case 02, chapter 12: the little things

in the name of love
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case 02

chapter 12: the little things

 

 

“Johnny! Johnny! Johnny!”

Johnny stretched his limbs, cracking his neck and his knuckles. He stood across twenty shots of Soju lined neatly atop twenty glasses of beer, and twenty drunk, cheering lawyers all-too-happy to get even drunker. Seulgi was leaning backwards and keeping a safe distance – she had been to enough of those events to know Johnny would either cause a shower of alcohol or a crime scene of broken glass.

Johnny drew a breath. With a wave of gusto, he expertly knocked down all twenty shot glasses into the corresponding beer glasses, spraying a mix of beer and Soju on the watching crowd. They erupted in drunken, rambunctious roars, while Johnny dipped into a proud bow.

“That’s amazing, Johnny-sunbae!” Jeno gaped. The bright, newly twenty-one-year-old college intern had obviously spent more time in his books than with fratty seniors. “How did you do that?”

Johnny ran a hand through his hair, looking at Jeno dead in the eye. “Talent.”

The rest of the table roared in laughter. Seulgi chuckled, shaking her head. “Don’t be fooled,” she told Jeno. “It took him years of failed attempts and tons of broken glasses to even flip one in.”

“Oh! You and Johnny-sunbae went to college together – right, Seulgi-sunbae?” Doyoung chimed in.

“Unfortunately so,” she replied.

Johnny spun around, his face a mixture of exaggerated shock and hurt. “What do you mean – ‘unfortunately’?” he balked. “I’m the best thing that ever happened to you, Kang Seulgi!”

“I’m the best thing that ever happened to you,” Seulgi shot back. “Do you remember the days when you’d get too drunk, miss morning lectures and had to leech off my notes–“

Johnny quickly clamped a hand over before she could spill years of his less-than-perfect law student behavior to the entire company. “We don’t talk about that here! The friend code!” he hissed. The others continued to laugh.

“I still remember the time Johnny first joined,” Suho said, popping a French fry into his mouth. “He was so wasted that he slept at a bus stop, got hauled into a police office, and we had to get him out the next morning. First time I ever had to represent my own associate.”

More laughter ensued – mostly from Johnny himself. “And you’d think that wouldn’t happen again – two weeks ago, he was on my couch, and Victoria had to clean up his puke,” Changmin added.

To that, Johnny at least had the self-awareness to look at Changmin’s wife with apologetic eyes. Victoria sat at the other end of the table, smiling serenely, almost a-little-too-antiseptically at the circle of drunken men. It was a boy’s club that she had been an honorary member of for years, so she knew exactly how to deal with their tomfoolery.

“It happens to the best of us. To you too, Changmin,” Victoria reminded, and Changmin chuckled, slightly ashamed. To Johnny, she smiled, “It’s alright. Good to have someone who knows how to have fun.”

“Too much fun,” Seulgi snorted.

Johnny sniffed at her. “If it weren’t for me, you wouldn’t have any fun.”

Unfortunately, he did have a point. Fresh-out-of-high-school Seulgi was a model student with more books than friends and the social capacity of an isolated polar bear. Not that she wasn’t amiable – she just didn’t see the point in wasting evenings drinking aimlessly with people she barely knew and wasn’t interested in getting to know.

That changed quickly in her freshman year, after her first encounter with Johnny. He would sit next to her at the cafeteria, follow her around after classes, join her in the library for pre-exam study sessions, and drag her out –much to her reluctance– to every party he could find. It didn’t matter if an invitation had been extended to him – everyone knew Johnny Suh, because he was the party. It was also Johnny who made her join the radio show, leading to her meeting the people who became indispensable parts of her life.

Sometimes, she wondered how someone could be so full of life, so willing and excited to turn anyone he met into a friend. She wondered how someone as elusive, as self-kept as herself could have remained friends with someone like him for close to fifteen years. She chalked it up to a combination of her good fortune and Johnny continuing to be Johnny, despite the unforgiving hands of time and circumstance.

 “Boss,” Johnny said, approaching Changmin, emboldened by the alcohol, “what do you think, huh? Ready to bump me and Seulgi up?”

Changmin chortled. “Sure,” he said casually, “ready for me to bump up your workload? How about we do a test run? You can take the lead in this new case I’ve gotten – Kwon Boa’s been sending her friends our way.”

“I hear they’re demanding 70%, too,” Xiumin said, leaning over.

Johnny’s eyes widened. He remembered his sleepless nights and the amount of hair he had pulled out in trying to wrangle out an approach for Kwon Boa. They had won the case, sure, but how many rich, demanding women had clever, understanding sons who knew how to handle his parents?

“Oh, uhm–“ he stuttered. Promotion, crazy clients, promotion, no sleep, promotion, no time to even spend the money – Johnny weighed out his options, still at a loss.

“Let’s drink!”

Seulgi intervened, quickly passing around the jugs of Soju-and-beer before a lighthearted night out could spiral into them landing another ridiculous case. They could fight for a promotion later, when Changmin was offering better conditions – Changmin never offered good conditions when challenged, as any prideful lawyer would. They still had yet to close the documentation for Kwon Boa’s divorce, and she wasn’t about to let Johnny and his overconfident, mostly foolish mouth bite more than he –they– could chew.

Johnny being Johnny meant that someone had to save his dumb, drunken, bus-stop-napping before hit the fan – Johnny could be Johnny, but Seulgi was also Seulgi, and that was probably how they could last the years.

 

 

Seulgi slipped out of the double doors, narrowly escaping a group of rowdy men who seemed like they were on track to a fight. Probably over nothing, as usual. The number of times Johnny and Wendy had gotten into drunken brawls at karaoke dens and clubs – with how she had to help them negotiate their way out of being sued, Seulgi could have considered a career in personal injury law.

They had moved from the bar to a nearby club, which only served to inebriate Johnny even further. As if he had been there with them and known Johnny was too damn drunk to know where his phone was, Jaehyun had called Seulgi, asking her where she –they– had been. If she hadn’t dodged the warmongering men, Jaehyun would have shown up there faster than Johnny could take another shot. But she had, and she assured Jaehyun that yes, yes, I can take a cab, and I’ll be at your place in less than an hour. Only then did he shut up.

She shivered and tucked her hands into her pockets. Winter was creeping over the city, and the mellow, breezy wind had turned into the frosty cold. She hoped Taeil wasn’t still gardening, and that he had remembered to get himself some new jackets. Perhaps, she could run to the mall and get him new ones before Friday–

“Are you okay?” Seulgi turned over her shoulder, her gaze falling on a concerned Victoria.

“I’m fine. Just needed to answer a call,” Seulgi assured, stepping aside to give Victoria some space. “How about you, Victoria-unnie?”

“I’m good,” Victoria replied. “The boys are a wreck, but what’s new?”

Seulgi chuckled. She had met Victoria on her first day in the office, when she was a trainee fresh out of law school. Victoria had bought her a meal, warned the boys in the office not to hit on her, and assured her that she could come to her for anything. Her motherly, nurturing presence was part of the reason why Seulgi stayed, despite being the only female lawyer in a boys’ club.

“How’s work?” Victoria asked. “The boys treating you alright?”

Seulgi nodded. “They do. They’re not as bad at work, trust me.”

Victoria snorted a laugh. Seulgi couldn’t tell a lie, sometimes. “Sure,” Victoria replied, amused.

“It’s true!” Seulgi insisted. “Sometimes they’re flirtatious, cocky, and full of themselves, but they do make me feel at home. We work well in our teams. And Changmin is a mentor to me as much as he is my boss.”

Seulgi’s honest, slightly more convincing reassurance made for a better argument. Victoria gave her a nod. “That’s good to hear,” she smiled. She turned to stare at the darkened streets, her eyes glazing over. “I wish I was like you sometimes, Seulgi – so young and full of life, with such passion for what you’re doing.”

There was a melancholic quality about her words. There always had been. Seulgi had always wanted to ask, but Victoria had never asked about her background, aversion to adultery cases, relationship status – or lack thereof. Victoria understood that everyone had a story, and some didn’t need to be told.

“What are you saying, Victoria-unnie?” Seulgi laughed. “You’re still so young yourself.”

Victoria chortled, small wrinkles creasing at the sides of her eyes. “That’s a lie, too.”

Seulgi shook her head. “Youth is overrated,” she said. “It’s more important to be young at heart.” Seulgi gave Victoria a small, cheeky smile. “Johnny says that all the time, especially when he feels his hip come loose.”

They broke into peals of laughter. Victoria ushered her inside, the both of them remembering that there were a pack of unchaperoned boys loose in the club. As they returned, Seulgi couldn’t help but notice the soft, wistful look in Victoria’s eyes, only slightly illuminated by the dimming lights.

 

 

“Slowly, slowly – Ugh!”

Yuta and Jaehyun emitted mutual groans of disgruntlement as they dumped the man slung over their shoulders onto his bed. Johnny collapsed into his bed, grumbling inaudibly and wrestling his blazer. He looked a bit like a bear who wasn’t quite sure whether to hibernate, Seulgi thought. She’d tell him that once he got out of his drunken stupor.

Yuta wasn’t too amused, though. Johnny being drunk out of his mind meant that someone would have to clean up after him while he was drunk out of his mind. “What happened this time?” Yuta asked, his brows knitted and severe. He wasn’t even curious of the answer – he just needed some ammo to fight Johnny with when he came to his senses.

“The usual – you know. He overestimated himself,” Seulgi replied. The look on Yuta’s face told her that her explanation provided little defense for her inebriated friend.

“Christ.” He shook his head and stepped towards the door. “I’ll go and look for some hangover meds. Jaehyun – it’s your turn to be on puke duty.”

“What? Why?”

Jaehyun was about to protest, but Yuta had already left the room, fingers held up in a peace sign. He heaved a sigh and glared at the sleeping Johnny, who he hoped would just remain asleep. Seulgi thought he looked like he was about to smother him – though, Johnny probably had it coming for him, with his penchant for bad decisions.

Johnny turned to his side. Still deep in his slumber, he unwittingly reached out and grasped onto the hand of a startled Seulgi. She wheeled around, rooted to her spot. He opened his mouth and his low, breathy murmur sent her eyelids shooting up.

“Irene... I’m home.”

 

 

Seulgi found herself back out in the cold. Part of her would rather be there –the windy, wintery darkness of Jaehyun and Yuta’s unlit balcony– than in Johnny’s room. Jaehyun slid the glass door shut behind her. She could tell that he probably thought the same.

“It’s happened before,” she said quietly.

She leaned against the railings, eyes gingerly travelling over the equally silent Jaehyun. She didn’t know why she was explaining herself. She didn’t have to. And he probably already knew.

Jaehyun nodded wordlessly. He knew – of course he did. Ever since his divorce, Johnny had spent most his nights in a drunken stupor. It had gotten a bit less frequent over the years, especially after Jungwoo, Yuta and Jaehyun’s threats to leave him at a station the next time he decided to puke all over the carpet. But, anyone within close proximity he would mistake as Irene, even if it was Yuta or Jungwoo. It was a bit strange when the stand-in was Seulgi, considering everything that had been between them, but Jaehyun knew she had the tact to just let it be.

“When’s the last time he’s seen her?” Jaehyun asked, crossing his arms over his chest.

Seulgi shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. Couple of years back, probably.”

“Oh.”

Jaehyun never really said much about anything, but there really wasn’t much to say about Johnny’s circumstances. Divorce was a harrowing experience for anyone – Seulgi would know, having made a career out of it. Though, sometimes she wondered why Johnny did.

“I’m glad that y

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colormecandy
I wrote 2 pages today!!! Hopefully I can crunch out an update by today!!!

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foramoment
#1
Chapter 55: I've been a silent reader for the longest. Life is busy so I just hop in for a couple of minutes to read but truly this story is incredible! I remember being giddy with joy with every update. Truly so well written and I'm excited that you are back! Will be rereading to help freshen up some things. AAAHH super excited for what's to come.
rxdacted #2
Chapter 55: thank you for coming back!!!
corinneniix
#3
Chapter 54: HELLO OMG! i'm so glad this is knew of the ones you're choosing to revive bc this was one of my favourites!! but i'd read anything you choose to revive anyway hahaha. so looking forward! tho ill take my time catching up bc ive forgotten quite a bit before reading the latest chapter hahaha
minhoyyuri24 #4
Chapter 55: omg I'm so excited!! it's great that you're back
update soon ❤️
xiumei-stardust
#5
Chapter 55: AAAAA IM SO EXCITED TO READ THIS YOU HAVE NO IDEA!!!! im curious of how all of this will unfold slowly. im putting my faith in you <3 but stay healthy okay?
sassy_author
#6
Perplexed between reading the teaser to calm my appalling curiosity or torturing myself further by just waiting for the full chappie !!!
Ghad20
13 streak #7
Congratulations
haleyjohfam #8
LETS ING GOOOOO i cant get into my original account but the fact that i checked this on a whim and came back to an update? Oh I can die happy. This story is my happiness. No one writes like candy.
smartpanda1010101 #9
Chapter 55: i think christmas came early haha! i love hearing jaehyuns thoughts as it serves to only solidify how over the head he is with seulgi! excited to see how jaehyun has helped soojung in the past as well
yashaletti
#10
Chapter 54: I was just thinking about this story and how much I miss it a few dayd ago. Welcome back!