Seoul was frozen in November. Trees swayed limply in the chill, unmoving air, appearing dead as the spindly branches hung over the streets. Everything about the air was oppressively frigid, thoroughly freezing fingers and the thoughts of the people struggling through the cold. Despite the bleakness of the grey day, Kyung found himself shivering near the entrance of the coffee shop near his apartment, his eyes trained on Jiho as he ordered from the counter.

He hadn’t intended on leaving his room that day, but his friend had showed up late in the afternoon and suggested the outing. Kyung had vaguely noticed that despite his cheery attitude, the man’s eyes were red and puffy, his hair wild and tangled. He had meant to ask Jiho about it, but the thought slipped from his mind like water as easily as it had appeared.

When Jiho arrived with a cup in each hand, Kyung wrinkled his nose. “I hate coffee,” he mumbled airily. His friend simply smiled and waved one of the cups after taking a sip from his own.

“I ordered it special for you. You’ll like it, I promise.”

Kyung wasn’t convinced, and he darkly muttered about useless promises, but he took the cup anyway and put his lips to the small slit and tilted. It was hot – scalding - and he cursed and almost flung the coffee across the room. Jiho stopped him with a gentle hand to his arm, and they both waited for the drink to cool. They stood in silence, and it was comfortable. Kyung liked that Jiho never had to try too hard to make things feel normal.

Finally, Kyung dared to take a sip, and his eyes widened at the surprising taste. It was sweet but not syrupy, with a hint of cinnamon and cream that made his taste buds dance. It tasted exactly like gingerbread. He gaped sideways at Jiho, who laughed loudly at his expression before taking several sips from his own cup.

The two sat down at a table in the corner of the shop, each of them gratefully drinking the warm beverages. Kyung didn’t think of much besides his coffee until he glanced up. There it was again. That strange look that resembled sadness radiating from Jiho’s eyes. He hadn’t been able to connect emotionally with others since he’d gotten sick. But somehow he found himself curious, and a seed of concerned formed in his throat.

“What is it?”

Those three words demanded Jiho’s attention. After all, it wasn’t often that Kyung initiated conversation. “Oh. Well. It’s nothing much, really.” Jiho clearly didn’t want to talk about what was bothering him, but Kyung continued to stare at him. He essentially made the other man squirm until the words spilled on their own. “Nothing, I just…. I broke up with Jaehyo last weekend.”

Kyung’s brows wrinkled. No, he hadn’t heard him right. Jiho wouldn’t just break up with him. Jaehyo wasn’t the kind of man you could just break up with. No one in their right mind would willingly give up someone as flawless as Ahn Jaehyo.

“No.”

Jiho blinked. “No? Wha-”

“Go fix it!” The redhead felt himself growing angry with the man in front of him. He was angry because he knew at that very moment, Jaehyo was hurting. He had to have been after being dumped by someone, especially Jiho. Though they were estranged at that point, Kyung knew the other man enough to know he’d be beside himself. Kyung had always been jealous of the relationship, but it kept Jaehyo happy, and that had been enough. “Don’t you know what you did? You need to fix it!”

“Kyung, please….” People nearby were staring because of his loud outburst, and Jiho was already standing and trying to usher him out. The other man’s face was flushed and he began to yell again. But as soon as he hit the cold air outside, his temper seemed to cool as well. After a long silence, Jiho cleared his throat.

“Are you alright now? What was that?”

“How could you break up with him?” Lines of confusion contorted his face, and they were immediately reflected in Jiho’s expression.

“We’re not right for each other. Why are you so worked up?”

“Why aren’t you?”

They didn’t speak much after that. Jiho walked Kyung back to his apartment and left without going inside.