“What about karaoke?” suggested Hana, smiling up at Ye Jun as she clutched his arm, pointing to a large karaoke sign above them.

“Just the two of us?”

She laughed. “Why not? This is a date after all.”

Ye Jun reluctantly agreed and allowed his new prospective girlfriend to lead him up the steps and into the building.

“Ye Jun?” came a surprised voice from somewhere behind him. He turned to see Jong In and Si Woo standing in the waiting area.

For some reason, he felt both surprise and a measure of relief upon seeing them.

“What are you d…doing here?” asked Jong In, his eyes slightly wide until he saw Hana. “Oh,” he said, and he grew quiet.

“Are you two here alone?” Ye Jun asked, knowing that it was now pointless to respond to Jong In’s question.

Si Woo placed his hand on Jong In’s shoulder. “We’re on a date.”

Ye Jun could see Jong In noticeably freeze and he instinctively moved forward but then stopped himself as Hana stepped up beside him.

“They said that we’ll have to wait 30 minutes.” She pouted and he found the expression strange on her face.

“I guess we’ll just have to go somewhere else,” Ye Jun responded, glad that he wouldn’t be forced to be alone in a small karaoke room with her.

“Why don’t you two join us, they are just setting up our room right now,” chimed in Si Woo.

Hana finally turned to look at them and her eyes widened when they settled on the sunbae.

“Oh, would that be okay?” she said, her voice instantly softening. She immediately released Ye Jun’s arm and moved towards the sunbae, her voice now high with excitement. “That is so nice of you! Let’s join them, Ye Jun!”

Ye Jun nodded but she was no longer looking in his direction. He did not care as he was simply glad that he did not have to spend any more alone time with this woman.

A few minutes later, a worker came out to lead them to their room. Ye Jun stepped up besides Jong In as they followed the other two.

“What made you two come here alone?” asked Ye Jun.

Jong In jerked in surprise, “Ah—i-it’s n-n-not a d-d-date,” he stammered. “Si Woo sssunbae just likes t-to tease. He kind of…tricked me.”

“Tricked you how?”

Jong In looked away and Ye Jun peered at him more closely. He could see a blush forming on the side of his face. “He... ssaid others would b-be joining us, including…you.”

Ye Jun suddenly remembered his conversation with Si Woo. Any means necessary.

“Wh-What were the chances?”

Ye Jun laughed. “You’re telling me. But honestly, I’m glad I bumped into you guys.”

“You are?” Jong In asked and Ye Jun could tell that he was trying his hardest to keep the curiosity from showing in his voice. It was endearing.

“Yeah.” He supposed that it wouldn’t hurt if he just divulged a little of his feelings. “Honestly, Hana sunbae has been dragging me around all night and she’s kind of pushy,” he whispered.

Jong In was quiet for a moment and Ye Jun began to form the unsettling thought that perhaps they had not spoken in so long that Jong In had actually become awkward with him, when he finally responded. “W-Well that’s the only wwway to deal with a jerk like you.”

Ye Jun grinned and reached out to ruffle Jong In’s hair, an act that Jong In often found annoying. He felt Jong In momentarily freeze beneath his hand before ducking away from him. For half a second, Ye Jun felt bereft at the loss of his touch.

“J-Jerk,” Jong In muttered and Ye Jun laughed, a laugh that was laced with unexpected relief.

He hadn’t realized it, but Ye Jun had been worried that his methods would somehow drive Jong In away from him. But, of course he shouldn’t have worried. They had been friends for almost seventeen years. Being together was as natural for them as breathing.

Perhaps if things went well with that Si Woo, they’d even be able to return to how they used to be.

Feeling suddenly lighter at the thought, Ye Jun wrapped his arm around Jong In’s shoulder and pulled him in as they hurried to catch up to the others. He idly noted that Jong In’s height was perfect for his arm to rest on.

Once they were in the room, Jong In ducked away from him and immediately beelined for the center back seat. Ye Jun subconsciously moved to follow when Si Woo got in front of him and took the spot that he had planned to occupy.

Si Woo shot him a wink and Ye Jun was momentarily startled. It was a flirty gesture, but it didn’t sit oddly upon the sunbae. But why the wink? Was it a signal that their plan was underway? If so, then it made sense for Ye Jun to concede the spot next to Jong In but for some reason, it still did not sit well with him.

Eyeing the seat on the other side of Jong In, Ye Jun moved toward it when Hana grabbed his arm and pulled him into the seat next to hers as she climbed in beside the sunbae.

“Why don’t you pick a song first, Jong In?” suggested Si Woo as he handed him the remote.

“Ah, no…Someone else can g–go first.”

“I’ll go!” Hana interjected. “If you’ll sing with me,” she said to Si Woo prettily.

Ye Jun’s gaze met Jong In's and they both let out a quiet laugh.

The day, which had started off so irritatingly, was starting to look up.

To the surprise of both Jong In and Ye Jun, Si Woo complied with Hana’s request and the duo sang a popular ballad.

After some time, Ye Jun yawned as he peered around the dark room, and then he saw the sunbae place an arm over Jong In’s shoulder.

Hana glared openly and that strange, foreign feeling that Ye Jun had felt the night before crept up on him once more when he noticed that Jong In did not shrug off Si Woo’s arm.

Jong In rarely tolerated unexpected physical contact unless it was Ye Jun or Ji Soo who initiated it. Ye Jun knew this well because he had witnessed Jong In’s dislike for it many times in the years that he had known him.

He frowned.

At the persistent insistence of Si Woo, Jong In selected the next song. He chose an obscure hip hop song that Ye Jun recognized from their youth. It was one he and Jong In had occasionally listened to. Neither Si Woo nor Hana seemed to recognize it. He recalled that it failed to gain popularity despite having a good melody and a nice beat. Likely because the lyrics were, at best, mediocre.

Jong In began to rap and Ye Jun watched in amusement. Jong In was a decent rapper and his stutter was always absent when he engaged in this activity.

“When I boast your flies, I see a different side of you. Loving me, my whipped cream taboo.”

Ye Jun looked up at the screen, the lyrics were right there: ‘When I look into your eyes, I see a different side of you. Loving me, my dreams come true’.

Suddenly a soft laugh emitted from his lips. He had forgotten. Jong In had an endearing tendency to mishear the words of a song. He had never failed to get the words wrong when they were younger.

“Truth be told, the eel swims to the left and the bread’s buttered on the right.”

Ye Jun choked back another laugh, and he felt a strange, pleasant tingle running up his spine.

“Hey! Why the hell are you being an idiot?” Hana shouted loudly over the music. She was standing, her body aggressively facing Jong In’s.

Jong In stopped singing immediately and turned to her.

“The words are right there! What kind of crap are you saying?” she yelled, her voice loud and her tone obviously irritated. It was evident that the lack of attention she was receiving from both Ye Jun and Si Woo had culminated into her attack on Jong In, who was an innocent party.

Ye Jun stood, moving to step between them. He didn’t fear a physical attack from her; he simply wanted to shield Jong In from any further harsh words.

But then Si Woo stood up and spoke. “Don’t you think you’re overreacting to something as simple as mistaken lyrics?”

“What?” she turned to him and glared vehemently. She whipped her head away from him and bent down, grabbing her purse angrily. She turned to Ye Jun. “Let’s get out of here.”

But Ye Jun didn’t move.

She stood at the doorway, frozen for a moment, her eyes shooting daggers at him as the flashing neon lights shone into the dark room. “Are you kidding me?” she said before tossing her head again and stomping her way out the door.

For a moment, Ye Jun watched the door slowly close on her retreating form, and then he turned back to the others. As soon as he did however, he froze. Si Woo had Jong In’s face between his palms, forcing the latter’s eyes to meet his. It was such an intimate position, the two of them standing in the back of the dark karaoke room, illuminated only by the flickering glow of the forgotten song, while the backup vocals filled the empty spaces of words unsung.

Ye Jun watched, feeling desperately like some kind of unwanted bystander, as Jong In closed his eyes and visibly gulped.

Again, he had forgotten. Jong In had never been good with such situations. He was awkward and full of social anxiety, unsure of how to play the part of a good citizen because of an impediment that was not his fault. With his intimate group of friends, he often acted as the cool-headed, sometimes cold friend; but when confronted by strangers, he simply shrank into himself. He was blunt and tactless, always wanting to get straight to the point in order to avoid lengthy conversations that would intensify his stutter. Because of that, many had responded to his straightforwardness with disdain or offense. Crowds made him anxious, and small talk made him nervous.

It had been bad enough that when they were younger, they had been forced to sit out on a school trip to the amusement park. At the time, Ye Jun had been put out, but upon seeing the apologetic look upon Jong In’s face, he had let it go. They had spent the afternoon jotting down a set of basic rules for how Jong In should act in common situations. Simple things such as how to talk to other students with short but appropriate responses, when to leave a conversation, and what was expected of him in standard, everyday scenarios.

Jong In had carried around that piece of paper for years, and through it he had formed almost normal but not close relationships. The only other people besides himself who Jong In had ever gotten close to were Ji Soo and, by extension, Hwan. But that was mostly due to Ji Soo’s persistence and to the fact that she was even more tactless and blunt than Jong In. She did not have a single awkward bone in her body and anything he said did not phase her in the least.

But now, Jong In was being comforted by someone who was neither himself nor Ji Soo, his face cradled between palms of new hands and taking solace in the words of a new voice.

He couldn’t hear what they were saying, yet Ye Jun’s eyes homed in on Si Woo. His voice was soothing and calm; his expression serene and understanding. And at that moment, for some unknown reason, Ye Jun could not look away. Si Woo’s sharp, slightly upturned eyes were soft. It was a look he had not seen on his face before, and Ye Jun wondered if he had ever seen anyone look so beautiful.

A strange buzzing sensation began to spread through his limbs and with it, an unfamiliar restlessness. Then suddenly, he was gripped by a feeling of wanting to rip them apart. They were standing too close together for his comfort.

It was that ugly feeling again. That disagreeable feeling that ate at him, one he didn’t recognize and so didn’t understand.

But he knew that he hated it.

And before he realized it, his hands began to reach out in front of him and as if in a daze, he found himself pulling the two men apart and with it, broke the quiet solace of the dark, flickering room.