Chapter 8.19
Chapter 8.19
Sangwoo hesitated and then coughed a few times. He then looked at Jaeyoung again and said:
“You… don’t take my comments as a joke.”
“What do you mean, joke? I’m carefully paying attention to everything you say.”
“Then why do you keep making the same mistakes?”
“I’ll be careful, hyung.”
“Did the space bar on your keyboard break? Why does a guy who’s even good at English keep making typos? It’s not rocket science. Let’s make an effort, yeah?”
‘Bringing work even to a drinking party , you disgustingly persistent bastard.’
Jaeyoung picked up a fish cake skewer and pushed it into Sangwoo’s mouth.
“Eat this, hyung.”1
Sangwoo diligently chewed the fish cake and swallowed it.
“And… you keep sneakily trying to hand work over to me, but you’re behind on work because you didn’t follow your schedule.”
“It can be that way once you’ve started working on something. Give me a break, please. I’ll take responsibility, and I’ll do it all later.”
“Are you just saying it?”
“No. I even came after having worked on it today.”
That was a lie. Jaeyoung couldn’t do anything today because he had been focused on Sangwoo. However, it was true he was confident that could do it all at once.
“You wanted to scold me so you said that we should play the Informal Talk Game.2 Our Sangwoo hyung said that.”3
Sangwoo frowned. Jaeyoung immediately scooped up some okonomiyaki with a spoon and shoved it into Sangwoo’s mouth. He looked fine at first glance, but seeing him this way made him look drunk as well. His eyes were slightly closed, and he obediently kept receiving and eating the appetizers he was given, so he looked far from his usual machine-like appearance.
“I wanted to hear you speak formally to me, that’s why. You unmannerly bastard.”
“Ah. Did you know, hyung? Take a shot.”
Jaeyoung picked up Sangwoo’s shot glass and put it on his lips. Sangwoo drank it well. He swallowed everything in his mouth and pointed his finger at Jaeyoung.
“Hey, Jang Jaeyoung.”
“Yes. Go ahead, speak.”
“You’re a nut job… you know that, right?”
“Of course. I’m well aware.”
Sangwoo snorted and leaned back with his arms crossed.
“CR. A. ZY bastard. Just scribbles on someone else’s face like that.”
“Of course. I should be killed. How dare I do that to Your Highness Hyung-nim?”
“Don’t stock up on beverages… That’s a snack bar. It’s like Heo Saeng Jeon, you know?”4
“Of course. It’s something that should be reported to the Consumer Rights Association. I’m reflecting on myself.”
“This trash-like…”
“I’m human trash that can’t even be recycled right away. Do you want me to kneel down or something?”
Sangwoo, who was leaning against the chair, suddenly raised his upper body. He laid his arms on the table, and his chin on his arm. The plate with okonomiyaki on it was pushed aside by his elbow. If Jaeyoung hadn’t caught it quickly, it would’ve fallen to the ground.
Jaeyoung was also sitting close to the table, so their faces were very close to each other. The brim of the cap was about to touch Jaeyoung’s forehead. He lowered his body and put his chin on his arm like Sangwoo. His heart beat faster when the eyes that had been covered by the brim were revealed. Every time Sangwoo blinked, his thick eyelashes went up and down. His lips slowly moved.
“You… If you were ugly, there wouldn’t even be an answer.”
“Scum like me should just go and die if they can’t even be born with a handsome face.”
“So you do know.”
The eyes that were slightly unfocused because of the alcohol, tore Jaeyoung’s face apart. It seemed his gaze would heat up wherever it landed. Sangwoo’s gaze, which stayed focused on his forehead, turned in the direction of his nose, then passed over his ears, neck, and chin, before falling to his lips. Sangwoo’s eyes narrowed. His lips slightly moved, which didn’t escape Jaeyoung’s notice.
“You’re going to burn a hole in my face, Sangwoo hyung.”
Sangwoo’s eyes narrowed even further and seemed almost closed at this point. He raised the bottle of soju to fill Jaeyoung’s glass while avoiding making eye-contact. Jaeyoung accepted the glass, emptied it in one go and said: “Am I good-looking?”
Sangwoo pretended not to have heard and filled Jaeyoung’s glass again. Instead of answering Jaeyoung, he didn’t hesitate to finish the shot he got in return in one go.
“Am I.. good-looking, hyung?”
Jaeyoung spoke slowly while looking straight into Sangwoo’s black eyes. His small eyes didn’t feel as sharp as they usually did.
‘What do you think of me? If I’m correct, you’re into me.’
Sangwoo quietly answered shortly after.
“Yes.”
Jaeyoung slowly blinked. The tingling sensation that was rooted in his chest had come to dominate his entire body at some point. His goal of appraising the risks of this relationship had faded. Jaeyoung drank quite a bit of alcohol. Perhaps that was the reason he only had one thought on his mind.
He raised himself by putting his hands on the table. His body was slightly trembling, but he kept his balance. He pushed the table that was in between them to the side and took a step closer to Sangwoo. Sangwoo turned his head and looked up, so he was able to get a good look at his face.
“Sangwoo.”
“What?”
“Can I take it off?”
“…”
Was Jaeyoung’s red face simply due to the alcohol? The sense of feeling out of place made the answer an undeniable “no.”
Footnote:
1. Jaeyoung said this in formal (respectful) language, the way a junior would to a senior.
2. The Informal Talk Game is played so that formalities are dropped and players speak using informal language, even if they are of lower rank, younger, etc.
3. Jaeyoung refers to Sangwoo as “our Sangwoo.” When you refer to someone as our in this way, our is used as a possessive adjective. It is usually used when referring to your spouse or close family member. You can find more info here.
4. The story of Heo Saeng Jeon was mentioned in Volume One.