T h e    P u r s u e r

Kim Sunggyu didn’t welcoming Hoya and Woohyun in a friendly manner, that man even let them rang his bell for more than twenty minutes before finally opened the door –Hoya afraid that Woohyun would kicked open the door if he had to wait a second longer. Sunggyu still in his grey sleepwear which two size too big for him –Hoya bit his bottom lip to prevent himself squealing over the cuteness of this hamster looking man, apparently his soft spot not only applied to baby animals–, hair even messier than Hoya and Hoya couldn’t tell if his chunky eyes were opened or not. Sunggyu didn’t bother to greet them, after opened the door widely he just walked away and slumped down to a couch in the living room, immediately back to his dreamland. Woohyun and Hoya stared at each other before invited themselves in, and Hoya felt obliged to close and lock the front door again. While Woohyun tried to get comfortable in one of the puffy chair, Hoya kneeled in front of Sunggyu and patted at his chubby cheeks to wake the older man up.

“Hyung, wake up. We, no, I mean Woohyun is need your help.” Hoya whispered softly in Sunggyu’s ear.

Sunggyu’s plump and pinkish lips twitched in audible murmur. “Mmm, rammyunn mmm…”

Hoya felt like to stare all day long at the cute thing that curled up in front of him, but he had to stop because he could feel a sharp stare bored a hole at the back of his head –from his annoying boss of course. Hoya shook Sunggyu’s shoulder harder and whispered louder. “Hyung, please, you had to wake up now, Hyung.”

“He won’t ever awoken in this state,” Woohyun arose from his seat and almost made Hoya got a heart attack by landing a kick at Sunggyu’s side until that man tumbled down from the couch.

“Yah! You don’t just kick hyung!” Hoya felt his blood drummed in his ear. He stood abruptly and made an attempt to grab Woohyun’s collar, but that man managed to catch his hand. Innocently Woohyun grinned and pointed down behind Hoya, who immediately turned his head to a view of Sunggyu sat on the floor, blinked his eyes repeatedly and looked at them in astonishment.

“Hoya? Woohyun? Why are you fighting? How did you two get in my apartment?”

Hoya quickly assumed that apparently Sunggyu was sleepwalking when he opened the door for them, but before he could explain that they’re not barging inside, a loud growl filled the air. Sunggyu pouted, had his head tilted down, rubbed his stomach and mumbled. “Ugh, hungry…”

Once again Hoya had to bite his lips to stop the squeal that already in the tip of his tongue.

xxx

After ushered Sunggyu to enter the bathroom and promised a delicious breakfast after that man finished take his bath, Hoya found the living room was empty, no Woohyun. Fished his cell phone out from his pocket, he walked around the apartment to find Woohyun in the kitchen, crouched in front of the refrigerator, mouth busied munch something.

Hoya frowned before barked. “Stop stealing Hyung’s food. Let’s order a meal. Which restaurant has prepared a delivery at this hour?” Hoya scrolled down the contact list in his phone that saved under the food-group. It was not that Hoya was a food-monster so he had almost a hundred of restaurant’s contacts, but because it was also part of his job to make a reservation for their company meeting or commemoration.

“No need to order from restaurant, I’ll cook.”

“What?” Hoya shifted his eyes from his phone screen, looked at Woohyun who still rummaged Sunggyu’s refrigerator.

Woohyun stood and put some ingredients in a row on top the counter. “You hear me, Hoya, I will cook our breakfast. Don’t you bored with food restaurant? Don’t you miss home cooking? Hmm?” Woohyun flashed his genuine-looking smile at Hoya. Other people might see Woohyun as sweet and kind-hearted, but the only word that crossed Hoya’s mind was: stingy.

So Scrooge like, don’t want to spend money but want free food, Hoya fumed in his mind. He put his phone back to his pocket and walked away from the kitchen doorway to sit on one of the chair there.

“Stew or fried rice?” Woohyun waved a pack of kimchi in front of Hoya.

“Stew,” Hoya immediately made his choice; the warm soup would be very pleasant for his empty stomach in the morning.

“Okay. Help me cook the rice,” Woohyun asked while taken the meat out of the fridge.

Hoya stood from his seat without talked back –he believed that the less they argue mean the faster the food would be ready and the faster he could finally eat– and prepared to rinse the rice. At the end, Hoya didn’t help too much, after put the rice in the cooker, he sat back to his chair. He observed Woohyun cut the meat into bite sized pieces without much difficulty, also chopped the kimchi and other vegetables skillfully, and in short time already in front of the stove stirred the stew in the pot.

Unconsciously Hoya sighed, pitied the man in front of him. If not because had to inherit the company from his father, Woohyun would already become a chef. It was not that Woohyun’s father rejected his dream, no, that kind man was very supportive actually, but he involved in an accident and passed away when Woohyun still in high school. Woohyun voluntarily let his dream go and study management instead of culinary to take over his father’s company from his avaricious aunts and corrupt uncles who also –craftily– worked as directors in that company, so his mother could still lives well.

“Why so gloomy?”

Too immersed in his own thought, Hoya didn’t know that Woohyun already finished his cooking and put the stewpot on the table in front of him. “Oh, no, just thinking about this and that,” Hoya replied casually, and he thanked God because at the same time Sunggyu –looked fresher and gorgeous after his bath– walked in to the kitchen, so Woohyun couldn’t asked further.

“Woaaah, kimchi stew, my favorite!” Sunggyu immediately scooped his portion and from the corner of his eyes Hoya could see Woohyun looked expectantly at the oldest among them who stuffed his mouth until his cheeks filled up, clearly waiting for his praise. “Yummy…! Thanks, Woohyun-ah.”

Woohyun smiled, looked satisfied and finally reached for his chopstick. “Give thanks to Hoya too, Hyung, he’s the one who decided the menu. I forgot what’s your favorite food, but he’s still remember.”

“Really? Thank you, Hoya.” Sunggyu smiled brightly –Hoya almost blinded by it, the almost non-exist eyes arched beautifully like a crescent.

Hoya felt his cheeks got warmer, and it was nothing to do with the hot soup he just swallowed. So actually Woohyun was asked for hyung’s fave previously? Not asking for my opinion? Aish, did I just had bad thought for Woohyun and called him stingy, while he just want to treat Sunggyu-hyung? Sorry, Woohyun. Hoya made a silent apologize.

Sunggyu continued eat up his food, and talked while chewing it. “Ah, it reminds me of the past. Woohyun tried a new recipe and would ask us to criticize it, or else we would go to a café to taste the new menu. We used to eat together, but now you two are very busy, I wonder whether you still eat three times a day or skip for working.”

Hoya stole a glance at Woohyun who also looked at his direction, Hoya couldn’t help but felt like a little kid scolded by his mom for not eating properly. Hoya also felt guilty because never hang out with Sunggyu-hyung again, and he could see that Woohyun’s eyes gleamed with the same erring feeling. Sunggyu seemed could sense their bad feeling and quickly changed the topic back to the food in front of him.

“Woohyun-ah, this is so delicious, you had to tell me the recipe. The only thing I can cook is just mixed-rice and ramen, it’s effortless, haha…” Sunggyu laughed a little, and Hoya felt the burden in his heart disappear when he heard that melodious sound.

“Hoya can help you, Hyung. I taught him just now, and he can passed the information to you. Ah, next week will be great, I’ll leave for Japan and I don’t want my assistant to be alone, you can help me accompany him, Hyung?” Woohyun rattled as if Hoya was just some kind of toy he would love to lend to Sunggyu.

Sunggyu’s laugh chimed again. “If he doesn’t mind.”

“Oh no, he doesn’t,” Woohyun answered for him, as if Hoya was not there with them.

xxx

After all the food on the table finished, Sunggyu asked them to wait in the living room while he washed the dishes. Actually Hoya wanted to offer his help, but Woohyun already dragged him away.

“I’ve helped you to set a date with your crush, now can you smile a little? I only see scowl in your face since this morning.” Woohyun grinned, looked satisfied with his role as a cupid.

“Do you expect me to smile when you just ruined my sleep? And you did it just so I’ll help you to set your own date. Just admit that you love this whoever girl,” Hoya kept the scowled in his face.

Woohyun whined, something he didn’t do often. “Yah, how many times I had to tell you, I’m not in love. Mind your own love life, buddy, when are you going to man up and declare your love for hyung?”

Hoya felt blood rushed to his face and made his cheeks reddened in embarrassment. Am I that obvious?

As if Woohyun could read Hoya’s mind, that man snickered. “Yeah, you are that obvious, Hoya. How many years have you like hyung? Five? Ten? Since our college days?”

Hoya wanted to spat something back, but a sound of someone clearing his throat prevented him to do so. Sunggyu stood behind them, and his cheeks blushed a little –Hoya wondered how much that man heard, and really wanted to kill Woohyun right now.

*

T h e    Q u e s t

“Okay, let’s start.”

Hoya turned his face toward Sunggyu who had just back from his room to take his laptop, a lollipop rolled in his mouth. Seemed aware that Hoya looked at him, Sunggyu continued. “I would like to offer candy for you too, but it’s the only one left, sorry.” His face showed remorse, but just in a second his eyes glinted again and he said brightly. “Or do you want to share?” Sunggyu held out his yellow lollipop –apparently lemon flavored– and pointed it at Hoya.

So taken aback, Hoya choked on his own saliva and coughed hard. Woohyun looked at him in pity, and kindly patted his back to help ease his cough. Sharing candy? More like indirect kiss, Hoya screamed in his mind. Not that he mind it actually, but Woohyun was also there with them, Hoya won’t let him had a new affair to for the rest of his live. But it seemed that guy already got one, sigh.

“N-no, it’s okay, Hyung. Just eat it, I’m okay,” Hoya rejected with a stutter after his cough subsided. He eyed his hyung who nodded innocently and back at his candy again as if nothing wrong with his previous action.

As Sunggyu got his attention fully on his laptop, Hoya turned his head to Woohyun and mouthed at him. “Is Hyung really didn’t hear anything?”

Woohyun shrugged his shoulder, eyes flied to Sunggyu’s direction for a second before mouthed back. “Maybe just pretending.”

“Is he?” Hoya thought, his eyes already back to Sunggyu again, tried to search for any sign that indicated Sunggyu was faking his act. After interrupted his quarrel with Woohyun earlier, Sunggyu acted like he didn’t hear anything they argue about and even didn’t ask about it, instead he asked why did they come to his place. Hoya right away explained Woohyun’s story, not giving any chance for Woohyun to open his mouth because only God know what would be spilled from him –the search for Woohyun’s girl might be deviated into making-Sunggyu-and-Hoya-became-an-item project. Sunggyu immediately understood their purpose and agreed to help them. But Hoya really sure Sunggyu must be heard some part of his conversation with Woohyun because he saw the redness in Sunggyu’s cheek earlier, but why did that man didn’t say anything and acted indifferent? Did Sunggyu though that the hyung they talked about was just another hyung so he didn’t care about it? –Hoya felt his chest tightened in uncomfortable feeling knowing that Sunggyu didn’t care with the people Hoya like, it mean Sunggyu didn't like him, right? Or did Sunggyu know that they talked about him, but ignored it because he didn’t like Hoya back? –This time Hoya almost burst in tears. Hoya really hoped the possibilities of Sunggyu didn't like him was zero, and maybe Sunggyu really didn’t heard anything, his cheeks reddened just because of cold.

Suddenly Hoya felt a nudge at his side that broke his train of though, and he turned to Woohyun who moved his mouth again, silently accused him. “Stop eye- Hyung, you are disgusting.”

Hoya pushed his lower lip to make a pout. “I’m not.”

“You are not what?” Sunggyu asked, without turned his head from the laptop screen. Hoya cursed himself because he forgot that his former conversation with Woohyun supposed to be soundless. Woohyun literally rolled on the floor now, laughed –silently– at him. But before Hoya could find any excuse to explain his strange behavior, Sunggyu already rattled proudly about his new database system, not even bother shifted his eyes to them.

“You are lucky because this two months, Myungsoo, the new guy in my department, had just helped me to develop some improvement in our database system. Some feature modified and it’s getting easier to search for information, it can be sorted based on the surname, age, years to work, everything, even physical characteristic. Moreover now I can access the database as long as I have Internet connection, not only from the PC in my office. It’s still a beta version though, Sungyeol from the Network Security Department working on its safety, not that I think someone will hack our worker data. Well, maybe a crazy stalker that possessed with one of our pretty employee will.”

Hoya could see that Woohyun stopped rolling abruptly, he covered his face maybe self-conscious that Sunggyu just accused him as a crazy stalker. But just in a blink of eye, Woohyun already wore his president mask back. That man then sat up beside Sunggyu and straightened his back, asked with hint of authority. “So now everyone could access it?”

“The basic info can be accessed after you login with your employee id number. But the further data limited to someone who know the right password.” Sunggyu typed some words on his keyboard and his laptop screen blinked with Nam-Tech Inc. logo, a grey-blue star with each of its tip form a small arrowhead –represent speed and precision of their product. “Don’t worry, after the trial finished, you’ll get the pass too, just the two of us. Umm, maybe your secretary too if you give him.”

“Just tell my secretary then, he’ll tell me later,” Woohyun automatically replied with his typical sentence, which was well known by Hoya. His boss always said that sentence at least five times a day to their business associates. “Just send the documents to my secretary, just give your number to my secretary, just call my secretary,” and ended it with “he’ll tell me later.” Everything concerning the work always received through Hoya, his secretary.

“Uhm, okay,” Sunggyu nodded. After he was ready with the search feature in his new system, Sunggyu opened his mouth. “Describe her again, I’ll input it here.”

Woohyun nodded and started. “Her hair is black, straight and around this long,” he touched his hip.

Sunggyu shook his head and clicked his tongue. “Can’t rely on that, girls tend to change their haircut every three months, or when there’s an important event. I found one of my subordinate dyed and cut his hair just for the party last night. But I’ll still put it here.”

“Well, okay then, how about her nose, her eyes? Though I’m not really remember actually,” Woohyun scratched the back of his head, looked hesitate when said it. Hoya couldn’t stop himself for not glanced upset at him, that man met hundreds of his workers last night indeed, but weren’t you supposed to not forget the face of someone you like?

Once again Sunggyu shook his head. “You know that make-up can make a very drastic change, right? Try another.”

“What you suggest?” Hoya knew Woohyun started to get annoyed because he raised his tone –just slightly though, who would have a heart to snap at Sunggyu? He was so kind-hearted and sweet, only mean people would do that. –Just off the record, actually Woohyun scared that Hoya would kill him if he did it. He was so lucky that Hoya just let him pass when he kicked Sunggyu this morning.

“Her height, maybe?” Hoya proposed randomly.

Woohyun waited for Sunggyu to give an ok signal before answered. “Pretty tall, but when she stood beside me, I still can see the crown of his head. Apparently three or four centimeters shorter than me.”

“Didn’t you mention that she wears that kill heel?” Hoya mocked, remembered that he also wanted to see this murdered weapon that disguised as shoes.

“Oh right, minus 15 centimeters,” Woohyun declared.

“Woah, the shoe is that high?” Hoya yelped, and tried to estimate those 15 centimeters with his fingers.

“The platform is also high too, so the heels are not that high actually,” Woohyun explained. Hoya just nodded though he didn’t know which part was called the platform.

“And how tall are you?” Sunggyu asked, ready to type the info.

“Uhm…”

Because Woohyun looked like he forgot his height, Hoya decided to answer that question. “He’s 176.”

“Add three,” Woohyun immediately chimed, in small voice.

Hoya gasped. “What? You wore insole?!”

“Can’t help, I had to meet so many subordinates last night, without any table in between, can’t lose my prestige in the party,” Woohyun shrugged, his eyes looked at everywhere except at Hoya.

Sunggyu butted in before Hoya could threw another curt remark at Woohyun. “So, 164-166 cm. Good, it’s above the average height of woman employee in our company, already cut more than half of women population.” Then Sunggyu continued interrogate Woohyun for the next fifteen minutes.

“Okay, I’ve put all the information, and it said we had to wait for around 30 minutes. Don’t glare at me, not my fault that we had hundreds female workers here. Remind me to hire more male next time,” Sunggyu pouted.

“Or I’ll just reduce the amount of worker that invited to our company anniversary party next time,” Woohyun sighed, knew that Hoya didn’t like the idea of Sunggyu talking interviewing many man. “Why didn’t she just left her shoe to make it easier?” Woohyun huffed, folded his arm on the table and laid his head on it.

Hoya stole a glance at him and snickered. “Yah! What is she? A Cinderella?”

“Oh, sound good. Then I can be the Prince Charming.” Woohyun earned a good hit on the back of his head.

“Yah, then are you going to ask all the girls in office to try it one by one? It’s going to consume more time, and are you forget about not tainting you reputation, eh?” Hoya continued scolded his boss.

“Aish, that’s not what I mean, and stop hitting me,” Woohyun raised his arm to shield his head from Hoya’s smacks.

Sunggyu chuckled at them and stood from his seat. Seemed oblivious with the fact that Hoya ogled at his smooth chubby stomach that showed because his shirt rose a little as he stretched his hands above his head, Sunggyu said. “Well, there’s enough time to make ramyun. Do you guys want some?”

“R-ramyun?” Hoya stuttered, tried to divert his eyes to another direction, looked at Sunggyu’s face instead.

Woohyun stared in wonder. “Didn’t we just have breakfast? Like, less than an hour ago?”

“Hey, nobody could resist the temptation of delicious ramyun.”

xxx

“Thanks for your help, Hyung,” Hoya smiled at Sunggyu, the data his boss needed already in his hand, and now he and Woohyun off to the girl’s place.

“No problem,” Sunggyu smiled back, showed his usual cute eye smile, made Hoya’s smile grew wider.

Woohyun cleared his throat before said. “Thanks once again, Hyung.” Then he leaned his body to Hoya and whispered. "Come on, I don’t have all day waiting for you flirting at Hyung. We already thanks him for ten times, if I’m not miscalculating it.”

“Okay, okay,” Hoya scoffed at him. He then smiled again and waved at Sunggyu. “Bye, Hyung.”

But before Hoya could keep up with Woohyun who already walked away, Sunggyu grabbed his hand. “Don’t forget that we have a date next week,” Sunggyu ended his word with a wink. Hoya swore there’s a wink, it was not that clear because of Sunggyu’s very small eyes, but the wink was there!

Now Hoya understood why Sunggyu’s face got red and why that man suddenly acted so bold with his candy offer.

*

[Kim Sunggyu_The Pursuer]

***

Their searching may be not that heroic, unlike the prince charming in the fairy tale who search around the entire city to find Cinderella, they just using Internet to find her because the story take place in modern world. Hope it's not bore you, hehe...

Why is it so hard to find the pic of Hoya,Sunggyu and Woohyun in one frame, /sobs T_T