air was refreshing which was why we occupied the table near the railings. The view was eye-friendly. It wasn’t so loud in here too and the only thing I could hear was the faded conversations of the other people around us as well as the almost inaudible music that was playing inside behind the glass walls.

We got here more than two hours ago and I could say we were quite settled now.

It was the sound of the pouring liquid that caught my attention as Baekhyun once again poured me another drink. We had already finished about five bottles and the taste of soju ruled my taste buds, making me forget how my dinner tasted like earlier. Not gonna lie, my eyelashes seemed to have turned heavy now.

“Drink up.” He told me.

He looked tipsy too. He kept brushing his hair up from time to time which he usually did when he was drunk. His face was kinda red too, and his eyes were a bit droopy as well.

“You’re serious about this…” I swallowed as I found it kinda hard to continue my speech without pausing. “Aren’t you?”

I shook my head to test if my vision was still normal.  A bit blurry now, but I could still manage and drink some more.

“About what?” He casually asked as he made that little sniff, his nose scrunching a bit in the process.

I noticed how he placed the bottle away from me and I just had to laugh in my head knowing he was doing it on purpose since I had been trying to take it so I could drink directly from it. This shot-glass thing was testing my patience.

“About getting me drunk, so I could rant…about my stupid break up,” I answered as I saw him smirking this time.

I took the shot glass to my mouth and emptied it up right away.

“Also probably laugh at me for being an idiot. For being dumb.” I added as I frowned due to yet another burning feeling in my throat. “Ugh.” I groaned.

The look he made before taking the shot glass from me to pour another drink, this time for him, did not go unnoticed.

“You’re not dumb.” He contradicted.

“Yes, I am.” I insisted as I shrugged. “I can kick any guy’s if I want to but I ended up being played with a jerk anyway.”

I looked away not wanting him to see how pitiful I was.

“You’re not dumb.” He sounded more serious now. “He’s just stupid.” He replied, emphasizing his last sentence. “And…” He paused as he sounded relaxed now, maybe wanting to lighten up the mood. “If there was something I’m serious about, it’s…” He just had to trail off as he took the drink to his mouth.

I watched how his nose scrunched at the taste of alcohol hitting his senses.

“Making you see that you’re better off without that jerk.” He added as he placed the glass back on the table with a bit of force it created a thud. “And that you’re absolutely fine without him.”

He pointed at me, making an effort to make his eyes big. His mouth formed that displeased curve. The fake anger on his face was so adorable I couldn’t stop myself from letting out a small laugh.

“I know,” I answered briefly, unable to let go of that smile.

Afterward, I was busy eyeing the bottle with about four inches of alcohol remaining inside. Looking up at his face, he had his eyes closed. With the amount of soju we drank, I was sure he felt dizzy now.

“Yah. Are you sleeping?” I asked though I knew he wasn’t sleeping because before he’d totally pass out, he’d be loud, clingy, and a crazy drunk type of person.

This was his hmm, probably level one drunk phase. In fact, his alcohol tolerance was fine, way better than mine. Which was thankfully good or else I’d be a mess.

“No.” He let out a soft laugh as he shook his head.

“Don’t you dare sleep on me? You’re too heavy so don’t expect me to carry you.”

He only smirked at me, his eyes remained shut.

“Okay okay.” His eyes flew open as he stretched his arm towards me to signal me to stop talking. “You’re so loud Seol, my ears are about to bleed anytime.”

I scoffed at his exaggeration as I threw the bottle cap at him on impulse. I was pretty sure he wasn’t expecting that since he wasn’t able to dodge it. In fact, the cap landed straight at my target, his broad chest.

His eyes grew wide as he naturally glared at me.

“I wonder if there’d be a day when you’d stop throwing stuff at me.” He discontinued his speech as he took the bottle to pour himself another drink.

After doing so, he looked amused as he leaned closer to me on the table.

“Do you remember that one time?” I hiccupped before he grinned crazily. “In sixth grade, you were acting all cranky, getting so irritated for no reason.”

I sighed, knowing where this conversation was heading.

“You were so mad at me and you ended up throwing the sanitary napkin you were holding?” He let out a groan as he leaned away and crossed his arms in front of his chest.

“Yes.” I rolled my eyes at him. “Don’t edit the part out where it landed straight on your annoying face.”

“Ya…” He threw me a look of frustration as he tilt his head. “You’re something.” He let out a mocking laugh.

“Shut up,” I argued.

“AND.” He went on, “Because of that, I found out you were on your first period ever.”

I made a clicking sound using my mouth to signal him to stop talking, threatening him with a look.

“You’re as cranky every time you have your period until now, honestly.” He pointed out. “You hate everyone and everything. But you especially seem to hate me the most.”

I took the shot glass from him, getting worked up.

“Ya!” He yelled seeing me drink what was originally for him.

“You’re too annoying for your own sake, that’s why I always have the urge to throw stuff at you.”

I brought the glass to my mouth and was about to empty the glass when I caught a glimpse of him. I just had to unstoppably laugh at how red his face was now, especially his neck and ears. The contrast was so obvious against his navy blue shirt. The said laugh, causing me to spill the remaining alcohol on the corners of my mouth and my sweater too.

I heard another annoyed reaction from him which only made me laugh harder. I placed the glass on the table.

“My god Seol, what are you? A child?” He asked.

He sounded so stressed and frustrated with me. He looked cute, his mouth doing that default pout, his nose almost flaring. I kept laughing even though he was telling me something which I honestly did not understand very well. However, instead of taking care of the mess I made, I reached for the bottle next to him instead. The thirst was strong and I had to drink more. Skipping the hassle of pouring the drink into the glass, I drank from the bottle.

One thing. When I’m drunk I laugh like crazy. Two, I get sentimental easily. So, I must be already drunk as I couldn’t stop laughing anymore, making it hard for me to concentrate on what I was doing. I kept picturing Baekhyun like a duckling with the way he was pouting. You know that rubber ducky thingy for babies.

I managed to make a few gulps before he appeared standing next to me and grabbed the bottle off my mouth, causing it to spill again.

Miraculously, I stopped laughing and watched him as he took the bottle to his mouth next. I saw how Adam’s apple moved as he gulped a few times before emptying the bottle.

I smirked as I shook my head sideways.

After doing that, he sat next to me before he proceeded to face me, the bottle still in his hand. He was silent for a couple of seconds and so was I. We looked at each other like we were having some staring game going on.

Maybe, just maybe it was because of alcohol intoxication that made me think that he kinda looked like he wanted to do something not so bestfriend-ish. However, I was proven wrong when he, all of a sudden, burst out laughing. His voice was so loud now, indicating that he was already totally under alcohol’s control.

“What’s so funny?” I asked, raising an eyebrow.

He didn’t answer, he even brought his hands to his stomach as if it already hurt from laughing too hard. I was wondering, ignoring the dizziness and the urge to reach and strangle him.

“I said what’s funny?”

The demand mixed with annoyance in my voice was evident.

“You…” He trailed off as he laughed once more. “You have…”

“I have what?” I glared at him, waiting for an answer. “Baekhyun!” I ended up hitting him on the arm.

“You’re drooling. HA HA HA!” He said in an unbelievably loud and clear voice.

I noticed the customers from other tables looked at us.

“What?” I panicked as I lifted a hand to my mouth and I realized that it wasn’t true.  “It’s the soju, you idiot.” I reasoned out in a matter-of-fact tone.

He shrugged.

“I know I’m handsome and all but should you drool like this because of me?”

I narrowed my eyes as I frowned at him, not even thinking of wiping the so-called drool on my mouth. I was so focused on throwing a dagger-look at him that the next thing I noticed was his hand nearing my face. I noticed how he was about to wipe my mouth using his shirt.

What the hell, I thought. But then I didn’t protest.

He had stopped laughing all of a sudden and became so focused on what he was doing. I was about to appreciate him being caring and all but he just had to open his mouth and ruin everything.

“Promise me, you’ll only drool because of me and not because of some other guys.” He stated, his eyes on my mouth. “Because I would understand since I’m.” He added, the corners of his mouth raising as if trying to stifle a smile. “And they won’t cuz they’re not even half as hot as I am.”

My eyebrows furrowed upon hearing his remark, my mouth forming into a thin line as shoved his hand away. What in the world was he blabbering now?

“I swear.” I hiccupped before I sighed. “You’re the most annoying person ever.” I rolled my eyes at him. “I hate you.”

He let out a small laugh as if mocking my last remark.

“You can’t hate me.” He miraculously agreed as he focused his attention on me.

“And why not?” I replied in a challenging tone.

“Cuz I’m the one you always run to.” He said in a low voice, sounding serious. “When you’re happy or you’re sad, you’re bored, even when your parents scold you…the list goes on and on Kang.”

I couldn’t help but sigh once more, my emotions shifting as I agreed with him.

“Yes,” I muttered, my shoulders slumping as I fidgeted with my fingers. “So, don’t you ever disappear because if that happens, I’ll hate you for real?”

My voice was soft but he was near, I was sure he heard me.

“Okay?” I added when he didn’t answer.

“As if I have a choice.”

It was his turn to roll his eyes at me but then it was obvious that he was joking. For some reason, I felt like hugging him all of a sudden. Thinking how he had always been there for me. The best best friend I could ever ask for.

When I noticed that he was about to leave his spot, I didn’t want to let him move away. I extended my arms toward him and pulled him into a tight hug. My hands were over his shoulders, keeping him close to me. I thought for a second that he was startled but maybe not when he spoke.

“Are you hugging or strangling me?” His voice was light and teasing, even acted like he got d or something.

I didn’t have any intention to keep up with his antics and immediately went emotional. Tears started to form in my eyes, I ended up sobbing.

“Yah, yah, yah, don’t go crying on me now Seol.” He warned, his tone still amused as I finally felt his hands giving my back a gentle rub.

Which, of course, only made me cry harder. I even started to bawl and I didn’t care if I caught other’s attention.

“Stop crying.” He said.

Then, I thought I heard Baekhyun clear his throat.

“Uhm…she’s okay, she’s okay don’t worry.” He said as if telling someone. “Her plant died, so she’s very sad.”

I loosened my embrace and checked what was going on for a second and immediately figured out that he was trying to explain to people why I was crying my heart out. Checking his reaction, he looked slightly panicked, so I decided to do something to worsen the situation.

I cried even louder.

“Damn Seol.” He pulled me c