Haerin was laughing at a joke Kai made about someone’s hair when she felt someone tap her shoulder for attention.  Her shoulders contract in surprise at the unexpected touch and she turns to meet whoever just did it.

“Haerin?”

Her eyes widen in surprise at who she’s seeing.  “Kyungsoo?”

“Yeah, hi,” He nods at her with a small smile and notices Kai, who had come to stand beside her.  “Jongin,”

“Hyung, what’s up,” Kai shares a shoulder bump with him as if it was the most natural thing to do after seeing Kyungsoo here in his father’s party.

“Great party you’ve got here,” Kyungsoo suppresses a smile.

Kai laughs at his statement.  “Uh-huh, right,”

“Haerin!”

The girl looks up from the two boys sharing jokes in front of her to see Kyungsoo’s parents standing behind their son.  “Mr. Do! Mrs. Do!” She complies to the hug his mother gives her and bows politely at his father.

“What brings you here?” Mrs. Do asks, knowing that Haerin’s parents have passed away and that she’s not a part of a doctor family.

“I’m just here with Jongin,” She answers.  “I didn’t expect to see you here either,”

“Psychologists and psychiatrists also get to work in hospitals, so we’re also part of this society,” Mr. Do smiles at her, and then at Kai, who bows towards him.  “How are you, son?”

Haerin noticed how Kai relaxes in front of Kyungsoo’s parents.  It was as if the way Mr. Do called him ‘son’ made up for all the times his father never did.  “I’m fine, it’s been great, Mr. Do, Mrs. Do,” He beams.  “It’s been quite a long time,”

“A long time, indeed,” Mr. Do agrees.  “How about your dad? Still the stiff, cold-blooded person he is?”

“Some people never change,” Kai breezily answers.

Haerin, though, was taken aback by how the Do’s seem to take Kai’s father lightly when everybody in the room seems to think of him as king.  Noticing the look on her face, Mrs. Do chuckles.  “We’re psychologists, Haerin, people don’t take us seriously,”

“Doctors take our field very lightly, saying that we do nothing but read body language and all, so they never really listen to what we have to say,” Mr. Do shrugs.  “That means, we can just say whatever we want and it won’t offend anybody,”

“That’s a perk,” Haerin laughs.

“So, anyways, we have our buddies over there by the deserts table, so, why don’t you three have a nice chat?” Mrs. Do waves at a bunch from afar and winks at her son.  “Later,”

When they walk away, far enough from hearing range, Haerin smiles at Kai.  “Guess they’re someone else’s second parents, too,”

Kai looks at her and sighs in content all the while glancing at the Do couple’s backs from afar. “They’re cool,”

“They’re a lot of people’s parents,” Kyungsoo scrunches his nose.

“Always the jealous one,” Kai playfully punches the older guy’s arm.

“They go out for dinner and lunch and breakfast with their patients! When’s my quality time?”

“Pfft, you know that’s what they do,” 

“Yeah, no dude,” Kyungsoo rolls his eyes and when it lands on Haerin, he sends her the second smile of the day, mustering up the guts to finally talk to her after what happened. “How are you?” He simply asks.

Haerin easily returns the smile.  “I’ve been great, it’s been great,” She chuckles.  “How about you?”

“I still haven’t gotten around to properly apologising to you,” He sheepishly says.

“Aw, nah,” Haeirn flaps her hand dismissively.  “No biggie.  I’m over it,”

“Really?” Kyungsoo starts to grin.  “So am I forgiven?”

“For what?” Haerin smirks.  “What happened?”

The two finally shares the laughter that made all their problems go away.  Kai, looking upon them with a fatherly smile, pats Kyungsoo’s back and points at Haerin with his thumb.  “Don’t regret it if I decide to make a move on her,”

“Sehun said the same thing, back when I kissed her at the rooftop,” Kyungsoo groans.  “What is wrong with you guys?”

“He did?” Kai guffaws and shakes his head in wonder.  “Maknae, maknae,” But then, he frowns, realising how he’s focusing on the wrong part of the sentence.  “Wait, ‘back when I kissed her at the rooftop’? What’s that about?”

Haerin scoffs and crosses her arms at the memory.  “You know Kyungsoo, he’s a jokester.  Kissed me, and then said that he didn’t know why he did it,”

Kyungsoo regretfully glances at her.  “I said sorry!”

“That was my first kiss,” Haerin playfully bites her finger, sniffling quietly.  “Ah, well,” She shrugs, dropping the act.  “I had a good time with you, so, it’s fine.  Although I did hope that I can at least last longer with someone that gave me my first kiss,”

“You deserve better,” Kyungsoo nudges her with his elbow.

“I do, don’t I?” Haerin slaps his arm with the back of her hand, laughing.

“What about you, though?” Haerin starts as she swirls her drink when Kai left them to meet more of his father’s colleagues.  “With Nara?” She glances at Kyungsoo, sipping her drink.

“She-she pushed me away,” Kyungsoo sighs, scratching the back of his head.  “Said no and slapped me and all,”

Haerin cracks up, shoulders shaking in laughter.  “Well, that makes two girls,”

“Hey, I’m crushed here and you’re laughing about it?”

Haerin shrugs.  “You’re pushy, Kyungsoo, you should lose that,” She downs the water in her hands, silently wondering why it tastes rather sweet and bitter at the same time.  “It’s about hearing people out and putting yourself in their shoes instead of forcing your opinions and feelings on them,”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Haerin frowns.  Why is she feeling woozy? “You need people to accept you but people need you to accept them, too.  You didn’t do that to me.  Sure, you listened to what I had to say but that was it.  It didn’t manage to burst through your understanding because you didn’t let it,”

“Uh-huh,” Kyungsoo frowns at Haerin’s sudden bluntness.  He takes the empty glass from her hands and sniffs it, before blinking at her in surprise.  “You can’t handle alcohol, can’t you?”

“Hmmm?” Haerin staggers slightly to the left and grabs hold of the bar’s table.  “I can’t,” She giggles.  “Why do you ask?”

“Because you’re drunk and this is bad,” Kyungsoo grabs her upper arm and looks around, searching the place for Kai.

“Good evening,”

Kyungsoo freezes the moment he sees who’s standing by Haerin at that very moment.  He points at himself and then the man shakes his head, pointing at Haerin instead, as if saying that he wanted to have a word alone with her.  Kyungsoo lets go of her arm and spins her around to face the man in the suit behind her.  “Get ahold of yourself, Son Haerin, don’t mess this up,” He whispers by her ear through gritted teeth and moves away from her, focusing on looking for Kai, because if Haerin didn’t get a grip of herself, things are going to turn out really bad.

Haerin, meanwhile, squints her eyes at the tall man towering in front of her and flashes him a wide grin.  “Oh, you’re Jongin’s dad, right?”

“Correct,” He smiles, hands joint together behind him.  “I saw you coming in with my son.  You are?”

“Son Haerin, pleased to meet you,” She smiles, bowing at him.

“No,” Although he chuckles, he was void of any emotions.  “I meant who are you to my son? Girlfriend?”

Haerin’s eyebrows shoot up in surprise as she shakes her head in denial.  “Oh no, no, no! We’re not- I’m not- Jongin’s not dating me.  We’re friends,”

“I see,” His father nods and gives Haerin a once over.  “You’re awfully pretty, but I can’t afford even you to distract him from his studies.  He’s already lacking in a lot of fields,”

Haerin frowns at his bitter words.  “As much as I want to thank you for that compliment, sir, with all due respect, your son lacks in nothing,”

“Not what I see and not a judgement you can make, miss,” He forces a smile at her.

“Let me ask you one thing,” Haerin persists, swallowing at the end of her sentence.  “Do you know what he ranked, last mid-terms?”

“No, but I keep very close tabs on his report card,”

“Well, for your information, he ranked first, despite whatever it is you think of his scores,” Haerin angrily frowns.  “He ranked first and he’s been doing that his whole life.  On and on, relentless towards himself and all he used up.  He’s the head of the student council, he’s the teachers’ favourite to the extent that he becomes their assistant, he even reads research papers and medical files and interns at a hospital,”

“It doesn’t matter.  He still isn’t good enough to make the cut into Seoul Uni,”

“Do you know who he’s doing it for? Do you know why?”

“It doesn’t matter,”

“He’s doing it for you.  Because he wants to be good enough for you and everybody else he knows.  Why can’t you believe just believe in-“

“Haerin,”

Haerin winces as someone digs a hand into the sensitive skin of her arm, cutting off her words.  She turns her head and meets Kai’s eyes, stony and expressionless.  “Let’s go,” He looks at his father and bows politely.  “Excuse us,”

His father simply turns his back at his son and walks away without a word.  Before Haerin could yell out a series of profanities at him, Kai clamps a hand over and drags her into the lift, as it shoots up towards the room he booked the moment he heard Haerin was drunk.

“Have you gone insane?!” Kai lets go of her as he yells at her right after he closes the room’s door behind him.

“God, he looks so much like you I keep thinking that I’m talking to you, not him,” Haerin clicks her tongue in annoyance, all the while marvelling at the room’s luxury.  “But he’s so unlike you at the same time.  Pisses me off every time he opens his mouth, dammit, thinks he’s so good.  I mean, he is the hot shot and all, but urgh, did he really have to say all that?”

“Haerin, look at me,” Kai grabs her by the shoulders and bores into her eyes.  “What did you think you were doing?!”

Haerin lifts her arms and pushes Kai’s away from her.  “I was just talking to your dad, relax,”

“You being drunk and talking to him aren’t two things that go well together,” Kai insists.  “What did you say to him?”

Haerin pushes him away, irritated.  “Calm the down, Kai, I was on your side,”

Kai shakes his head at her, pushing down the anger as he heard his name slip out from her lips.  “You almost made a scene out there!”

“Then let me!” Haerin spat.  “Let me make a scene and show your dad and all of them that you have what it takes!”
“Stop it,” Kai abruptly backs off, shaking his head as if denying the fact that he just heard what Haerin just said.  “Stop it, stop saying that,”

“Why should I?”

“Because I don’t!”

“To hell you don’t!” Haerin pushes him by the shoulders tauntingly with every phrase she says.  “Ranking first? Head of student council? Hospital intern? Huh?”

“Stop it!!” Kai grabs her hands and glares at her with such intensity, Haerin backs away in fear.

But the alcohol is getting to her.  Because as Haerin holds his gaze, she wrenches her hands away from his grip and points at his face insolently.  “That’s the only drawback you have.  Being such a in front of your dad and the people around him,”

“Wha-“
“That’s right.  You have a freaking inferiority complex,”

“I don’t ha-“

“Yeah? You swallow everything they say and don’t bother saying anything back.  You bathe yourself in their demeaning words and don’t bother saying anything back.  You allow yourself to be in put such a low level and don’t bother saying anything back.  What part of that is not you being a , Kai?”

“I’m not a coward!”

“Oh, you are!” Haerin scoffs loudly.  “You are a coward and as much as I want to kiss you right now, I am leaving,”

Kai is rendered speechless at Haerin’s outburst.  He knows that he’s denying everything that she said because they were true.  He was panicking when he found out that Haerin had been talking to his dad and he didn’t even know why.  Did he not want her to be hurt by his father’s harsh words? No, that wasn’t it.  Did he dislike his father that much? He wasn’t sure.  Was it that he didn’t want his father to find out who he actually is? He didn’t know.  All he knew was that he didn’t want Haerin anywhere near his dad.  And part of it was probably because he didn’t want her to see how weak he really is.

“Do you know how hard it is to be by alcohol and be angry at you at the same time?” Haerin mutters irritatedly.

“You can’t go home like that, Haerin,” Kai sighs finally, watching her stagger towards the door.  “You’re drunk and it’s late,”

Haerin whips her head around and glares at him.  “Says you,”

“Yes, and I care for your well-being so get your back here this instant,”

“No.  I’m going home,” She struggles with the lock, not knowing what to turn and what to press.

“I said, get back here and go get some sleep,”

“Make me,”

With that, Kai strides towards where she was and swiftly carries her bridal style, drawing back from the way she was swinging her fist all over the place.  “No! I hate you! I’m so angry at you! I want to go home! Kai!”

Kai throws her onto the bed and crawls to hover above her menacingly.  “That’s the third time you called me Kai,” His eyes darken as it runs over her body below him.  “Didn’t I tell you I don’t like it?”

“I don’t like you, too, so I deserve to call you Kai,” Haerin already has her eyes on his lips and was the one who lost her control as she pulls him down by the tie, kissing him.  “Kai,” She says in between her kisses, in between breaths.  Her hands work to unravel his tie and more of his shirt.  “Kai, Kai, Kai,”

“Stop it,” Kai growls, pushing her down roughly as she tries to get back up to kiss him again.  “Jongin, it’s Jongin,” He forces her to look at him but Haerin flips them over and dives in to nibble at his earlobe, showering his jawline and neck with open-mouthed kisses.  “Kai, you coward,” She whispers as a guttural growl comes out from the back of his throat.

Kai reverses their position again and returns the gestures twice the vigour, tongue flickering to taste her collarbone.  The moment he hears her mewl another “Kai”, he bites down on her neck, angry at how she was calling him.  “Damn it, Haerin,” He breathes onto the red mark, and when her breath hitches, he grits his teeth.  “I’m not a coward,”

“Then prove it,” She tilts her head.  Her lips find his neck and she les on it, trailing down towards his shoulder, now exposed.  “Prove it and stop chickening out in front of your dad and everybody else,” She murmurs.  “Impress them,”

Kai holds back a moan when her fingers trail down his chest and abs.  “I c-can’t,” He gasps.  “You know I can’t,”

“You can,” Haerin quietly says, stopping her hands’ advance to cup his face and pull him in for a chaste kiss.  “You just have to try,”

“What if I fail?” Kai pushes her hair away from her face and stares down at her glazed eyes.  “What if- what if they ignore me? What if I disappoint my dad? Again?”

“Come on, you never did disappoint him,” Haerin laughs quietly.  “That’s what you think,” She hums.  “He’s just so worried about you.  That’s why-“ She yawns, grunting as she pushes him away from on top of her so that he falls to lie down beside her.  Her body subtly curls up into his warmth to get comfortable.  “That’s why he’s so harsh, because he’s like you, Jongin-ah; really bad with his words,” Giggling softly, Haerin drifts to sleep in the blink of an eye, as if she didn’t just have one hell of a make-out session with a guy.

Every drunk moment with Haerin always ends up with him left hanging.  Kai looks down at the state he and Haerin was in; him nearly shirtless and her just so defenseless beside him, drunk and on a bed in a hotel.  He softly chuckles at himself and kisses the top of her head before pulling away to cover her with the blankets.  She’s not one to move much when she sleeps, but it’s her expressions that are worth paying attention to.  The way she scrunches her nose, the way she frowns, or the way the ghost of a smile appears on her lips as if she were the happiest kid in the world; Kai couldn’t take his eyes off of her.  

Her words ring in his head as he grabs a drink for himself while he watches her sleep.  Were they the truth? Is his father really not disappointed in him? To be honest, he never really heard that statement come out of his father’s lips, but he never heard compliments either, so he just assumed that his father is disappointed in him most of the time.  How did Haerin perceive that from just one encounter with his dad? What exactly did they talk about back there?

For the umpteenth time, Haerin throws him into a state of surprise and confusion.

And she’s not even trying.

;)