Jongin drew a picture in the air with his finger, murmuring to himself the notes he had collected through his study of the book.

“Measure everything. Use fresh ingredients. Make sure the glass and drink is the same temperature,” making lines in the air, his foot tapped quietly on the cool floor, head hanging back slightly over the back of the couch. Reciting over the rules was tedious, memorizing the liquor even more so.

Yet the clock continued to taunt him, saying that 9pm was only a couple of hours away. The steady tick-tock slowly pulled Jongin into a reverie, lips still moving, reciting.

“Memorize everything, have a good attitude…” Jongin had no issue with keeping a smile on his face; he had done it for years. Yet, the memorizing he was unsure of.

Was it normal to be thinking so hard about a trial?

A few moments more, and Jongin realised that it was fifteen minutes to nine. Sitting up in a rush, nimble fingers grabbed at the book and a coat, before hastily closing the door, and rushing to his first shift.

--

“Hold on, what?” Kyungsoo, standing in the middle of his apartment kitchen, frowned in confusion as the phone buzzed with someone else’s voice.

“The promotion is two days from now, right?” The voice buzzed again, and Kyungsoo rolled his eyes, pouring himself a glass of water.

“Yes, it is.”

“Did you want to go tonight? Get a feel of it first?”

“Sehun,” Kyungsoo began, setting the jug down to hold the glass instead, bringing it to his lips, and taking a careful sip.

“I’ll be at your place in five.”

“Sehun—“

Before he could even begin, the dial tone rang in his ear, and Kyungsoo let out a small sigh. It was one thing to open the phone call like that, but the fact that Sehun was so close to his apartment made Kyungsoo slightly squeamish. Although they were friends, the younger always had a habit of dragging Kyungsoo to places he clearly didn’t want to go to.

Well, in this case, not yet.

Taking another sip, a strong and solid knock was heard, before the sound of a voice which contradicted it. “Soo! Open up!”

Letting out a small exasperated sigh, Kyungsoo sauntered his way over to the door and opening it so slowly that Sehun pushed it in impatience.

“Is that what you’re wearing?” Sehun eyed Kyungsoo’s clothes, a pair of sweats and a pullover, compared to Sehun’s grey slacks and a pale green shirt.

“What? I can’t get ready in five minutes, Sehun.” Letting go of the doorknob, Kyungsoo set his glass on the counter, making his way to his room.

“Okay, I admit I called a little too early,” shutting the door, Sehun followed after the elder, amused that he looked so short from his perspective. “Hey, Soo. You haven’t grown lately, right?”

“Let’s not talk about my height.”

“But—“

“No.”

Poking his tongue out, Sehun made himself comfortable on Kyungsoo’s bed, as the other walked into his closet. Rummaging through the mass of clothes (all assorted into colors and seasons), Kyungsoo managed to collect himself a pair of pinstripe pants and a plain white collared shirt. Dressing quickly and rolling the sleeves to his elbows, the young man walked out to see Sehun playing dismissively with his alarm clock.

“If you change the time on that, I swear to God,” Kyungsoo began, grabbing a pair of shoes and slipping them on.

“I’m not that much of an , Soo. Have faith in me,” and Sehun shook the alarm clock, amused that the digits changed colors.

“I do, but it’s quite little. Can we go? The sooner the better.” Already walking out of the room, Kyungsoo grabbed his keys, his wallet, and opened the front door again, waiting for a second before Sehun rushed out, fixing his hair and shirt.

“Tight ,” was the reply, the younger heading down the hallway of the apartment complex.

--

“Jongin! Can I get two glasses over here?”

It was hard to hear over the constant pump of the music, the chatter of the voices around him, and the grinding of the ice in the blender nearby.

“Hold on!” fumbling quickly and managing to pour a margarita for a customer, Jongin rushed over, passing two glasses to the attendant who looked like they were waiting just a bit too long.

“Thanks,” although it didn’t sound too sincere, Jongin didn’t have enough time to react if not for the call of another order.

“Yo! Scotch on the rocks!”

A roll of eyes, and Jongin walked back to the center of the bar, pouring the desired drink to a young man with unkempt hair and a low cut tee.

“Here you go,” Jongin placed a coaster on the bench, before placing the glass on top.

“Nice.” and the man reached over, pushing a bill down into Jongin’s pocket.

Jongin’s lips parted in silent shock, giving the man another glance.

“Extra, for the quick service. Looking good, cutie,” the man winked, before taking his glass and walking away.

He was handling this entire bartending venture better than he thought. Since the beginning of his shift, he had only gotten one drink wrong, put ice in the wrong glass twice, and received two short and quick complaints about too much lemon.

He had been working for a solid three hours now.

Jongin’s run was good, and he intended to keep it that way. Continuing his work and wiping down the bar when he could, it eventually got to the point where people would slowly ebb away and out of the venue, either pissed drunk or disappointed.

Then, two more customers arrived. Jongin, clearly having a break of sorts, leaned against the wood of the bar, watching the two.

Attractive, young. He could only see the back of their heads due to the dark lights and the small crowd, but he paid no more attention to the pair than he needed to, quickly going back to work.

--

Kyungsoo wondered how people were still here, even at this hour. Sure, it was a club, a venue that was growing popular, but the next day was Friday—Oh. No wonder.

Most people wouldn’t attend the next day of work.

“What do you think?” Sehun called over the music, leading Kyungsoo to a small booth near the door.

“Loud,” Kyungsoo mumbled, although it was still loud enough for Sehun to hear.
Responding with a loud chortle, Sehun shook his head, moving to stand. “I’ll get some drinks, tight .”

Kyungsoo nodded, trying to get comfortable in the still-new leather chair.

Managing to push his way to the bar, Sehun leaned against the bench, calling out.

“Two Black Velvets!” Sehun waved his hand, hoping to get Jongin’s attention.

Jongin, just managing to hear the request, turned and caught eye contact with Sehun, nodding. “Sure,” and Jongin smiled slightly.

He recognised the shirt from before. One of the pair that came in not too long ago.

Sehun smiled, waiting patiently and watching Jongin work, before striking conversation.

“How’s your night been?” Sehun called out.

“It’s alright. Yours?” Jongin looked over as he unscrewed the cap of Champagne.

“Just stared, I think,” grinning, Sehun raised a hand, scratching at his chin.

“Yeah? What are you up to?” Jongin wasn’t much for small talk, let alone with a stranger.

An attractive stranger at that.

“We’ll see,” was the reply, and Sehun fumbled around in his pockets, taking out the cash he needed to pay.

Mixing the two drinks, Jongin handed them to Sehun, taking the cash and all the while, kept eye contact with the other.

“Have a good night, Mr. Tender,” Sehun joked, before disappearing through the crowd.

“Yeah no, you too,” Jongin replied, smirking slightly as he watched the other disappear.