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pouring through the freshly cleaned glass were the newly born rays of the early morning. standing there like a marble statue of a greek god, jeongguk waited exposing himself to the warm radiation. the transition between dawn and day had merely concluded when the boy slipped his fingers around the OPEN and CLOSED sign. waiting for his wrist-watch's approval, he twirled the thick material around. his lips formed a straight line and tiny dimples where exposed on his cheeks as he turned to the store ready for business.
in the corner of his eyes, jeongguk saw yoongi, his coworker, shuffling behind him. "hyung, your apron." jeongguk said with a light chuckle.
"how many years have i been doing this and i still forget my apron." yoongi sighed and trudged to the staff room, shaking his head.
at first, jeongguk did not know how he felt about yoongi. all that jeongguk knew was that yoongi was profoundly confusing. upon meeting and training, yoongi was well-mannered and a nice guy. not too nice—just nice. he always kept a typical straight face—not angry, not sad, maybe thoughtful—and really only gave jeongguk orders and advice randomly.
"you know kid, humanity does not change. only time does."
jeongguk was surprised such wisdom came out of a high school drop out. unlike jeongguk, yoongi was a high school drop out that has been working at a small grocery store for six years. you'd think someone like such would be unsuccessful or closed-minded for not reaching further, but for jeongguk, yoongi was his absolute role model. the way his eyes darted at nothingness, how he would just think deeply at times, and the way he could chug an entire unsweetened, black coffee in one gulp, jeongguk just adored him.
jeongguk was nothing like his hyung, which probably made them so compatible. jeongguk always neatly parted his black hair to the side and kept his bow tie extra straight. he had been working at the grocery story for eight months holding the job fairly well. he's easy to manipulate, which may explain his actions. unlike yoongi, jeongguk was working to save up for college. he was neither the smart nor witty type, however he had ambitions. he was like one of those cute school boys with a little gleam of hope lining his eyes.
yoongi gave jeongguk two nicknames; soft serve and hot stuff, depending on the day. jeongguk thought it was weird, but accepted it after a while.
on soft serve days, jeongguk is quiet and usually tired. "awh, looks like soft serve's tired today."
hot stuff days are the times jeongguk carries new boxes of inventory into the store, exposing his honey dipped biceps while yoongi complains about his nonexistent arthritis. "//wolf whistle// you go hot stuff—ouch my back." jeongguk would beg him to stop as for customers would direct them glares, but by how he would just shrug and shy away.
by the time yoongi walked out of the office with his apron on this time, customers already began filing in. both clerks took their places in front of the registers ready for another workday.
"you'd think people would sleep in on a day like this." yoongi said with a sigh.
"it's the first day of summer, hyung. beaches are going to be packed." jeongguk said counting the change in the register for the fourth time. summer time was the high season in busan. with locals and tourists alike flocking over to dip their toes in the crystal clear waters and hang out around the extensive amounts of arcades, bars, and cafés alongside the shore. festivals and fairs were starting and all you could hear were the sounds of children's laughter and all you could smell is the salty ocean waves mixed in with the scent of fresh funnel cake. this store happened to be located just before all that hustle and bustle. if one is in need of last minute snacks, or sunscreen, or beverages, or ice, or pretty much everything, they supplied it.
mid-morning was the busiest time during the early summer days. the line at the register was getting longer and longer just as jeongguk's speed was getting faster and faster and as the weather was getting hotter and hotter.
"they said this summer, summer of sixty-two, is going to be the warmest summer in fifteen years." jeongguk signaled to his companion.
"yeah, that's what they say every year." yoongi grumbled.
the boy wiped the beaded sweat on his forehead with the back of his hand before greeting the next customer in line. she was a regular with an odd pointy nose and darting eyes. she was the type of lady that specialized in shopping. with a keen eye at every item being checked in, she seemed as if she was ready to jump on the poor boy if the price was off by one won.
the noise of the entrance caught the nervous boy's attention involuntarily. jeongguk's doe-like eyes also involuntarily open wide, nearly twice it's size.
never in his nineteen years of life would jeon jeongguk ever imagine seeing such a sight walking into this small busan grocery store.
the peculiarly nosed woman had to angrily fake a cough to receive the clerk's attention. jeongguk had been eyeing the newly entering guests until they disappeared into the long shelves—stacked with antiperspirants, body lotion, and the like—of aisle two. he mumbled an apology before handing the lady her last paper bag filled with goods.
"have a great day, ma'am." with that he went back to his position in the store in front of his register. he stretched his neck out to get a glimpse of his visitors, probably from another planet.
the one that struck his attention first was a tall, broad fellow equally or possibly bigger than jeongguk himself. he dressed in navy blue swim trunks (that reached his mid thigh) and a fairly tight white tee shirt, which hidden under the towel over his upper body. round black sunglasses were pulled to the bridge of his perfectly elongated nose. his immaculate skin was colored with the sun very carefully not to burn or cause any form of destruction. he, however, was faulted by one feature; his grey hair.
"that cannot be his natural hair color." i heard yoongi beside me say as he finished checking in his last customer in line. it was a deep grey, almost as ashy as gunmetal, and long, hiding his eye brows completely.
jeongguk leaned his elbows on the register and hid his face to be able to eye the costumers without being caught. at that point, he had not seen the second and was not sure if he was ready to. grey hair, he chuckled to himself. who wants grey hair?
the two walked past aisle two, completely skipping over aisle three—they did not seem like the baking type—and finally stopped by mister son at the deli corner. grey-head seemed to stretch over the horizon constantly tagging behind the second. that bothered jeongguk the slightest.
jeongguk guessed they had a question since mister son was pointing towards aisle six—snacks and cereals. the older man behind the counter kept his gaze even after they lad left and shook his head with wide eyes.
wide eyes were soon replaced on jeongguk's face when he finally got a sight of the infamous number two. but, that boy right there was not just a number two, he was the King, jeongguk concluded.
he was fairly shorter than his puppy-like friend, but seemingly more physically built. his ultimate physical exposure made many sights possible. let me reiterate, yes—ultimate physical exposure.
he was completely nude minus the bright yellow swim trucks that did not do much justice. his short legs and torso perfectly sculpted as if they were carved in from perfect stone by no one other than a michaelangelo, donatello, or picasso.
jeongguk pinched the material of his shirt and whipped it up and down a few times. he felt trails of sweat sliding down in his awfully too warm, muscular back almost at the point of evaporatation.
the clerk did not want to believe that the King was the reason behind his near spontaneous human combustion.
this was the saddest part of the story, jeongguk and yoongi concluded. it was even sadder than yoongi's life; how tragic.
after moving around the last aisle, the aliens' chatter was audible. behind the shelves jeongguk could hear laughs being exchanged and low, barely audible voices.
"oh my, never have i imagined seeing a blonde korean." yoongi said shaking his head and playing with his thick black hair. "oh look sprinkles and fruit tart are coming your way." he yelled whispered at the still jeongguk lining his speech with his infamous breath laughs.
jeongguk's hands formed into tight fists upon the men approaching him. grey-head wore a smile and bounced behind the King, which held a straight face. it was only then when jeongguk could take in all his beauty, regardless of the faulted blonde hair.
his face was perfectly oval with his chin softened into a straight line. moving up, his lips were extraordinary, one of a kind, and too unique. jeongguk had never seen anything nearly equal to his perfectly plump, flushed lips. they reminded him of the fresh delivery of the brightest and juiciest cherries the store had received the week prior. his nose was of ideal size—neither big nor small—and pointed softly into the air. his dark, small eyes, too fanatic to the point they seemed deceiving. they seemed as if you were to look into them for too long they would eventually suck you in.
as jeongguk's eyes trailed further down. down his delicate neck, slowly down his exposed torso lined with noticeable muscles, down eventually reaching to—jeongguk quickly looked away. his knuckles were soon turning white due to the amount of pressure they were being squeezed. his breath hitched slightly and he gulped, a big gulp, clearing his throat. he felt a trickle of sweat run down the back of his head, but he was too embarrassed to move the slightest muscle.
the King handed the uneasy clerk a 48ct box of ferrero rocher. his hands were the epitome of the word tiny. accessory-less and completely barren, his hands were. jeongguk took the box of chocolates with icy fingers and blazing cheeks.
the blonde whipped two 10,000 bills from his leather wallet, tucking it back in his vibrant swim trunks. before handing the money to the clerk, jeongguk notices mister kim leaving his office reading MANAGER in bright red text. he was often hidden in there enjoying his personalized fan slapping him on the face for hours straight and avoiding nagging customers, which yoongi took care of minus that saturday afternoon. mister kim was a rusty fellow with three children older than jeongguk himself. he was also a sunday school teacher and head of "no hunger," a campaign he started years ago to reduce starvation rates in southern regions of south korea. regardless, he was a tall, stern man. the men caught his attention and with narrow eyes stated, "this is not the beach gentlemen."
the King shot a smirk with a faint flush coloring his cheeks. jeongguk's chest was home to millions of blooming flowers with exploding fireworks shooting in the background. with a few blinks of his eyes, his gaze finally moved to mister kim, whose neck veins began to pop out.
"we just came to pick something up really quick." his voice startled jeongguk at first, just as hearing voices for the first time sounds. his voice was lighter and dumber than the clerk thought, containing a hidden touch of mischief. the way he clicked the last syllable and the snottiness pouring out of his mouth, jeongguk knew what type of person the King was. jeongguk imagined cool marble tile and lavish furniture decorating a luxurious beach front busan mansion. this house would be filled with men in dress shirts and expensive sunglasses and women flicking their sandals nonchalantly while listening to the most recent gossip. they ate herring on sticks and plopped ferrero rocher chocolates into their mouth. that was who the bleached haired King and his friend were.
"i see, but this is not the beach." jeongguk found it oddly funny that mister kim repeated his initial statement. it was as if for all those years the store was filled sand dunes and mister kim was chief lifeguard.
"we understand. we just needed one thing." the boy in the navy blue swim trunks uttered in a low, deep voice drastically differing the King.
"i don't care if you're buying the entire store or nothing at all, you should respect the policy. we require you to be decently dressed when you enter the store." mister kim said folding his arms and cocking his eyebrow.
"we are decent." the King answers angrily lips parted and eyes focused on the older man.
"look, i don't want to argue with you gentlemen, but the store policy calls for the covering of the shoulders to receive service. otherwise, i have the authority to kick you out." the last three words were emphasized greatly by breaking them apart. "did you ring them up?" mister kim directed to jeongguk. the boy shook his head innocently and took the folded bills from the hotheaded King. punching various buttons and clink-clanking, jeongguk could feel his pulse banging through his skull. the drawer flew out of its place allowing the clerk to neatly tuck them in. jeongguk handed the King his chocolates in which him and his friend began storming towards the exit of the store without any methods of gratitude towards the gullible boy.
"i quit." jeongguk said looking at the tan tile floor.
"hm?" mister kim looked at the boy dressed in uniform.
"i said i quit." the two customers stopped in their tracks to glance at the commotion.
"you don't know what you're saying, jeongguk."
"you don't know what i'm saying, but i surely do." the boy began untie his apron.
"jeongguk, what about your parents?" mister kim was a friend of the jeon's, a long, inexplainable companionship. mister kim was the one who allowed jeongguk to let alone work at the shop after months of job hunting, but also with no experience at all. "they aren't going to like this." that was right and jeongguk knew that for sure. however, jeongguk could not forget the little blush that tickled the boys face or how his eyes hung lustfully. he removed his bow tie and placed it on the folded apron.
with all the pride and shamelessness left inside of his exuberant body, jeongguk causally exited the store. the mid-afternoon sun was too quick to fall upon his tan skin and the shirt his mother had ironed the night before.
jeongguk's doe eyes scurried the lot to find his King, but was gone of course. he was left with nothing but a couple, a woman with a perm and smudged eyeliner and a man wearing a completely unbuttoned button-down shirt, sharing a cigarette, sloppy kisses, and croaked laughter.
the clouds seem to pull in and cast a dark shadow on jeongguk's slouching body. the bushes seemed as if they were dead and dry. the street was lifeless, without a single automobile driving by. the boy was left with only tire marks on the asphalt under him and a faint memory of a boy in bright yellow swim trunks.
he peered through the window of the store and saw mister kim taking his former territory next to yoongi. mister kim had a grey face and ultimately seemed older to jeongguk. yoongi seemed quiet. he was a generically quiet man, but it was a different type of quiet.
jeongguk sighed as his stomach fell wondering how the world would treat him hereafter.