Mixed Tape
A Little Sour in Your Sweet - P.O./Zico
A little sweetness goes a long way. (605 words)
"Got you a lemonade, Jiho."
Jiho slides into his usual chair next to Taeil before swiping the cup from Kyung's hands. He adjusts the straw and gulps down half of the liquid at once.
However, a quarter of it ends up in behind their table.
"That is the worst shit I've ever tasted!" He spits out whatever he can and wipes his tongue on his sleeve to rid himself of the tang.
Taeil chuckles beside him, "How much shit have you tasted, Jiho?"
Yukwon erupts in a fit of laughter, but Kyung continues to sip from his own cup like he's heard this all before.
"It's not funny," Jiho states as he pushes himself away from the table. "I'm going to have a talk with someone about this."
Jaehyo strolls in all smiles and preppy clothes. He slips a little on the spilled lemonade, but no one seems to notice that. "What's up?"
Kyung looks up and sighs. "Jiho's going to go to the authorities and demand better lemonade."
Jiho storms off to the sounds of Yukwon's laughter. "Who doesn't put fucking sugar in lemonade?"
The man at the lemonade kiosk presses a few buttons, sending the blender into a fury. It's not Minho, which must mean it's this guy's first day. Jiho should probably take it easy, but that's not really his style.
The worker ducks under the counter, oblivious to Jiho walking towards Main Squeeze. Jiho doesn't like to be avoided.
"Hello?" he asks loudly as he taps on the side of the lemon-shaped stand. "I just came here to see the idiot that doesn't put sugar in the lemonade."
The guy raises up, bumping his head before smiling at Jiho. "I'm sorry. What can I do for you?"
"You could put some damn sweetener in this, for starters," Jiho says. He notices first that smile, big and a little dorky. Then, he finds that none of his previous frustration is there anymore.
"That's what I forgot." The man looks on the shelf below the counter. "I like my lemonade sour, so I guess I never thought about adding anything sweet to it."
He adds a few tablespoons of sugar into the blender before it spins again. Jiho decides to turn this lemon into lemonade by turning up his charm.
Jiho stares at the worker for a while as the latter rants about his work. Most of the words are incomprehensible anyway, but Jiho does like the looks of this guy. He has a handsome face and sexy lips. He's a bit taller than Jiho usually goes for, but he is willing to make an exception.
He clears his throat to interrupt. "What's your name?"
"Pyo Jihoon. What's yours?" Jihoon stops the blender and pours the contents into a new cup.
"Woo Jiho. But you..."
"Well, here you are, Woo Jiho," Jihoon says as he hands over the cup, "Enjoy!"
Jiho walks off, sipping the slightly less bitter concoction without a single complaint.
"So, how's the lemonade?" Taeil asks as soon as Jiho falls in the chair next to him.
Jiho's smile is goofy and a bit deranged. Kyung hides his smile with the back of his sleeve. "How was Jihoon?"
Jaehyo leans over to take a sip of Jiho's cup. "Ew! This is awful."
Yukwon bursts into girlish giggles. "Maybe you should complain, too"
Jiho snaps out of his daydream enough to say, "Dude, I have dibs."
Kyung and Taeil finally give in to the laughter, and even though he is clueless, Jaehyo laughs along with them. Jiho, however, is too busy thinking of Jihoon to join in or worry about them laughing at him.
Park Kyung, Sex God - Kyung
Kyung doesn't lie. He just doesn't tell the truth. (625 words)
The ringtone was about two notes in when Kyung answered. He didn't listen long enough to hear which tune it was or check to see who was calling. Quite honestly, he expected this call about an hour ago.
"Hey, Jiho. You're late," he yawned.
He stretched his left arm out, bumping his knuckles against the headboard. Jiho's voice blared in his ears, and most of the words were muddled in static. He half-listened as Jiho bragged about his latest conquest. It probably ended in failure, like the rest, but the story was always the best part.
Normally, Kyung would have listened. Maybe he would have even added some slightly enthusiastic one-liners to show he gave a damn. But right now, Kyung just wanted Jiho to say whatever it is he wanted to know. It had been a long day, and between crazy shoppers and his own allergic reactions, he was ready to get some well-deserved rest.
"Fuck, man, why did you call?"
"Someone sounds tired," Jiho started. Then, as if he remembered something, he asked, "What have you been up to today?"
The question was doused in the cheap cologne Jiho dabs on for luck. Kyung knew what Jiho wanted to hear, but he wasn't about to say anything without being asked.
"What do you want to know?" he asks. It wasn't really an answer, but knowing Jiho, he would take the bait.
Jiho raised his voice a little, a tell-tale sign of his frustration. "Did you like your surprise from Jihoonie?"
"Uh-huh," Kyung said, "He's already planning on surprising me again."
"That good, huh?"
Kyung smiled. "Yeah. I spent my entire break in the employee bathroom at The Scratching Post."
"Wow!" Jiho drew out the word like it was the only one he would ever say. "I didn't think you had it in you, and at The Scratching Post? Hoping to get Kwon in on it, too? Not that I blame you. That ass..."
The rest of the conversation was pretty much a blur, but Kyung did hear a few phrases here and there. Mostly, Jiho talked about Yukwon's nice ass and various activities involving it, but Kyung blocked those details from his mind as soon as the mental pictures were processed.
He did remember hanging up before he fell asleep. He may have told Jiho goodbye before doing so. Jiho may have called Kyung a sex god. But Kyung may have imagined all that.
(What he didn't imagine was the next day in the food court. Jihoon blushed then tried desperately to hide under the counter at Main Squeeze, only the top of that stupid lemon hat peeking out. Minhyuk hovered over the counter, eyes focused on the person underneath it. Taeil and Yukwon glared at Kyung; Jaehyo pouted a bit before heading off to work.
Jiho came to visit him at work, patted his butt, and relived his daily adventures. Before Jiho was fired for skipping his shift to flirt, he had let the whole mall in on their little phone call.
On his break, Kyung apologized to Jihoon and brought over a box of loukoumades from Thai'd Up. More embarrassed than anything, Jihoon accepted the apology and discussed his plans for the new surprise.
Minhyuk, Taeil, and Yukwon were harder to win over, but his spiked punch had once again come to the rescue. He was sure it was a weekend he would never forget, but the images are still blurry.
Jaehyo was easy to forgive and forget, but he still didn't trust Kyung around Jihoon for a while after that. Three months later, Kyung found out why.
Jiho never found out what really happened, and Kyung was okay with that.)
Golden Slumbers - Kyung/P.O.
All Jihoon wanted was to surprise Kyung; Kyung was definitely surprised. (550 words)
Kyung's day ends at a funeral.
"Kyungie, I have a special surprise for you," Jihoon says as he cuts a lemon in half.
Kyung tilts his head just a little bit higher and elbows Jiho in the side when he rolls his eyes.
"What kind of surprise is it?" he asks.
Jihoon puts a finger to his lips then says, "Meet me here on your break."
Kyung nods and waves goodbye to Jihoon before elbowing Jiho again for good measure.
"A'ight, Jihoonie, he can't hear us. Tell me, what didja get him?" Jiho asks. Kyung takes two more steps, now only five away.
Jihoon chuckles, "I'm not telling."
That does little to discourage Jiho. As Kyung walks the irritating questions grow fainter. However, he can still pick out the Jihoon's embarrassment and almost see the stupid grin on Jiho's face.
"It's not that kind of surprise!" Jihoon exclaims.
Kyung walks to the DJ booth at Beat This, fixes his name tag, and wonder what surprises are to come.
He plays another track, an underground hip-hop song he once remixed for a childhood valentine. When the song's over, he darts to the gang's usual table at the food court, the one closest to Main Squeeze.
Jihoon is nowhere in sight; all Kyung sees is a crowd of strangers that look at him with pity.
He makes his way through the crowd. A few girls dab at the corners of their eyes. Hanhae from Hang 10 has his helmet off and is staring at the floor.
When Hanhae sees Kyung walking by, he says, "I'm sorry, dude. Things like this happen sometimes."
Kyung nods, not really sure what has happened but sure that something has.
In the center of the crowd, Jihoon sits and stares down at a plastic bag.
"Jihoonie?" Kyung whispers.
Jihoon looks up and hands the bag over to Kyung. In it, there is water and what appears to be a dead goldfish.
"Surprise," Jihoon pouts.
Kyung feels that pets should be mourned properly with a funeral of their own, even ones that never got the chance to be pets. He marches to The Scratching Post, bag in one hand and Jihoon's hand in the other.
"Hey guys, what's up?" Yukwon asks as Kyung walks up to the counter.
He shows Yukwon the bag, and he is sure that the latter didn't miss the look on Jihoon's face.
"We need to use your bathroom."
Yukwon understands, guiding them to the back of the store and rubbing the space between Jihoon's shoulder blades.
After a ceremonial flush, Jihoon's fingers fill the spaces between Kyung's.
"I'm sorry." Jihoon's eyes are sad.
Kyung squeezes his fingers tightly. "Don't be."
They walk out of the bathroom, hand in hand. Kyung can feel the beginnings of Jihoon's smile in his fingertips.
The stores are starting to close, and Kyung heads over to the gang's table for one more cup of lemonade and goodbyes. The table looks a little empty with only Jihoon and Jiho there, but it will soon be full of retail horror stories and plans for tomorrow.
Jihoon sees him first, running over to give him a hug. "Next time will be better, I promise."
Jiho's eyebrows raise in question.
"Later," Kyung mouths to him and wraps his arms around Jihoon.
There's No "I" in Team - Jaehyo/Zico
Jiho is a winner, so Jaehyo is, too. At least that's what Jaehyo gets out of this. (405 words)
Back in Busan, Jaehyo was known for being pretty quick. His legs were long but not to the point of awkwardness. The middle school's colors complemented his skin tone, and his was the name the people cheered for in the last lap of a relay.
But Seoul wasn't Busan. Jaehyo thought he would make that clear.
The guy shook his head as if in disbelief, which meant the challenge would go as planned. It was a lap around the high school. Winners received bragging rights; Jaehyo laughed it off.
Jiho didn't.
"You've got to win," he said. He winced after another swallow of lemonade. "Start training now."
"But I don't want to," Jaehyo whined.
Jiho pulled the straw away from his lips. "This isn't about you. This is about us."
"Us?" Jaehyo didn't follow, but Jiho was in leader mode.
"Us. And I never lose."
Jaehyo jogged everywhere he went for the rest of the week.
He was determined to win, even if he looked stupid to the customers. Jiho spent extra time in the little electronics store, timing Jaehyo's every move.
"Don't you have a job to lose?" Jaehyo asked. His knees ached, and the sweat caused his polo to stick to his back.
Jiho smirked. "I'm taking a break from retail. Right now, I'm a coach." He blew the whistle around his neck. "Now again."
The race was on a Saturday morning. Jihoon made a big sign that said Jaehyo in blue and silver, messy lines slanted in various directions. Kyung held on to the fence the entire race, and Yukwon shouted out encouragements that were heard across the campus.
Jaehyo was tired from all the sprinting practice; his lungs stung with every intake of air.
Still, he won by a long-shot. Taeil handed him a water bottle at the finish line.
Jiho swatted him with a towel in his old school's colors. "You did good."
Jaehyo wiped his face with the towel, barely catching the smile Jiho wore.
"You mean, we did good," Jaehyo said.
"Yeah, that's what I meant. But I already told you I never lose."
Jiho walked off toward Jaehyo's small cheering team.
"Jiho, you do know you're fired, right?" Jaehyo asked, stepping closer to Jiho with each syllable.
Jiho turned then, a wicked grin on his face. "You can't fire me. I quit. Besides, you need more than a coach to whip your sorry ass into shape."
The Art of Dating - General
The guys try out their strategies in this mixed art, with varying degrees of success. (820 words)
Surprisingly, this starts out as a normal day.
Jiho stands at the Main Squeeze with his elbows propped on the counter, taste testing the lemonade to make sure Jihoon added the sugar. Jihoon swats at Jiho's hands when he tries to add a little extra sweetness to the mix. Yukwon drums on the edge of their usual table while Jaehyo is having a one-sided staring contest with Taeil, who is looking at everything but Jaehyo.
Kyung walks in and changes everything in one statement.
"I think I'm ready to start dating again."
Jiho nods, grin on his face, and says, "We've got work to do."
♥♥♥
"Just do what I do and you'll be fine, Kyungie."
Jiho sips his mixed berry smoothie. He spots a guy reading a few tables away and decides that will be the first target.
"Watch and learn."
"Watch and learn."
"You said that on the last guy."
Jiho scowls, "Well, how was I supposed to know the guy wasn't gay?"
"I don't know. Maybe because he kissed a girl?" Kyung's sarcasm is thick, but Jiho pays it no mind.
"The signs were there. She'll figure it out soon enough, too."
Jiho finishes off his smoothie, tossing it in the trash as he heads towards target number two.
One slap later, Jiho falls back on a bench facing the fountain. Next to him, a guy sits, quietly sipping something in a paper cup. Jiho wastes no time.
"Hey there, cutie."
The guy barely looks at Jiho. He instead focuses on his drink. "Are you talking to me?"
"Hell yeah, I'm talkin' to you. So you got a name to go with that body?"
"My name's Lee Minhyuk."
Minhyuk doesn't look interested in Jiho's attention, but Jiho always loves a good chase. "Well, I'm Woo Jiho, but you can call me anything you want. Anytime."
"Thanks?"
"No problem."
Jiho grins; Minhyuk takes another sip of the mystery liquid. After a fairly lengthy silence, Jiho decides to kick his game up a notch.
"That is your color, Minhyuk," he says as husky as he can.
"Really? Black is my color?"
Jiho nods. "It really brings out your eyes."
"Uh-huh." Minhyuk tilts his head to the side and moves his straw around in the cup. Finally, after some thought, he asks, "You do know that I'm a guy, right?"
Jiho spots Kyung walking closer, goofy smile and bug-eyed. Minhyuk looks a little happy to see him. Jiho pretends not to notice.
Kyung's attention is on Minhyuk. "So, you ready to go?"
"How do you know each other?" Jiho asks.
Kyung blushes a little and explains some horribly cute story. Jiho tunes in and out, but he does catch a glimpse of date-like activity. And he is not about to strike out while Kyung goes on a date. It's just against every law of nature.
"Well, I guess I'll be seeing you around, Minhyuk. Kyung, I'll call you later." Jiho stands up and moves in his slowest speed, waiting for everything to sink in.
"Wait, you know him?"
A few school girls look over, trying to catch the scene in action. Kyung avoids all eye contact. "Yeah."
"We're best friends," Jiho adds as he wraps an arm around Kyung's shoulders.
"Um...well, it was really nice meeting you, Kyung, but I've got to go."
Minhyuk vanishes in the lineup at Wok and Roll. Jiho shrugs it off; Kyung stares blankly with wide eyes and an open mouth.
"What the fuck?" he asks once the shock wears off.
"I know. Weirdo," Jiho pauses for emphasis. When Kyung nods, he continues, "So how 'bout a movie?"
Kyung just nods, because he can't think of anything else to do.
♥♥♥
Jaehyo gets off work a little earlier than usual, so he heads to the food court. He slows down when he hears the whirring of a blender. Jihoon is probably experimenting again. Jaehyo takes tentative steps forward until he sees Jihoon's big, goofy smile.
"Jaehyo!" Jihoon screeches. Jaehyo waves, a little unsure of how to move his limbs without looking awkward.
"Wanna try my new smoothie?"
Jihoon holds the clear plastic cup up, showing off a pinkish purple goop. He looks so proud of it.
Jaehyo nods, trying his best to swallow down the fear. "I would love to."
It doesn't taste too bad, but the sudden rush of lips on his cheeks may be affecting his brain.
"Jihoonie, you want to go to see a movie with me?" he asks a little breathlessly.
Jihoon throws his apron across the counter and lowers the top of the stand. His fingers find Jaehyo's, pulling him along.
Jaehyo doesn't mind being dragged.
♥♥♥
Yukwon looks around the table, counting each empty chair before staring at Taeil. Taeil's head is resting on the heel of his left hand while his right hand smooths out the imaginary creases in the table.
"Wanna see a movie?" Yukwon asks, not bothering to cover his yawn.
"Sure."
To you. Repeat when necessary.
Based on the Canadian animated television show, 6teen.
Thoughts on new adventures and OTPs are welcome!
A little sweetness goes a long way. (605 words)
"Got you a lemonade, Jiho."
Jiho slides into his usual chair next to Taeil before swiping the cup from Kyung's hands. He adjusts the straw and gulps down half of the liquid at once.
However, a quarter of it ends up in behind their table.
"That is the worst shit I've ever tasted!" He spits out whatever he can and wipes his tongue on his sleeve to rid himself of the tang.
Taeil chuckles beside him, "How much shit have you tasted, Jiho?"
Yukwon erupts in a fit of laughter, but Kyung continues to sip from his own cup like he's heard this all before.
"It's not funny," Jiho states as he pushes himself away from the table. "I'm going to have a talk with someone about this."
Jaehyo strolls in all smiles and preppy clothes. He slips a little on the spilled lemonade, but no one seems to notice that. "What's up?"
Kyung looks up and sighs. "Jiho's going to go to the authorities and demand better lemonade."
Jiho storms off to the sounds of Yukwon's laughter. "Who doesn't put fucking sugar in lemonade?"
The man at the lemonade kiosk presses a few buttons, sending the blender into a fury. It's not Minho, which must mean it's this guy's first day. Jiho should probably take it easy, but that's not really his style.
The worker ducks under the counter, oblivious to Jiho walking towards Main Squeeze. Jiho doesn't like to be avoided.
"Hello?" he asks loudly as he taps on the side of the lemon-shaped stand. "I just came here to see the idiot that doesn't put sugar in the lemonade."
The guy raises up, bumping his head before smiling at Jiho. "I'm sorry. What can I do for you?"
"You could put some damn sweetener in this, for starters," Jiho says. He notices first that smile, big and a little dorky. Then, he finds that none of his previous frustration is there anymore.
"That's what I forgot." The man looks on the shelf below the counter. "I like my lemonade sour, so I guess I never thought about adding anything sweet to it."
He adds a few tablespoons of sugar into the blender before it spins again. Jiho decides to turn this lemon into lemonade by turning up his charm.
Jiho stares at the worker for a while as the latter rants about his work. Most of the words are incomprehensible anyway, but Jiho does like the looks of this guy. He has a handsome face and sexy lips. He's a bit taller than Jiho usually goes for, but he is willing to make an exception.
He clears his throat to interrupt. "What's your name?"
"Pyo Jihoon. What's yours?" Jihoon stops the blender and pours the contents into a new cup.
"Woo Jiho. But you..."
"Well, here you are, Woo Jiho," Jihoon says as he hands over the cup, "Enjoy!"
Jiho walks off, sipping the slightly less bitter concoction without a single complaint.
"So, how's the lemonade?" Taeil asks as soon as Jiho falls in the chair next to him.
Jiho's smile is goofy and a bit deranged. Kyung hides his smile with the back of his sleeve. "How was Jihoon?"
Jaehyo leans over to take a sip of Jiho's cup. "Ew! This is awful."
Yukwon bursts into girlish giggles. "Maybe you should complain, too"
Jiho snaps out of his daydream enough to say, "Dude, I have dibs."
Kyung and Taeil finally give in to the laughter, and even though he is clueless, Jaehyo laughs along with them. Jiho, however, is too busy thinking of Jihoon to join in or worry about them laughing at him.
Park Kyung, Sex God - Kyung
Kyung doesn't lie. He just doesn't tell the truth. (625 words)
The ringtone was about two notes in when Kyung answered. He didn't listen long enough to hear which tune it was or check to see who was calling. Quite honestly, he expected this call about an hour ago.
"Hey, Jiho. You're late," he yawned.
He stretched his left arm out, bumping his knuckles against the headboard. Jiho's voice blared in his ears, and most of the words were muddled in static. He half-listened as Jiho bragged about his latest conquest. It probably ended in failure, like the rest, but the story was always the best part.
Normally, Kyung would have listened. Maybe he would have even added some slightly enthusiastic one-liners to show he gave a damn. But right now, Kyung just wanted Jiho to say whatever it is he wanted to know. It had been a long day, and between crazy shoppers and his own allergic reactions, he was ready to get some well-deserved rest.
"Fuck, man, why did you call?"
"Someone sounds tired," Jiho started. Then, as if he remembered something, he asked, "What have you been up to today?"
The question was doused in the cheap cologne Jiho dabs on for luck. Kyung knew what Jiho wanted to hear, but he wasn't about to say anything without being asked.
"What do you want to know?" he asks. It wasn't really an answer, but knowing Jiho, he would take the bait.
Jiho raised his voice a little, a tell-tale sign of his frustration. "Did you like your surprise from Jihoonie?"
"Uh-huh," Kyung said, "He's already planning on surprising me again."
"That good, huh?"
Kyung smiled. "Yeah. I spent my entire break in the employee bathroom at The Scratching Post."
"Wow!" Jiho drew out the word like it was the only one he would ever say. "I didn't think you had it in you, and at The Scratching Post? Hoping to get Kwon in on it, too? Not that I blame you. That ass..."
The rest of the conversation was pretty much a blur, but Kyung did hear a few phrases here and there. Mostly, Jiho talked about Yukwon's nice ass and various activities involving it, but Kyung blocked those details from his mind as soon as the mental pictures were processed.
He did remember hanging up before he fell asleep. He may have told Jiho goodbye before doing so. Jiho may have called Kyung a sex god. But Kyung may have imagined all that.
(What he didn't imagine was the next day in the food court. Jihoon blushed then tried desperately to hide under the counter at Main Squeeze, only the top of that stupid lemon hat peeking out. Minhyuk hovered over the counter, eyes focused on the person underneath it. Taeil and Yukwon glared at Kyung; Jaehyo pouted a bit before heading off to work.
Jiho came to visit him at work, patted his butt, and relived his daily adventures. Before Jiho was fired for skipping his shift to flirt, he had let the whole mall in on their little phone call.
On his break, Kyung apologized to Jihoon and brought over a box of loukoumades from Thai'd Up. More embarrassed than anything, Jihoon accepted the apology and discussed his plans for the new surprise.
Minhyuk, Taeil, and Yukwon were harder to win over, but his spiked punch had once again come to the rescue. He was sure it was a weekend he would never forget, but the images are still blurry.
Jaehyo was easy to forgive and forget, but he still didn't trust Kyung around Jihoon for a while after that. Three months later, Kyung found out why.
Jiho never found out what really happened, and Kyung was okay with that.)
Golden Slumbers - Kyung/P.O.
All Jihoon wanted was to surprise Kyung; Kyung was definitely surprised. (550 words)
Kyung's day ends at a funeral.
"Kyungie, I have a special surprise for you," Jihoon says as he cuts a lemon in half.
Kyung tilts his head just a little bit higher and elbows Jiho in the side when he rolls his eyes.
"What kind of surprise is it?" he asks.
Jihoon puts a finger to his lips then says, "Meet me here on your break."
Kyung nods and waves goodbye to Jihoon before elbowing Jiho again for good measure.
"A'ight, Jihoonie, he can't hear us. Tell me, what didja get him?" Jiho asks. Kyung takes two more steps, now only five away.
Jihoon chuckles, "I'm not telling."
That does little to discourage Jiho. As Kyung walks the irritating questions grow fainter. However, he can still pick out the Jihoon's embarrassment and almost see the stupid grin on Jiho's face.
"It's not that kind of surprise!" Jihoon exclaims.
Kyung walks to the DJ booth at Beat This, fixes his name tag, and wonder what surprises are to come.
He plays another track, an underground hip-hop song he once remixed for a childhood valentine. When the song's over, he darts to the gang's usual table at the food court, the one closest to Main Squeeze.
Jihoon is nowhere in sight; all Kyung sees is a crowd of strangers that look at him with pity.
He makes his way through the crowd. A few girls dab at the corners of their eyes. Hanhae from Hang 10 has his helmet off and is staring at the floor.
When Hanhae sees Kyung walking by, he says, "I'm sorry, dude. Things like this happen sometimes."
Kyung nods, not really sure what has happened but sure that something has.
In the center of the crowd, Jihoon sits and stares down at a plastic bag.
"Jihoonie?" Kyung whispers.
Jihoon looks up and hands the bag over to Kyung. In it, there is water and what appears to be a dead goldfish.
"Surprise," Jihoon pouts.
Kyung feels that pets should be mourned properly with a funeral of their own, even ones that never got the chance to be pets. He marches to The Scratching Post, bag in one hand and Jihoon's hand in the other.
"Hey guys, what's up?" Yukwon asks as Kyung walks up to the counter.
He shows Yukwon the bag, and he is sure that the latter didn't miss the look on Jihoon's face.
"We need to use your bathroom."
Yukwon understands, guiding them to the back of the store and rubbing the space between Jihoon's shoulder blades.
After a ceremonial flush, Jihoon's fingers fill the spaces between Kyung's.
"I'm sorry." Jihoon's eyes are sad.
Kyung squeezes his fingers tightly. "Don't be."
They walk out of the bathroom, hand in hand. Kyung can feel the beginnings of Jihoon's smile in his fingertips.
The stores are starting to close, and Kyung heads over to the gang's table for one more cup of lemonade and goodbyes. The table looks a little empty with only Jihoon and Jiho there, but it will soon be full of retail horror stories and plans for tomorrow.
Jihoon sees him first, running over to give him a hug. "Next time will be better, I promise."
Jiho's eyebrows raise in question.
"Later," Kyung mouths to him and wraps his arms around Jihoon.
There's No "I" in Team - Jaehyo/Zico
Jiho is a winner, so Jaehyo is, too. At least that's what Jaehyo gets out of this. (405 words)
Back in Busan, Jaehyo was known for being pretty quick. His legs were long but not to the point of awkwardness. The middle school's colors complemented his skin tone, and his was the name the people cheered for in the last lap of a relay.
But Seoul wasn't Busan. Jaehyo thought he would make that clear.
The guy shook his head as if in disbelief, which meant the challenge would go as planned. It was a lap around the high school. Winners received bragging rights; Jaehyo laughed it off.
Jiho didn't.
"You've got to win," he said. He winced after another swallow of lemonade. "Start training now."
"But I don't want to," Jaehyo whined.
Jiho pulled the straw away from his lips. "This isn't about you. This is about us."
"Us?" Jaehyo didn't follow, but Jiho was in leader mode.
"Us. And I never lose."
Jaehyo jogged everywhere he went for the rest of the week.
He was determined to win, even if he looked stupid to the customers. Jiho spent extra time in the little electronics store, timing Jaehyo's every move.
"Don't you have a job to lose?" Jaehyo asked. His knees ached, and the sweat caused his polo to stick to his back.
Jiho smirked. "I'm taking a break from retail. Right now, I'm a coach." He blew the whistle around his neck. "Now again."
The race was on a Saturday morning. Jihoon made a big sign that said Jaehyo in blue and silver, messy lines slanted in various directions. Kyung held on to the fence the entire race, and Yukwon shouted out encouragements that were heard across the campus.
Jaehyo was tired from all the sprinting practice; his lungs stung with every intake of air.
Still, he won by a long-shot. Taeil handed him a water bottle at the finish line.
Jiho swatted him with a towel in his old school's colors. "You did good."
Jaehyo wiped his face with the towel, barely catching the smile Jiho wore.
"You mean, we did good," Jaehyo said.
"Yeah, that's what I meant. But I already told you I never lose."
Jiho walked off toward Jaehyo's small cheering team.
"Jiho, you do know you're fired, right?" Jaehyo asked, stepping closer to Jiho with each syllable.
Jiho turned then, a wicked grin on his face. "You can't fire me. I quit. Besides, you need more than a coach to whip your sorry ass into shape."
The Art of Dating - General
The guys try out their strategies in this mixed art, with varying degrees of success. (820 words)
Surprisingly, this starts out as a normal day.
Jiho stands at the Main Squeeze with his elbows propped on the counter, taste testing the lemonade to make sure Jihoon added the sugar. Jihoon swats at Jiho's hands when he tries to add a little extra sweetness to the mix. Yukwon drums on the edge of their usual table while Jaehyo is having a one-sided staring contest with Taeil, who is looking at everything but Jaehyo.
Kyung walks in and changes everything in one statement.
"I think I'm ready to start dating again."
Jiho nods, grin on his face, and says, "We've got work to do."
♥♥♥
"Just do what I do and you'll be fine, Kyungie."
Jiho sips his mixed berry smoothie. He spots a guy reading a few tables away and decides that will be the first target.
"Watch and learn."
"Watch and learn."
"You said that on the last guy."
Jiho scowls, "Well, how was I supposed to know the guy wasn't gay?"
"I don't know. Maybe because he kissed a girl?" Kyung's sarcasm is thick, but Jiho pays it no mind.
"The signs were there. She'll figure it out soon enough, too."
Jiho finishes off his smoothie, tossing it in the trash as he heads towards target number two.
One slap later, Jiho falls back on a bench facing the fountain. Next to him, a guy sits, quietly sipping something in a paper cup. Jiho wastes no time.
"Hey there, cutie."
The guy barely looks at Jiho. He instead focuses on his drink. "Are you talking to me?"
"Hell yeah, I'm talkin' to you. So you got a name to go with that body?"
"My name's Lee Minhyuk."
Minhyuk doesn't look interested in Jiho's attention, but Jiho always loves a good chase. "Well, I'm Woo Jiho, but you can call me anything you want. Anytime."
"Thanks?"
"No problem."
Jiho grins; Minhyuk takes another sip of the mystery liquid. After a fairly lengthy silence, Jiho decides to kick his game up a notch.
"That is your color, Minhyuk," he says as husky as he can.
"Really? Black is my color?"
Jiho nods. "It really brings out your eyes."
"Uh-huh." Minhyuk tilts his head to the side and moves his straw around in the cup. Finally, after some thought, he asks, "You do know that I'm a guy, right?"
Jiho spots Kyung walking closer, goofy smile and bug-eyed. Minhyuk looks a little happy to see him. Jiho pretends not to notice.
Kyung's attention is on Minhyuk. "So, you ready to go?"
"How do you know each other?" Jiho asks.
Kyung blushes a little and explains some horribly cute story. Jiho tunes in and out, but he does catch a glimpse of date-like activity. And he is not about to strike out while Kyung goes on a date. It's just against every law of nature.
"Well, I guess I'll be seeing you around, Minhyuk. Kyung, I'll call you later." Jiho stands up and moves in his slowest speed, waiting for everything to sink in.
"Wait, you know him?"
A few school girls look over, trying to catch the scene in action. Kyung avoids all eye contact. "Yeah."
"We're best friends," Jiho adds as he wraps an arm around Kyung's shoulders.
"Um...well, it was really nice meeting you, Kyung, but I've got to go."
Minhyuk vanishes in the lineup at Wok and Roll. Jiho shrugs it off; Kyung stares blankly with wide eyes and an open mouth.
"What the fuck?" he asks once the shock wears off.
"I know. Weirdo," Jiho pauses for emphasis. When Kyung nods, he continues, "So how 'bout a movie?"
Kyung just nods, because he can't think of anything else to do.
♥♥♥
Jaehyo gets off work a little earlier than usual, so he heads to the food court. He slows down when he hears the whirring of a blender. Jihoon is probably experimenting again. Jaehyo takes tentative steps forward until he sees Jihoon's big, goofy smile.
"Jaehyo!" Jihoon screeches. Jaehyo waves, a little unsure of how to move his limbs without looking awkward.
"Wanna try my new smoothie?"
Jihoon holds the clear plastic cup up, showing off a pinkish purple goop. He looks so proud of it.
Jaehyo nods, trying his best to swallow down the fear. "I would love to."
It doesn't taste too bad, but the sudden rush of lips on his cheeks may be affecting his brain.
"Jihoonie, you want to go to see a movie with me?" he asks a little breathlessly.
Jihoon throws his apron across the counter and lowers the top of the stand. His fingers find Jaehyo's, pulling him along.
Jaehyo doesn't mind being dragged.
♥♥♥
Yukwon looks around the table, counting each empty chair before staring at Taeil. Taeil's head is resting on the heel of his left hand while his right hand smooths out the imaginary creases in the table.
"Wanna see a movie?" Yukwon asks, not bothering to cover his yawn.
"Sure."
To you. Repeat when necessary.
Based on the Canadian animated television show, 6teen.
Thoughts on new adventures and OTPs are welcome!