Cute and really smart.

This is how Chanyeol characterized the girl Jongin was supposed to meet for a date later on in the day. Cute and really smart – not an altogether thorough description, but he was fine with that. Chanyeol had seemed (more than usual) thrilled to set her up with Jongin, so he reasons he wouldn’t be disappointed.

Then again, his best friend was an idiot.

And a prankster.

Holy . Is it too late to back out now? Jongin glances at his newly polished watch and notes with a sigh that yes, it is indeed too late, with less than half an hour before their scheduled rendezvous. He shakes his arms and legs to release all the bad juju that he chooses to attribute to first date anxiety. He trusts that Chanyeol is decent enough of a friend (or a human being) to take him seriously when he set him up on this date.

It has been a while, specifically six years (alright, maybe it has been more than a while) since he last went on a date. And it did not fare well for either party: Jongin spilling Cabernet on his date’s immaculate cream dress, getting up to wipe off the stain, instead accidentally pushing the table toward her (spaghetti Bolognese, cutlery, and all), making her cry, and consequently getting slapped violently in the face, making him cry. As he sat there with hunched shoulders and no less than a hundred pairs of eyes on his miserable form, he mused that this was 180˚ from the dream date he had envisioned, which was something along the lines of Lady and the Tramp; thus the spaghetti.

After (disappointedly) learning that no, that iconic Disney scene does not in fact happen in real life, and doing quite a bit of growing up, he reckons it is finally time to make his comeback to the dating scene. He scans himself in the mirror one last time and makes necessary adjustments – running a hand through his hair to give it that casual, “no I did not spend two hours getting ready for this” look, and popping the first one or two buttons on his long sleeved shirt. A bit of skin never hurt, right? He then makes a rundown of the necessary items to bring: keys, wallet, phone, charisma, before finally heading out of his apartment. He notes what a beautiful day it is for falling in love. Eww that was such a painfully cheesy thought to have. But kidding aside, the sun was shining just so, clouds were languidly rolling amidst a bright blue backdrop, and there weren’t too many vehicles clogging the roads. Altogether, it was an auspicious day for a first date.

He arrives at the downtown café with ample time to spare, which he whiles away assessing the quaint décor and the assortment of baked goods on display, already choosing what to have later so that he doesn’t spend fifteen minutes settling on which cake to go with his coffee while his date taps fingers on the table willing him to just “choose a damn cake already!” He takes a seat toward the side and stares blankly out the window at the pedestrians going by. He’s taken out of his reverie when a barely audible cough emanates from the other side of the table. That’s odd, he thinks, what a sonorous voice for a woman. When he looks around, he figures out why.

The person seated across him is a man.

---

Jongin’s shock must have shown blatantly on his face, because the man’s eyebrows shoot up, freakishly large eyes widening even more as it dawns on him that he might have made a mistake in taking his seat. “Oh, I’m sorry. Aren’t you Kim Jongin?”

“How do you know my name?”

Jongin’s confusion is now mirrored on the other man’s face as the latter struggles to comprehend the kinda stupid question. “Because Chanyeol told me? I’m your date?”

Jongin doesn’t bother picking up his jaw that has dropped to the glossy, tiled floor. In a stutter that rivals that of Forrest Gump, he manages to spit out a response. “You…you’re Sue?”

“Uhh…yes? Kyungsoo actually.”

“You’re a guy.”

One bushy eyebrow arches as Kyungsoo decides how to respond to that, suddenly frightened that Chanyeol had tricked him into dating an idiot. “If I remember correctly.”

“Chanyeol didn’t tell me you were a guy.”

The same bushy eyebrow now reaches the man’s fringe, mouth agape so that now the both of them look like they’re attempting to catch flies with their jaws. “You were expecting a girl? Chanyeol told you I was a girl?”

Jongin tries, and struggles, to recollect that fateful afternoon last week when his friend had gone up to him with his signature cheeky grin plastered on his face and informed him of a date he had set up. “Well, not specifically.”

“Not specifically?”

“He just told me he’d set me up with someone cute and really smart.”

“And you’d implied he was talking about a girl.”

Jongin nods, no bobs, his head like one of those miniature figurines tacked onto some cars’ dashboards.

“Oh. My. God. Let me get this straight, you’re straight?!”

“Yes.”

“Remind me to hunt down that giant oaf after this so that I could kill him by strangulation, and/or maybe kidnap Baekhyun because he’s probably got a hand at this joke too.”

Kyungsoo slouches in his seat, plump lips jutting out in a pout, the image eerily comparable to that of a six-year old whose lollipop was taken away and is now about to sob his heart out. Jongin hastily holds out a hand because he is not going to have his date cry on him again. “Don’t cry.”

“I’m angry.”

“Oh. Oh. I thought you were on the verge of tears.”

“Ok, look Kim Jongin. This whole misunderstanding isn’t really my fault, but on behalf of the soon deceased Park Chanyeol, I’d like to apologize. Apparently, although I cannot for the life of me fathom how, he forgot to mention the very significant detail of my gender.” He is waving his arms as he says this, eyes practically bulging out of their sockets, and cheeks flushed a violent shade of red. It’s supposed to appear menacing, but Jongin thinks he looks sort of cute. Wait, what? Did he just think Kyungsoo was cute? “So again, I’m really sorry and I’ll be heading out now. Sorry for the confusion and for wasting your time.” He gets up from his chair and adds as in afterthought, “Well then, if Chanyeol doesn’t answer your calls in the future don’t be surprised. And if the cops ask, don’t tell them it was me.”

As he makes his exit, Jongin reaches out an arm, and he doesn’t know what possesses him (maybe it’s because Kyungsoo looked pretty serious about murdering Chanyeol) but he finds himself shouting, “Wait!”

Not only does Kyungsoo look back at him, all the patrons’ heads are now turned in his direction, and it feels so painfully like déjà vu. “I don’t really have anywhere I need to be, and I’m assuming you also cleared your afternoon for this, so let’s have coffee?”

Now the other customers’ heads are turned to Kyungsoo, as if this were a tennis match and the ball was in his court. And he doesn’t know what possesses him (maybe it’s because he hasn’t eaten all day and this is his favorite café), but he relents.

---

“We didn’t really get off to a great start, so let’s do it again?” Jongin suggests with a shy smile and a clammy hand on his nape. “My name’s Kim Jongin, I work in software development because the juvenile me thought I’d get paid to play video games all day long. Safe to say, juvenile me was wrong. But adult me is pretty content with my job.”

“Hi, I’m Do Kyungsoo and I’m a newspaper editor. I grew up silently judging people’s grammar so I thought I’d make a living out of it. I have to be mentally alert even after midnight and spot the tiniest of lapses and inconsistencies, even when my eyelids feel like they’re Velcroed to my eyeballs. Do not ask me how much coffee I intake daily because you don’t really want to know.”

Their previous discomfort and awkwardness melt away as they share hearty chuckles. Jongin then looks, really looks, at Kyungsoo and takes in his features: the jet black hair, the mole-dusted milky skin, the wire-rimmed glasses framing his lively eyes, and those beautiful, luscious lips that form what he makes out to be a heart when he smiles.

Kyungsoo, in one word, was dazzling. And Jongin, in one word, was confused. But he decides to sort out his feelings later because right now he just wants to immerse himself in his companion.

Kyungsoo orders lots of coffee and Jongin orders lots of cake. Between them, they have enough food and beverage to sustain everyone there, but hey, who’s judging. “So, how did you meet Chanyeol?” Jongin sputters in between slices of cake, hoping Kyungsoo understands what must sound like the muffled moan of a dying wildebeest.

“Gross, you’re spitting cake crumbs.” Kyungsoo wipes the said crumbs off his face with a napkin before continuing. The blush rising in Jongin’s cheeks escapes his notice. “We took a few courses in college together. The first time I met him was in freshman year at our world history class. He sat next to me and then went, “Hi! I’m Chanyeol!” and flashed this really creepy grin. You know the one where the corners of his lips almost reach the tips of his ears? I’d always imagine it as a cross between The Joker and a Muppet.”

Jongin bowls over in a laughing fit because never has anyone so impeccably described Chanyeol’s smile.

“Honestly, I was frightened more than annoyed that he’d interrupted me from my reading. It still baffles me how Baekhyun found that grin remotely attractive, but well he’s head over heels for the guy. I assume Chanyeol’s your friend from work?”

“You could say that. The doofus is actually my immediate boss.”

“How is Chanyeol the boss of anyone? What did he ever do to be given such authority?”

“For all his quirks, he’s actually pretty diligent when it comes to work – something about wanting to make his boyfriend proud and see him as a guy who could provide for their future family.”

“That is so sweet, I need insulin just hearing it.”

“Made me want to puke when I heard it coming directly from his mouth. So Kyungsoo, what do you busy yourself with when you’re not mister hotshot newspaper editor?”

“I like to binge: binge read, binge eat, binge watch Netflix. You?”

“Likewise; although I’m fairly certain you read profound 19^th century literature and not manga.”

“No, I actually read 20^th century literature. But I won’t criticize you for wanting to read something with pictures.”

“Then why did that sound so terribly judgmental?”

“That’s just my default sardonic tone. Really, I don’t judge. At least you actually read. I don’t trust people who say they’re not into reading. Like why?” Kyungsoo rolls his eyes as he agonizes over the incredulity of it. Jongin thinks it’s sassy and adorable. Key word: adorable. They continue talking about the most random things well until the sun sets and several sets of customers have come and gone. Only when Kyungsoo’s phone beeps do they snap out of their conversation.

“It’s my boss. I guess it’s time to get back to work.”

“Oh. Do you want me to take you to your office?”

“No, it’s fine. Fortunately enough, he allowed me to work from home tonight. And my apartment’s only a few blocks from here. I guess this is goodbye?”

“I guess so. My dates have not once gone according to expectations, but for the first time it’s actually beyond my expectations.”

“That’s supposed to make me vomit, but I’ll let you off this time. I guess today is Chanyeol’s lucky day; his death by Kyungsoo has been postponed indefinitely for now.”

“Yeah, I’ll have to call him about this when I get home. And maybe I can call you?”

Kyungsoo bites a finger to suppress his inner teenage girl from squealing right now. He takes his dependable pen from his pants pocket and jots down his number on their receipt before handing it to Jongin. “I’ll maybe bury myself in articles for the rest of the night, so text me instead? I promise to at least try replying within an hour. Lame deal, I know, but I kinda have to catch up with work.”

“Totally. Well, you better get started soon then. I’ll see you…” Jongin doesn’t know how exactly to finish that sentence, so Kyungsoo beats him to it.

“We’ll figure something out.”

“Yeah.”

When they’ve already made their way out the shop, just before they go home to their respective places of residence, Kyungsoo places a chaste kiss on Jongin’s cheek and waves a hand goodbye. He waits for Kyungsoo to turn around before giggling and blushing like crazy and prancing home. Unbeknownst to him, Kyungsoo does the same.

---

“Why did you set me up with a guy?” Jongin decides to ask Chanyeol over the phone when he gets home, trying to raise the question in a deadpan voice when he is still very much blushing from the kiss and just the afternoon in general.

“Because you’re gay.”

Well, that was straightforward. “I don’t remember ever telling you that. And why do you sound so sure about it when I’ve never even thought of that myself?”

“Really? I assumed you were just biding your time in the closet. Is that really all you wanted to tell me? I can practically hear you squirming over the line.”

Creepy. “How did you know?”

“That’s beside the point. I believe a thank you is in order here?”

“You bastard. You purposely omitted Kyungsoo being a guy so you could drag me into that date, didn’t you?”

“And make you realize how gay you are. Again, I kinda deserve a thank you here.”

“Thank you,” he whispers because no way was he going to give in to Chanyeol’s egotistical whims.

“I didn’t catch that. Could you repeat it?”

“Thank you,” he then says in one quick breath.

“Is it really that hard? Would you like me to tell Kyungsoo that your snore is analogous to a pig grunting and that you soil your pants when you’re nervous? By the way, did that happen today?”

“Ok, fine! Thank you, boss,” he screams into the receiver, making sure to stretch out the last word. “And no, my pristinely pleated khakis are still perfectly dry. My bladder knew not to embarrass its owner in front of his date.”

“Wow. Even your bladder wanted a second date.”

“Could we stop talking about my bladder? And I’m only still talking to you because Kyungsoo is busy editing newspaper articles right now.”

“Well then, could you maybe stop? Because I’m trying to get laid in an hour.”

“Why did you have to tell me that?! And what loser schedules ? Are you that ?”

“Actually yes. So goodbye, good night, and you’re welcome.”

Chanyeol hangs up on him afterward, leaving Jongin to wonder what it is about him that made Chanyeol think (or know) he was gay. He forgot to ask and doing so now probably isn’t a good idea. He sits cross-legged on his bed, hugging a pillow close to him, and mulls on it. Was it the way he talked? Jongin thinks there’s nothing particularly remarkable about his speech, so he discounts that idea. Was it because he hadn’t dated for so long? That was probably it. In retrospect, Jongin never had a successful relationship. He always thought it was because of his uncanny tendency to make a fool of himself, but maybe he was subconsciously avoiding deep involvement? And what exactly does he feel for Kyungsoo?

That last one was easy. There really was no other way around it. He’s had the best day he’s ever had in a long time, and it was all thanks to a cute and really smart guy.

Key word: guy.

---

Craving something to do until sleepiness sets in, he goes online. That was a surefire way to kill time. After spending the last hour cooing at random videos of puppies, a yawn finally escapes him. He shuts his laptop and glances at his phone on the bedside table. He keys in the number that he’d already memorized by heart on his way home, and drafts a text message. He rereads it multiple times, making absolutely sure every word is spelled correctly and the verb usage is sound before hitting send. The last thing he wants is for Kyungsoo to be turned off by his poor grammar. Also, the guy probably has enough to proofread. The text is pretty concise actually: Hi! Jongin here, wishing you a good night. Hope you finish early! Well, as early as possible that is. Don’t overexert yourself! (｡◕ ∀ ◕｡)

He doesn’t really expect Kyungsoo to respond, but his phone buzzes just as he tugs his blanket to his chin.

“Hi Jongin! Thanks for the concern. I’m almost three quarters done. I’m also almost three quarters done with my supply of coffee, so there’s that. Good night to you too! (｡◕ ♡ ◕｡)”

A deep, throaty laugh escapes from his diaphragm, carrying with it the butterflies fluttering in the pits of his stomach. If Kyungsoo had a personal emoticon, that would surely be the most fitting. So apparently he was fully aware of his features. And Jongin thinks, as sleep finally claims him, that he’ll be seeing those same features tonight behind closed eyelids.

Key word: love.

---

A/N: Still thinking about doing a sequel. What do you guys think? And I kinda don't know how to continue if ever, but we'll see. ;)