#031
“Wow, fucking huge. Where’d you buy it?” “Chain store.” When Kyungjun asked, Taehyun wrinkled his nose and smiled as he replied.
“I like this kid. He’s got a good impression.” Kyungjun laughed satisfactorily with a “haha.”
“I’m preparing dinner, so put your stuff over here and go wash up first. You guys can sleep in the annex, I’ll open it up for you later.”
Jukyung took charge of directing the underclassmen. After putting the three of them in the three bathrooms attached to the first and second floors one by one, Jukyung headed to the kitchen carrying the cake.
Jiwoon quietly gulped down the remaining cider. A while later, when the three came out after washing and gathered in the living room, Jiwoon had already crumpled up the can and thrown it on the table.
“Let’s eat!” Seeing the three come out, Jukyung clapped his hands once and announced the start of dinner.
The dining table was packed full. From boiling pots to neatly prepared and beautifully plated sashimi, red seasoned raw fish salad that stimulated the appetite, and milky white soup that stimulated the olfactory senses. It was perfect.
“Now, tonight’s menu is pike conger shabu-shabu, fresh sashimi, tongue sole sashimi, and monkfish soup.”
“Wow… Can I cry?”
At Jukyung’s introduction, Taehyun choked up with admiration. Jukyung smiled and went around assigning seats.
“We need to get close, so let’s sit mixed together.”
Jukyung first pushed himself, Seungwoo, Jiwoon, and Yechan to one table. Then he seated Choi Min and Minho, Kyungjun and Taehyun at the table next to them.
As soon as they sat down, the meal began.
“Look, look. This is how you eat this.”
Jukyung made shabu-shabu with a practiced attitude. His skill in putting in vegetables and pike conger and cooking them for a few seconds was proficient.
Minho, who had been watching what Jukyung was doing from the next table, picked up the tongs.
“I’ll do it.”
Then Choi Min snatched the tongs from Minho. Soon Jukyung lifted a large bottle containing brown liquid and filled everyone’s glasses.
“Thanks for coming, let’s have fun today!”
After the toast, everyone simultaneously poured the mysterious beverage into their mouths. At the bitter-sweet, subtle taste of the drink, Jiwoon frowned with one eyebrow. From beside him, he heard Kyungjun shouting.
“Hey, what is this, Yoon Jukyung?”
“Cassia seed tea.”
“No, crazy. I thought it was liquor and downed it in one shot. What kind of tea?”
“Cassia seed. It’s tea that’s good for students’ eyes, guys.”
“What about alcohol?”
“There isn’t any. There’s not a single adult here.”
“What does that…”
Into Kyungjun’s mouth, who was staring with wide eyes as if he’d been hit, Jukyung roughly shoved tongue sole sashimi. Kyungjun quieted down with some mumbling sounds. Come to think of it, there really wasn’t any alcohol visible on the table.
“Wow. Good. Really good.”
“The cassia seed tea is delicious! Sunbae!”
Apparently the cassia seed tea suited Minho and Taehyun’s tastes well too.
Jiwoon looked at Yechan’s empty glass sitting next to him and picked up his chopsticks. The two began eating without much conversation.
“Jiwoon, Jiwoon, eat the tail.”
Acting as if he were a chef, Jukyung put plump pike conger on Yechan and Seungwoo’s plates while explaining, then put an eel tail on Jiwoon’s plate.
“Is that okay? Jiwoon hyung doesn’t need to use it, right?”
Seeing this, Seungwoo tilted his head and asked. Jiwoon silently raised his eyes and looked at Seungwoo.
“Ah, I was just joking, hyung. Sorry.”
Under Jiwoon’s gaze, Seungwoo immediately backed down. Jukyung smiled gently at Seungwoo and said,
“You just eat what I gave you, Seungwoo. The only one who officially needs to use it here is Park Kyungjun, and he’ll handle that himself over there, right? Anyway, the tail at this table is for Jiwoon, Jiwoon. I decided that.”
“This is pike conger, so it’s useless.”
Jiwoon threw the tail in front of him onto Seungwoo’s plate.
“Yes!” Seungwoo smiled brightly and excitedly moved his chopsticks. Jukyung clinked glasses, swallowed his tea, and said,
“That’s too much. Jukyung gave it to you.”
Jukyung pursed his lips and scooped more eel onto Jiwoon’s plate.
“Why aren’t you eating?”
Ignoring the eel and picking up sashimi, Jiwoon asked Yechan. Only then did Yechan pick up one of the several pieces of eel Jukyung had given him.
“I’m eating. It’s delicious.”
This was the first conversation Jiwoon and he had shared today. At Jiwoon’s strangely prickly attitude, Yechan studied his face.
Whether Yechan did this or not, Jiwoon just continued his meal while talking with Jukyung. Jiwoon in a place with many people was different from when they were alone together.
Thinking it might be because there were watching eyes, Yechan suddenly recalled Jiwoon’s message window that had been without replies all day.
“Come to think of it, I heard the ocean is right in front of here. Thank you for inviting us to such a nice place.”
Minho politely said to Choi Min, who was scooping shabu-shabu for him. Choi Min shook his head.
“What. The ocean in front is nice. We had real fun earlier.”
“You already went swimming? Wow, we didn’t get to.”
At Choi Min’s words, Taehyun replied enviously.
“Swimming and beach volleyball. You guys should go out tomorrow morning too.”
“Yechan has to leave early tomorrow so we can’t play.”
When Choi Min, who had put down his tongs, said this, Minho answered glumly.
“Why?”
“Academy.”
To Choi Min’s puzzled question, Yechan replied. It was the first time the two had spoken since the incident with Choi Yeon.
“That’s a shame. What time do you have to go?”
“It’s an afternoon class, so I have to go by 2 o’clock.”
“Kyaaaa! Look at him!”
Hearing Yechan’s words, Jukyung made a shrill sound and laughed mischievously.
“You’re going to academy alone, leaving behind four third-years with 100 days left until Suneung?”
Yechan chewed his food silently with a troubled expression. Jiwoon continued eating quietly.
“Hey, if you had any conscience, you wouldn’t do such a thing. Right?”
Jukyung began pressuring Yechan.
“Right, you have to play when it’s time to play to study again. You won’t die from missing academy for one day!”
“If it’s okay, get permission and stay a bit longer. Have breakfast tomorrow morning too.”
At Kyungjun and Choi Min’s words, Yechan’s troubled expression deepened.
That’s when it happened. Jiwoon suddenly spoke while looking at Jukyung.
“What are you doing to the kid?”
The atmosphere instantly sank. Jukyung giggled while holding his tongs and said,
“No way, Jiwoon, Jiwoon. No matter what you say, I can’t let him go!”
Hearing Jukyung’s playful words, Jiwoon put down his chopsticks and openly frowned. Seeing that face, Yechan pushed his chair back and stood up.
“I’ll go make a phone call. I think one day should be fine.”
“As expected! Good thinking.”
“Wow, fucking decisive.”
Behind Yechan going to make the call, Jukyung and Kyungjun each threw in a comment.
Jukyung nonchalantly put two more pieces of eel on Jiwoon’s plate. “Wow, what’s gotten into Seo Yechan?” Taehyun chattered to Minho in a surprised tone.
Yechan, who finished his call, returned soon.
“I got permission from my mother.”
“Your mother is so cool. Looking at you, I bet she’s incredibly beautiful.”
“Yes. She’s beautiful.”
To Jukyung’s delighted words, Yechan replied flatly. Jiwoon silently put food in his mouth and chewed while keeping his eyes on the boiling shabu-shabu pot.
Except for occasionally answering other kids’ questions, Yechan also continued eating quietly. Watching the two of them, Jukyung had to struggle to keep his naturally rising lip corners down.
After finishing the eel and removing the pot, cake took its place. Taehyun and Yechan set up the cake while Minho stuck in candles.
Minho, who had made the number “100” with number candles, took his hands away. Seungwoo took out a lighter and lit the candles.
“Sunbaes, congratulations on your 100 days until Suneung. We pray for your Suneung success!”
Acting like an MC, Taehyun spoke in a cheerful tone. To Choi Min’s question about whether there was a song, the second-years sang a song starting with “We pray for your great success.”
Jiwoon stood upright and proper, watching Yechan mumbling with his mouth, and gulped down cold water. Yechan’s white forearms under his black t-shirt and his clapping hands caught Jiwoon’s attention.
When the song ended, the third-years blew out the candles.
“Thanks for the support, let’s ace the Suneung!”
At Jukyung’s toast, everyone clinked glasses once more. In the now-empty cassia seed tea bottle, Jiwoon’s glass was filled with orange juice.
“Did you come by train? Wasn’t it tiring?”
Jukyung asked while looking at Yechan. Yechan answered while removing strawberries from his cake.
“Yes.”
“What did you do when you got here?”
To Jukyung’s question, Yechan, who had crushed and swallowed the strawberry in his mouth, slowly continued speaking.
“Had a meal, rode the cable car… looked at the ocean. What did you hyungs do?”
Jiwoon listened to Yechan’s words while silently raising his glass to his mouth. As he pressed and mashed the cake on his plate, Jukyung’s voice reached Jiwoon’s ears.
“Us? We ate beef. And went into the ocean to play, and looked at Jiwoon, Jiwoon’s body too?”
Jukyung glanced at Jiwoon and smiled. Jiwoon quietly put the mashed cake in his mouth.
At Jukyung’s words, Kyungjun, who had been talking with Taehyun, chimed in.
“Lee Jiwoon’s body is fucking good. Really! His chest and abs are amazing. You can definitely tell when someone’s done a lot of exercise.”
“Agreed.”
At Kyungjun’s words, Choi Min nodded and added. Jiwoon, who had taken a sip of juice, bluntly spat out,
“Yeah. I know, so shut up.”
After finishing his words, Jiwoon began mashing his cake again. Yechan, who had been staring at that sight, picked up his drink glass.
For some reason, his throat felt dry. Yechan thought the reason was that he knew Jiwoon’s bare body well.
“Ah, but Seo Yechan has a good body too. He’s been swimming for a long time.”
Taehyun, who had been giggling the whole time and whose face had turned red, said. Minho nodded as if in agreement.
“Really? Hey, take it off. Even if it’s not as much as Lee Jiwoon, I’ve got a body too. Let’s compare.”
Kyungjun, whose eyes sparkled, said to Yechan. At the sudden statement, Jiwoon took his eyes off his cake and looked at Kyungjun.
Seeing Jiwoon’s slightly raised eyes, Jukyung quickly stopped Kyungjun.
“Kyungjun just now… seemed like a total pervert.”
“A pervert? It’s just guys comparing bodies, what’s perverted about that?”
“Yeah, your body belongs to Minkyung, so we won’t look. Rejected.”
“That’s true. Ah, I miss Minkyung…”
Kyungjun, who had been grumbling, suddenly pulled out his phone. As Kyungjun stood up saying he’d go call his girlfriend, Jukyung shouted, “Anyone want to watch?”
Seungwoo and Choi Min giggled and stood up. Jiwoon also pushed his chair back.
Author: Hyacinthus B
Hyacinthus
