Chapter Text
“You float out to sea then one day you find a port.”
Jeno parks his car on the nearest vacant spot he sees. He hits the call button on Jaehyun’s contact but it’s left unanswered again, possibly for the eight time that night.
You’re too kind, Jeno, and it will be your downfall someday, he remembers Renjun saying through his teeth as Jeno makes a beeline for the door earlier, from Renjun’s birthday party.
It has been tradition in their friend group since their university days to celebrate their birthdays as sleepovers. And now that they’re working adults, booze has been unsurprisingly added into the ritual. But Jeno has to miss the drinking part this time.
He opens their KakaoTalk group chat and sends an I’m really sorry Injun-ah, but Doyoung hyung and Jaehyun hyung need to get back together.
There’s an instant response from Donghyuck, saying, That’s not your job to do, idiot, but sure stay alive, Super Jen! Another response comes in, this time from Renjun, saying, Drive safely, Super Jen! with a sticker doing a peace sign. And that’s enough for Jeno to know that his friends, especially the birthday celebrant, isn’t really mad at him for his early exit.
It’s not his first time at a club but he’s already instantly repelled by the smell that reeks of different combinations of alcohol and sweat. Jeno’s much more familiar with the less rowdier clubs at Hongdae, where Dejun, Renjun’s boyfriend, frequently holds gigs with his band, Odd Wavelengths.
Jeno thanks his lucky stars that he hasn’t taken any sip of booze yet at Renjun’s. His mind is still pretty clear, dead set on looking for the purple-haired Jaehyun.
He sees Johnny, who, from what Jeno remembers, is Jaehyun’s best friend. They’ve spoken a couple of times and Johnny was even there for Jeno’s graduation dinner.
Johnny’s daytime work is a mystery to Jeno. He remembers Doyoung mentioning that Johnny frequents as a DJ on the strip of bars and clubs in Itaewon and Gangnam, which now Jeno figures to be true when he sees Johnny raising his beer to the crowd while changing the music to a wilder electropop song. Jeno thinks he knows this one thanks to Mark.
He gives the older guy a wave even though he’s pretty sure Johnny is too in the moment to actually pay attention to anything happening around him, let alone an acquaintance waving at him from the far end of the dance floor.
“Super Jen!”
Upon turning around, he’s suddenly got an armful of Jaehyun clinging on to him. The older reeks of beer when he shout-whispers, garbles more variations of Super Jen came, Super Jen is here! on to his shoulder.
“These idiots are so lucky to have you, Jeno!” shouts Yuta, another senior from university that Jeno has met through Doyoung. “He’s downed so many drinks I actually lost count! I’m supposed to drive—” Yuta pauses as he unlocks his phone. “Wait a sec, I gotta answer this. You could sit down first and I’ll help you get him into your car.”
Jeno wants to ask Where is it safe to sit?, but Yuta has already made his way out of the crowd. Jeno just really wants to get this done and over with.
He tries to properly position Jaehyun on his shoulder so he can support him as they make their way towards the exit. In the process of rearranging the older, Jeno collides with someone.
“I’m sorry!” Jeno apologizes immediately, hoping that the stranger wouldn’t get mad. He tries to steady Jaehyun, who seems to get heavier with every minute.
"It's okay," the stranger assures him breathily, smile visible even under the murky strobe lights of the club. "You obviously got your hands full."
Jeno returns the smile. "All in a day's work," he huffs out. "Saving the city, one drunk sunbae at a time."
The stranger chuckles, his hoodie gently falling off to his shoulder, revealing the pink locks underneath. "This might seem random," the stranger starts, his eyes twinkling with mirth. "But do you need help?"
The sensation of Jaehyun’s relentless whispering to Jeno's ear, as well as the smell of puke, are enough for him to take the pink-haired stranger's help.
“Er, do you know Jaehyun-hyung?” Jeno asks with difficulty as they carry Jaehyun. Jaehyun’s right arm is loped behind Jeno's shoulders, his left arm on the stranger's.
"No." The stranger beams at him, from across Jaehyun. "Just seemed like you needed help, is all."
Jeno makes a non-committal hum as Jaehyun's head almost hits the roof of his car. The pink-haired stranger prevents it in time, his hand docking Jaehyun's head down and avoiding the collision.
"Nice save," Jeno comments as they position his sunbae properly on the backseat.
Jeno lets go first, and then suddenly, Jaehyun's eyes immediately shoot up, before lurching forward at the stranger, puking all over his pristine black hoodie. Jaehyun slurs a Good night, Super Jen! and passes out, with said stranger arranging him on his side as if nothing happened.
"Fuck,” Jeno says. “I'm sorry, I—”
"It's fine." The stranger smiles, and for a moment, Jeno becomes hyper aware of the proximity between their faces.
Warmth creeps up to Jeno's face so he looks away. "I have something you can borrow,” he manages to choke out. "At the front seat."
"Oh good, let's get going then!" The stranger leads himself out, inspecting the amount of vomit on his hoodie before heading for the passenger seat.
Jeno slides in the driver's seat and inserts the key into the ignition, looking away at the stranger changing in his car. “Are you sure you'll come with us?” Jeno says.
"Pretty sure you'll still be needing my help to get him out of your car." There's teasing lilt in the stranger's voice. When Jeno spares the passenger seat a glance, the stranger’s still smiling as he takes off his black hoodie.
"It's okay to look. I'm wearing something inside, you know."
Jeno quickly looks away, embarrassed. The stranger giggles.
He unlocks his phone and sends a Got help from a friend, hyung. ^_^ Jaehyun hyung’s in my car now. to Yuta, and a Will drop by in a few, hyung. Hope you’ll open up. to Doyoung.
When he glances to his right again, the stranger is already wearing Jeno's red hoodie, a letterman font of 23, Jeno’s birthdate embroidered on the upper right chest part. Doyoung had it embroidered just for him, confessing to have already ran out of ideas on usable items he can gift Jeno. What’s the point of giving someone something they can’t use? is what Doyoung always likes to say.
Jeno’s hoodie fits the stranger perfectly. His pink locks complements the red hoodie quite remarkably, his slightly sunkissed skin glowing under the moonlight.
Jeno swallows. “Do you always get into cars with strangers?”
”Do you always allow strangers into your car?” the stranger cheekily replies, as he straps himself onto the passenger seat, looking more than comfortable in Jeno's red hoodie.
“Fair point.”
“So where are we taking this drunk older brother of yours?” That same twinkle from earlier is back, but now it's magnified tenfold—the moonlight seems to have amplified it even further.
“We’re not related,” Jeno replies, hands feeling a little clammy.
“Your boyfriend then?”
“N-no, he’s not," Jeno chokes out. "He’s the boyfriend of a sunbae I’m close with.” He pauses, considering, and then says, “I don’t know why I have to explain to you. I don’t even know who you are.”
“Na—” The stranger cuts himself off as if he said something wrong before continuing, offering his hand out, “Jaemin. Na Jaemin, at your service.” He says it so simply as if he’s not sitting in a stranger’s car, ready to continue helping said stranger in carrying home another stranger who is drunk and accidentally threw up on him.
“Lee Jeno,” he supplies back as he shakes Jaemin's hand.
“Nice to meet you, Jeno.” There’s that playful glint again in Jaemin’s eyes, but Jeno doesn’t dwell on it and instead gives the other a tight-lipped smile. "Likewise."
“Now let’s take this drunk hyung home, Super Jen!”
“Jeno, who’s your friend?” Doyoung pointedly asks, looking at Jaemin. Jaemin just nods politely in greeting.
“A poor victim to your boyfriend’s Saturday activities,” Jeno supplies, not wanting to spill the part about Jaemin being a total stranger less than an hour ago, who was just at the wrong place at the wrong time.
“Ex-boyfriend,” Doyoung corrects, tone clipped.
Jaemin coughs before speaking up, “Well, Jeno’s hyung, we’ve had enough adventures for tonight. Haven’t we, Jeno-ya?” He looks to Jeno for support. “I think it’s best to get going.”
Doyoung looks as if he’s gonna say something but sighs. “Thank you Jeno and Jeno’s friend.” The elder looks at Jeno. “I’m too sleepy now and I have to take care of this idiot.” Doyoung points to the passed out Jaehyun lying on the couch. “But we have to talk about this tomorrow.”
Jeno nods and smiles at the elder one last time as Doyoung enters inside and closes the door.
“You sure you aren’t related to either of them?” Jaemin asks as he opens the door to Jeno’s car and makes his way inside.
“Huh? No, I’m just really close to them. Especially Doyoung hyung.”
“We’ve breathed the same air for two minutes but I’m pretty sure he hates me already.”
“Doyoung hyung doesn’t hate people,” Jeno says as he fits in his key and starts his car. “Anyways, it’s not like you’re gonna meet each other again, so don’t mind him.”
“Ouch.” Jaemin pounds his chest jokingly, as if he was in pain. “Already getting me out of your hair, Lee Jeno. I’m hurt.”
“You’re really weird, Jaemin-ssi,” Jeno says but he can feel his lips twitching into a smile.
Jaemin just smiles sweetly at him, the little light from the lamp posts outside illuminating his features. Jeno feels a funny kind of rumble form in his gut.
“Now, about that payment you promised, Super Jen,” Jaemin starts, a cheshire grin on his face.
“I know, I know. I got you,” Jeno says as he turns his attention back to the road. He tries to shake off the funny feeling forming in his gut.
“When you said you ‘got’ me, I didn’t know you meant showing me your kitchen prowess, Jeno-ssi.”
Jaemin’s hoodie is down—well, Jeno’s technically—as he slurps the rest of the broth of the instant ramyun Jeno whipped up for his newfound friend.
Jeno’s red hoodie continues to fit the other’s frame nicely. Also, Jaemin’s pink hair continues to look soft even at this late hour; it’s a stark contrast to his slightly strong facial features. Against the harsh yellow lighting of Lee Noodle Shop, Jaemin looks nothing short of ethereal. Jeno honestly wonders what Jaemin’s day job could be, for the boy to be allowed to dye his hair to such an extent, for the boy to be this inhumanely beautiful and handsome at the same time. Jeno’s heart swells a bit.
“You should have made enough for the both of us,” Jaemin says with a pout before downing his glass of water in one go.
“It’s just instant ramyun, Jaemin-ssi,” Jeno says.
There’s an effortless composure and grace in the way Jaemin moves that is fascinating to Jeno, or maybe it’s just that Jeno rarely sees anyone look so pristine while eating instant ramyun.
“Were you running away earlier?” Jeno asks.
Jaemin smiles sweetly at Jeno—it gets under his skin. “Suddenly in the mood to interrogate, are we, Jeno-ssi?”
“Forget it,” Jeno says in surrender. It’s not his business to know anyway.
He watches as Jaemin grabs some napkin before asking Jeno, “Got any pen with you by any chance?”
Jeno deftly takes out a pen from inside the hoodie he’s wearing, reaching it out for Jaemin to take. The other raises an eyebrow before taking it and scribbling something on the napkin.
“You truly are a lifesaver, aren’t you, Jeno?”
Before Jeno could even come up with a reply, Jaemin slides the napkin with his messy handwriting to Jeno. “Ask me your question again another time and maybe I’ll give you an answer.”
Jeno hears a ping—it’s from Jaemin’s phone. He looks up to Jaemin smiling at him, who’s then saying, “My ride’s here. Walk me to the door?”
“I can’t believe you’re pulling out an Eat-and-Run on me, Jaemin-ssi.” Jeno mentally slaps himself for his lame sense of humor.
Jaemin stops in his tracks and turns back to Jeno, the light from their shop and the light from the midnight sky highlighting beautifully Jaemin’s features—his nose, his eyes, his lips...
The world slows to an agonizing stop as Jaemin leans in to peck at his cheek.
“See you around, Super Jen.”
°。°。°。°。°。°
It’s not until two days later, on a Monday, when Jeno finds out exactly who Jaemin is.
Chanyeol, Dream Labs Inc.’s co-founder and boss number one, has just finished reviewing everyone’s updates on their respective assignments for the completion of Candle Light. Candle Light, Dream Labs’ current project, is slated for a December release following its first official preliminary presentation during the Gamers’ Expo in Seoul on July and its official launch on November. It’s been in the works since its conception in December of last year. It’s one of those “endless runner” games that could go on forever, but their design team is making sure that the graphics with each increase in level becomes prettier and prettier for the player to enjoy the game until the end. Unsurprisingly, Jeno’s having the time of his life coding for every type of jump and backdrop shift in the game.
The only problem: it’s another brainchild of their resident star programmer, Guanheng, who Jeno really can’t stand.
Hearing Baekhyun, their other boss and head programmer, gush about the ingenious subtle parallax effects that Guanheng orchestrated for Candle Light would normally catapult Jeno into second-guessing his coding capabilities. But before he could do so, he feels his phone vibrating continuously in his pocket. He puts his boxed lunch on the table and takes a seat before taking out his phone.
His phone keeps on vibrating as the messages won’t stop pouring in. There’s a couple from Renjun, from Donghyuck, from Doyoung, and even from his older sister, Sungkyung. He clicks on the recent one, a text from Doyoung saying, Is it your lunch time yet, Jeno? Check @najaemofficial ASAP! You have some explaining to do.
He thinks he’s lost his grip on reality when he clicks on the pic on the topmost left, the most recent entry on said account. His screen loads a picture of Jaemin looking snuggly in Jeno’s red hoodie, the obnoxiously huge embroidered 23 in clear view, his pink locks looking as soft as it did that night at the noodle shop. Jaemin is holding up a thick stack of papers for the camera, with City of Angels in simple hangul print on the center. The caption on the photo reads Can’t wait to start filming!
Jeno can’t seem to process anything as he continues to gaze at Jaemin’s smile, partially crippled by the reminder that he saw that in person, saw the actor in person. He kissed you in person too, his mind unhelpfully supplies.
He accidentally clicks on another new message from Doyoung. Care to explain how Na Jaemin is wearing the hoodie I personally had custom-made for you?
Luckily for Jeno, Doyoung was too occupied with his students’ projects that he hasn’t personally made a visit to the Lees’ yet to hear Jeno’s detailed response on how one of South Korea’s rising small screen darlings ended up wearing Jeno’s hoodie. Jeno did what he can, though, and emphasized that Jaemin was indeed the “friend” that helped with taking Jaehyun home, leaving out the part where he took the actor back to the noodle shop for a cup of instant ramyun.
He shares the same abridged version of that night to his best friends, Renjun and Donghyuck. Both of them regularly pestered Jeno for answers when the news came out, and even went as far as to drop by the noodle shop every day to grill him.
“Tell me you slept with the guy, Jen, please,” Donghyuck says as he lies down on Jeno’s bed, socks on, as Jeno had requested. “Tell me so I can finally sleep peacefully at night knowing you won’t die a virgin. And your first time is with a celebrity! Well, not a super famous celebrity, but still a celebrity, so kudos!”
“Are you sure you want to be saying that?” Renjun asks with a snicker, comfortably lounging on the chair by Jeno’s desk.
“Oh my God,” Donghyuck exclaims. “Please tell me you changed the sheets at least!”
Jeno turns around on his swivel chair to face his friend. “Nothing happened, okay?” He looks from Renjun to Donghyuck when he continues. “I might have offered instant ramyun but that’s that and nothing else happened beyond that. I swear.”
“Chill, dude,” says Donghyuck, lying back down. “But you do know that right there—that was an opening, right?”
“Huh?”
“What he means is that ramyun is usually code for ‘Wanna go back to my place and fuck?’,” Renjun supplies.
The memory of Jaemin’s kiss rings clear and instantly, Jeno feels his face warm up.
“Guess I’ll keep on asking Mark to pray for your sex life,” Donghyuck announces with a sigh.
Renjun and Jeno both laugh at that. After a couple more jabs at Jeno’s virginity, his best friends soon leave him to his work, satisfied with getting the answers they wanted.
Jeno goes back to debugging, his mind trying to forget the feeling of Jaemin’s lips on his cheek and the number he left, still comfortably nestled in between his two favorite C++ books on the shelf of his bedroom.
The gears of the universe are at work, it seems, when Jaemin waltzes into the noodle shop on one of those few days that Jeno decides to work from home.
It’s to be expected, really, that during some months in the middle of the checking process of the prototype of any of their game releases, desks at Dream Labs' head office are empty. Most of the employees opt to work from home, especially those from the design and programming team. Both Chanyeol and Baekhyun allow that, and Jeno’s thankful for it. As much as he enjoys taking out the kinks within strings and strings of code, the modern, minimalist interior of the office can feel suffocating on certain days.
It's a little past 1pm when Jeno decides it’s time to help a little at the noodle shop and reward himself with a free lunch from Soojin ahjumma. Soojin ahjumma, Donghyuck’s mom, sometimes helps out at the noodle shop, especially when his mom leaves from time to time to meet her friends or go on her weekly trips to Sorae Pogu.
As Jeno goes down the stairs from their living room connecting directly to the noodle shop, he spots him.
Jaemin strides in, wearing denim on denim, hair now a warm shade of honey brown. There’s a cut on his right cheek, but it doesn’t diminish the actor’s beauty, not one bit.
Jaemin catches him staring. Jeno looks away immediately and heads to the register, his back facing the tables. When Jeno sneaks a glance, he finds Jaemin already seated on the same booth they were in last time. He’s raising his hand, asking for the menu.
Does he remember me? Jeno internally asks. But there's a chance he won't, so act normal.
Of course, Jeno’s the only one available to bring him the menu, since the other servers are still taking their lunch at the kitchen. There’s not much crowd at the noodle shop—only a few elderly people, the usual regulars who happily devour his mom’s cooking, never failing in telling her that their noodleshop’s ramyun is the pride of Incheon.
“What can I get you?” he asks as he hands the menu, not daring to make eye contact with the actor.
“I don’t know. Let me think about it.” Jaemin hums. “Your excuse, perhaps?”
“Excuse?” Jeno looks up and finds Jaemin staring at him, mischief dancing on his eyes and lips.
“For not texting or giving me a call. I didn’t think you’d be the type of person to lose things, or wait." Jaemin pauses, index finger tapping his chin. "Maybe you did throw it away on purpose!” The tapping stops. “Yikes, did I assume too much?" he adds, putting down the menu. "Don’t tell me you don’t swing that way?! Oh God, no!”
“Aren’t you supposed to be discreet?” Jeno mumbles. “Jesus, you’re so loud.”
Jaemin giggles, seemingly pleased to get a rise out of him. “What is it then?” he says, his doe eyes studying Jeno quite closely. They’re beautiful, but somewhat scarier in daylight. “What’s your excuse for not contacting me, Lee Jeno-ssi? And would you please sit down? I promise I’ll be out of your hair—” he briefly looks at his phone, “—exactly two hours from now.”
“Two hours?” Jeno asks as he sits from across the actor, who’s still grinning at him.
“I’m assuming they’ll take around two hours to finish filming the sequences with Eunbi noona and Seongwu hyung,” Jaemin says.
“Does your manager even know where you went? Do you run away this often?”
“Wow.” Jaemin raises an eyebrow, slightly leaning backwards, seemingly impressed. “I could’ve sworn you had no idea who I was the whole time that we were together that night.”
“Well, your post on Instagram wearing my red hoodie did it.”
Another eyebrow raise. “You’re following me on Instagram?”
“No!” Jeno exclaims as Jaemin nods to himself in contemplation. “Why are you focusing on the wrong things, jeez.”
The cheshire grin is back. “So…?” Jaemin prompts.
“My friends told me," Jeno admits in defeat. "And Doyoung hyung too. He bought that hoodie for my birthday last year by the way. I’m not saying I need it back, but…” He adjusts his glasses as Jaemin stays quiet, still smiling innocently at him. Jeno narrows his eyes. “What?”
“Nothing.” Jaemin cradles his chin with both hands, gazing at Jeno with something like adoration—which Jeno supposes is Jaemin's natural way of looking at people.
“What?”
“Nothing, really!” Jaemin grins wider. “You’re just cuter in daylight.”
Jeno almost chokes.
“But I guess I’d have to see you around more to prove it’s not just a one-time thing.”
Jeno scratches his nape, and zooms in on the cut on Jaemin’s right cheek. “I’ll get something to treat that,” Jeno announces as he tries not to appear too flustered, already standing up from his seat.
“No need,” Jaemin replies, fingers touching the cut. “The makeup department really went to town with it, huh?”
Jeno feels dumb, sitting back down. “Oh.” His mind is already running a mile a minute, going through strings and strings of possible responses to save face.
He finds none. "Yeah," Jeno says eventually. "They did great."
The actor just smiles warmly at him, an unreadable look in his eyes, before looking back at the menu on the table. “So tell me.” He looks back at Jeno. “What do you recommend I try today, Jeno-ssi?”
Jaemin insists on ordering two bowls of bibim naengmyeon, one for him and one for Jeno, all the while convincing Jeno to keep him company. Jeno wants to refuse, thinking back to the layers and layers of objects in Candle Light that needs to be re-run for more glitches. But when Jaemin taps his chopsticks against his, smiling and looking at him from under his long lashes, Jeno just drops all other thoughts completely.
After just a few bites and slurps, he takes a chunk of his mom’s kimchi and places it on top of Jaemin’s ramyun. “See if you like it.”
“Never tried this before,” Jaemin murmurs as he chews on the kimchi mixed with the noodles, his eyes growing wide as he smiles at Jeno. “Wow,” the actor chews again. “This actually tastes good.” Jeno feels triumphant and feels himself smiling.
The rest of their late lunch is surprisingly casual.
Jaemin tells him they’ll be filming City of Angels in Incheon for the next couple of months so he and Kun, his manager, will be staying at the Holiday Inn which is nearby Songdo Central Park. Jaemin coaxes Jeno to tell him about his day-job too and he obliges, shares about his passion for codes and gaming in general, mentioning as little jargons as possible.
For the rest of the lunch, Jeno somehow forgets the circumstances of how they met and that Jaemin is an up-and-coming actor. Because Jaemin talks to him like an old acquaintance, smiles at him and listens to him attentively. And Jeno’s unsure of what it makes him feel, unsure of the kind of friendship Jaemin is looking for.
But as Jaemin keys in Jeno's number in his phone and sweetly asks if he can drop by the noodle shop again in between filming, Jeno hums a Yes.
°。°。°。°。°。°
After a couple of texts from Jaemin, ranging from Good mornings with excessive amounts of emojis to the most random commentaries regarding some of what goes on set during filming, including the apparent awkward chemistry of his co-stars in between takes, Jeno relieves some of the stress from work.
Star programmer Guanheng still gets on his nerves on most days, smiling at him, all of his teeth on display as he reiterates some winter backdrops needing re-coding because of the instability they display upon consecutive runs. But after all is said and done, one simple message from Jaemin magically fades everything into background noise.
Continuously meeting with Jaemin may have kept him in a good mood too.
In between trying out everything on the menu of their noodle shop and other secret dishes that they only serve during special occasions, Jeno learns more and more about Jaemin, beyond what Naver search can provide.
Na Jaemin debuted as a model in 2009 at the age of 15, joining the ranks of some of the youngest models to ever walk the runway for Seoul Fashion Week. After spending years and years walking for a few more fashion shows, shooting ads for certain mid-tier brands and starring in music videos of some rookie idol groups, Jaemin is still tagged with a rookie-level of popularity by the press.
"A pretty face," Jaemin grits through his teeth one time as he pokes the mandu onto his plate. "After starring in everyone's favorite makjang, I'm only still remembered as just a pretty face."
They started to forego Korean at some point at the onset of spring, with Jaemin trusting Jeno to take him to Incheon's bests mixed cuisines. Jeno agreed, realizing it was getting difficult to avoid the probing Who’s your good looking friend, son? from his very curious mom, only to be followed by a Donghyuck-ah underestimated you from Soojin ahjumma. It’s also becoming even more difficult to not mind the stares of customers inside the noodle shop, especially the young adult regulars who often drop by after office hours, which happens to be Jaemin's favorite hangout time at the noodle shop. The actor waltzes in whenever he feels like it, only messaging Jeno minutes before his arrival. So Jeno decided it was best to take their not-dates elsewhere.
Elsewhere apparently meant in the busy midst of Sinpo Market. Jeno was initially worried that people might recognize Jaemin and they may get mobbed, but Jaemin brushed it off, smiling as he said, Bet you twenty thousand won, they won’t. And Jaemin was right, if the one group of highschool girls who mistook Jaemin as an idol doesn’t count. The actor just politely smiled at them, saying, I’ll consider that in my next life, thank you, ending it with a wink.
Soon after, they drop by some of the stalls that Jeno frequents. He makes Jaemin try his mom’s favorite dakgangjeong, and the beondegi that Sungkyung would die for, before settling on a pojamangcha that serves some of Jeno’s favorite Korean-Chinese food.
"Style and substance," Jeno murmurs, before sipping from his can of suanmeitang. "A game must always possess both."
It’s a give and take relationship. Jeno too, although with reservations, shares bits of his daily triumphs and mishaps at work, even going as far as to narrate the brief history of Dream Labs, as Jaemin jumps from game to game, starting from their company’s debut release, the 8-bit juggernaut Chewing Gum up to their latest release, the pastel themed three-dimensional We Go Up, which Jeno was already a part of.
“Yah.” Jaemin pouts. "I can't believe I'm being compared to a game now."
"No, I mean—" Jeno chokes out. "The cards are on your table now, Jaemin-ssi. You said so yourself that this is your biggest role so far.”
Jeno’s not really up-to-date with the dramas and films that Jaemin’s been in, or with any drama or film in general. He told Jaemin this, expecting the usual mockery of his monkly ways, but instead Jaemin smiled at him then, saying, It’s fine. You don’t have to watch them, Jeno. But of course he does. It’s only fair he learns more about his friend, Jeno thinks.
He downs the rest of his suanmeitang. “You just have to give it your all and hope the public falls in love with you."
Jaemin grins. "Including you?"
Jeno chokes for real. The actor breaks into a fit of laughter as he pours water into Jeno's glass.
"It's getting late, Jaemin-ssi," Jeno states, not knowing how to usually put an end to their not-dates. "You still have to film early tomorrow."
"And you still have to do—” Jaemin supplies, waving his hands in the air, “—voodoo magic on your codes.”
Jeno sighs. “I wish it’s as simple as that.”
“It can be,” Jaemin replies simply. “The cards are on your table now, Jeno-ssi.” Jaemin leans forward, as if to whisper a secret, eyes shining. “You just have to give it your all and hope they fall in love with your games. With your mind.”
“I do have more to offer.” Jeno smiles because he can’t help himself.
“Then why don’t you show them?”
Maybe he should, Jeno thinks. The smile Jaemin gives him is warm, reassuring, even under the low light of the pojangmacha.
Jeno smiles back and gestures to the ahjumma for their bill. He fishes out his share of the bill from his wallet when he hears an audible sigh from Jaemin as they get up from their table.
“Weeks into our friendship, and you still won’t let me wine and dine you, Jeno.” Jaemin’s eyes light up. His hand then comes up to cover his mouth, like he’s surprised at himself. “I’m sorry. My lips are getting tired of the formalities, it seems. It’s been a long day.”
Jeno laughs, shrugging his shoulders. “It’s fine.”
“I can pay for my own tangsuyuk, thank you very much.” He's not sure if it's the effect of the suanmeitang when he continues, “You can treat me next time, Jaemin.”
The smile on Jaemin’s lips is sweet, his eyes shimmering with the words Finally. Before Jaemin could tease him for it, Jeno walks away first, braving the cold spring air, trying to hide his smile and calm his racing heart.
Next time comes in the form of a not-date in Milim, a local movie house that screens indies and some of Chungmuro’s classics. The night flies by with spilling of more secrets, of exes, and lost loves over the finest Italian food in Incheon as recommended by Jaemin’s best friend Yangyang. The succeeding escapades are no better.
Sometimes Jaemin would charm his way into paying for them both. Other times, Jeno would stand his ground. I can’t believe we’re turning this into a competition, Jaemin tells him once. Are you keeping score of how many dinners we’ve had overall?
Jeno loses count.
“Not-date, my ass,” Donghyuck says to Jeno in passing when they were out lounging at a nearby nondescript pub.
Odd Wavelengths has just finished performing, meaning his best friends reverted back to picking his life apart, particularly his choice of companion for the past couple of weeks.
”You’re worried,” Renjun points out.
“Worried about what?” Dejun asks as he plops down on the seat beside his boyfriend.
Renjun and Dejun are an interesting pair. Jeno would have never pegged Renjun to have said yes to a seemingly perpetually dazed vocalist of an underground indie punk-rock band, but Jeno now knows he’ll always learn something new about people everyday. All of his doubts about them being a good match dissipates whenever the two exchange the fondest loving glances, with Dejun looking at Renjun as if his best friend had hung the moon for him and with Renjun looking at Dejun as if he’s the most important person in the room. Jeno wonders if he’ll ever know that feeling, if he’ll ever share that feeling with someone. A person inevitably comes to mind, but he downs his beer to wash such impossible fantasies away.
“Jeno might be in love but he’s saying they’re going on not-dates, and not actual dates.” Donghyuck supplies.
“Our Super Jen is in love?” Dejun croons. “Wishing you the best, bro!”
Jeno sighs as Dejun leans forward to ruffle his hair. “Who’s the lucky girl?” Dejun then asks.
“It’s a he,” Jeno replies without thinking, earning giggles and hollers from all sides of their small round table. Even Jungeun, the band’s bassist, and Yerim, the keyboardist, who he doesn’t really talk to, give him approving smiles.
“Just ride the wave, Super Jen,” Dejun says, leaning back on his seat, arm. “Let love and let go.”
“That sounds like your next hit, babe.” Renjun grins at his boyfriend before looking back at Jeno. “He’s right, Jeno. And we promise. Well, I...” he pauses before looking at Donghyuck, who’s about to drag Mark to who-knows-where to do who-knows-what. “I promise I’ll stop teasing you about it, so...”
Renjun then smiles, squeezing Jeno’s arm in reassurance. “Don’t overthink, Jeno.”
°。°。°。°。°。°
Things take a dramatic turn at work during one of their weekly progress evaluations as April comes to a close.
Baekhyun is in the middle of suggesting an alternate string of codes for improving the high-jumps of the player from cliff to cliff when a mad-eyed Chanyeol waltzes in and cuts in on his colleague speaking.
"We're going to Busan, my little dreamers!" The grin on Chanyeol's face is feral. Jeno's almost scared if not for the implication of what he just announced. "G-Star 2019! 1-hour showcase inclusive of the 20-minute Q&A portion!"
The room erupts into cheers. Even Jeno's shaking because presenting at G-Star is everything.
G-Star is an annual 4-day trade show featuring over seven hundred game companies from more than thirty countries across the globe. For years, it has been held in Busan. Jeno attended once as a computer science undergrad, wondering when he’ll ever get the chance. And now—
"What the fuck, Chanyeol?" The smile on Baekhyun's face is gone before it can even fully form. "That's less than seven months from now!"
"And? It's G-Star, Baek. Busan." Chanyeol placates his best friend and colleague by the shoulder. "Where all our crazy dreams started."
"But we're presenting Candle Light in July." Baekhyun frees himself off of Chanyeol's hold. "The crowd there won't be interested in a game they've already heard of months prior."
"Who says we'll be talking about Candle Light?" The room erupts into murmurs and then a shriek. It's probably Jiwoo, Jeno thinks. Poor girl has already been overworked in the past couple of weeks in trying to maintain the adjustment layers so that the backdrop avoids glitching.
"You're crazy, Park." Baekhyun's shaking his head but there's an unmistakable glint of wonder in his eyes. "It's impossible."
Chanyeol smiles lopsidedly before speaking to everyone in the room. "Team, here's our chance at Busan." He steps forward, stance firm, one of those textbook stances he uses in pitching their projects to possible investors, except this time, he's doing it to them. "All we need is another game. A new one."
Jeno's heart races. "It's not an easy feat but yes, we need something we haven't shared with the public before." Worried looks are exchanged inside the room but Jeno remains rooted to his swivel chair, his skin prickling, his mind flashing back to a conversation he had just a few days ago.
"Anyone with a side project you're willing to share to the team, just step forward and pitch it." Chanyeol laughs. "Not right now of course, not this week even, but a month from now."
Jaemin's Then why don't you show them? briefly comes into mind.
"It doesn't even have to be completely finished, but please—" Baekhyun speaks up, stepping forward to Chanyeol's side. "Do tell us if you plan on pitching. Maybe you'll need help and really, what are we here for if we can't?"
Chanyeol elbows Baekhyun before saying, "We'll be all ears to you and your babies."
Jeno guesses he'll be sleeping less tonight, the night after and all other following nights.
"Hit us with your best shot, my little dreamers!"
Jeno is on his way home after rendering two hours of overtime work stitching up the beta version of the game he’ll be pitching when he reads a text Jaemin sent him an hour ago. I'm dropping by today. I hope it's okay? We're done filming and I'm craving your mom's ramyun! *___* He briefly wonders why the actor remained quiet and didn’t pester him further for not having replied.
He stops by the noodle shop's entrance, Closed sign already hanging. His fingers start tapping on his phone for a reply when it's suddenly taken away from him. "Hey what—"
Renjun and Donghyuck pop up in his peripheral vision and the next thing he knows he's instantly shoved inside the shop, stumbling in, face forward. It’s a good thing he’s been held back by his best friends before he could completely fall over.
"Surprise!"
Oh.
"Happy Birthday, Jeno!" The small crowd in front of him yells before they break into singing Happy Birthday. Little Haneul breaks free from Soojin ahjumma and runs up to him, arms outstretched asking to be carried. Jeno complies, feeling like he’s on cloud nine because he literally did forget what day it was.
By the end of the song, his cake approaches, held by his mom and someone who he really didn't expect to show up. Someone with a smile so blinding it rivals all the stars in the night sky.
"Make a wish, Super Jen."
“Can you please stop looking at me like that?” Jeno gripes.
The small party they prepared for him moved to the rooftop, complete with a mini grill and the old noraebang machine that they are still using for only the most special of occasions, including tonight. The strips of Christmas lights are still hung up, and lit for the night, with the gentle spring air swaying them from time to time.
Jaemin, Donghyuck and him are currently huddled together on one table. The others are either dancing around little Haneul by the noraebang machine or huddled around the other table with the mini grill. Jeno isn’t really a fan of crowded gatherings so he appreciates that there’s not much people present. Only the ones that matter.
“I don’t think we can stop, Jen.” Jaemin giggles, warm gaze on him. “It’s your birthday after all. I know I can’t.”
“Already at a nickname-calling basis are we?” The grin on Donghyuck’s face is smug.
Jeno shrugs. “I’m touched you showed up even if Mark hyung isn’t here.”
Mark has always been a senior they’ve respected ever since their university days, but they never really hanged out a lot. Jeno especially feels grateful to him, with Mark recommending him to Chanyeol as an intern in Dream Labs, It still feels like yesterday when Jeno fell in love with Baekhyun’s games in his previous company, CBX, leading him to follow his college senior’s game-making career, all the way to his humble 8-bit beginning at Dream Labs. Jeno was so sure that Baekhyun never knew who he was and so when Mark randomly brought up that he knows Chanyeol pretty well, Jeno sent him his resume right away.
Mark also eventually got hired at Dream Labs. at the same time Jeno started his internship. After successive times of Mark and Jeno hanging out at the noodle shop, or at other restaurants and pubs nearby, Mark’s and Donghyuck’s paths soon crossed, and the rest is history.
“You think too little of me, Jeno.” Donghyuck winces. “I’ll have you know I’m here because of ahjumma. She was worried you won’t have other friends to invite so Renjun and I obliged.”
Jeno responds with flinging a napkin to his best friend’s face.
“Okay okay, I get it. I’ll give you young lovers some space.”
Jeno groans. He’s about to tear his hair in frustration but apparently he has no time to recover as his mom approaches their table, placing two bowls of seaweed soup in front of them, followed by plates of kimchi, gaji bokkeum and chunks of gyeran nari, all of which are Jeno’s favorite dishes.
She sits down, smiles at him before turning to Jaemin. “Thank you for not ratting us out, Jaemin-ssi.”
“It’s no big deal,” Jaemin easily replies, picking up some of the kimchi with his chopsticks. “It’s all thanks to your son failing to check his phone so I really did not do much.”
His mom inches forward as if to whisper a secret. “Our Jeno does seem a little bit forgetful, does he?”
“I’ve never met someone who forgot their own birthday, so,” Jaemin declares with exasperation. “Your son here is pretty special.”
The look Jaemin gives Jeno is soft and warm, and is clearly not unnoticed by his mom who just smiles at them knowingly.
“Jeno here didn’t really mention you liked my ramyun,” his mom starts. “Too bad we’ve already ran out of broth today so—”
“You don’t have to,” Jaemin says politely, putting down his chopsticks. “There’s no need, Mrs. Lee.”
“Call me, eomoni,” Jeno’s mom smiles sweetly at Jaemin. Something in Jeno’s heart swells. “You’re no stranger to us, Jaemin-ssi. Any friend of Jeno is always welcome here. Come by anytime you’d like and I’ll cook for you.”
Jaemin stills, before looking at Jeno, eyes seemingly glassy before smiling fondly back at his mom. “Thank you, eomoni.”
“Your parents must be very proud of you,” his mom notes. From the corner of his eye, Jeno sees Jaemin’s shoulder tense a bit but he recovers easily.
“I want them to be,” Jaemin says softly, wavering slightly, and in an instant the Jaemin he’s grown accustomed with is back again.
The conversation flows easily, mostly between Jaemin and his mom, moreso about what it’s been like for Jaemin being under the limelight for a long time. Jeno notes the easygoing grins Jaemin directs to his mom and him. Jeno revels in every single one of them, listening quietly as they exchange stories back and forth.
By the time he’s finished with his soup, his mom’s already fawning over Jaemin, telling the actor how honored she is to have cooked for him who just came to the shop straight out of filming after working hard for the day. Jaemin preens under the praise and admits how he just wants people to watch his dramas.
His mom reaches Jaemin’s hand from across the table to squeeze it gently. “We’ll make sure everyone in the neighborhood does, won’t we, Jeno?”
Jeno nods, delighted at how Jaemin lights up at such a simple promise.
Any poignancy that could further happen is broken with Jeno’s older sister, Sungkyung, joining them on the table. “So is Jaemin marrying into the family soon?” she says, point blank. “Jeno’s lovers are welcome to the Lee household. Not that there’s many of you—” Her eyes go wide. “Oh my gosh, am I ruining my little brother’s chances?”
“Noona!” Jeno wails.
“Have they already recounted their first meeting?” Donghyuck says, plopping down beside Jaemin.
“It’s drama material for sure,” Renjun chimes in as he takes his seat next to Donghyuck, Dejun in tow.
“What is this drama material I hear?” Soojin ahjumma approaches, little Haneul following closely behind.
“But I told you the story already,” Jeno defends. “And Haneul’s here, so.”
Everyone in the table goes wide-eyed at that. Soojin ahjumma covers Haneul’s ears. “So something did happen?” she says.
Jeno groans. Scandalized looks are exchanged around the table. He sees his mom covering her mouth with the back of her hand, hiding a smile before speaking up, “Let’s not burden the birthday boy too much.”
“Well I can tell you my version of that night but—” Jaemin turns to Jeno, gaze confident but earnest. “Jeno here prefers it stays between us so.”
Everyone whines. Under the table, Jaemin’s hand reaches out to his, squeezing it. Jeno squeezes back, not letting it go.
“I’m still wondering who called who,” Dejun finally speaks up.
“We went over this, babe.” Renjun nudges his boyfriend gently. “Jaemin gave Jen his number but Super Jen here was too shy to call first.”
“Then Jaemin found the noodle shop again by chance and here we are,” Donghyuck finishes with a flourish.
“So if Jaemin here didn’t find his way back, he might not be here right now? Is that it?” Dejun asks, right arm lazily finding its way to Renjun’s shoulders.
“Basically, yes,” Donghyuck replies, before scooping in some gyeran nari into his mouth.
“You would never have called me on your own,” Jaemin pipes up, more of a realization than a question. He looks at Jeno from under his lashes, his hand still holding his. “Would you?”
Jaemin’s gaze is probing but his hand is warm, and Jeno doesn’t know why but he doesn’t have the urge to fight both. Doesn’t want to.
“You’re really no fun, little brother,” Sungkyung sighs, taking Jeno’s silence as answer.
“I’ll make up for it then. Work for it until Jeno here deems me worthy of his company,” Jaemin announces, lips smirking as if accepting a challenge. The promise in his eyes ring clear. “Like I said, Jeno is pretty special.”
There’s a beat of silence. One. Two. He sees his mom and Soojin ahjumma exchange glances, while little Haneul is attentively still. The rest of them are all sporting quiet, small smiles. Jeno’s neck turns warm, his heart thundering against his ribcage when Jaemin squeezes his hand again.
“But enough about me,” Jaemin says. He’s shining, far too bright for Jeno’s weak heart. “Tell me every little embarrassing detail from Jeno’s childhood.”
Jeno’s starting to feel flustered again from all the attention but the hand on his lap, fingers intertwined with his, keep him at ease for the rest of the night.
The party relocated to the living room at around half past ten. The small crowd broke into smaller groups.
Jeno’s sitting quietly with Haneul, who’s showing him her recent scores on We Go Up on Soojin ahjumma’s phone. Donghyuck is discussing something with Dejun, perhaps about the upcoming gigs of Odd Wavelengths. Sungkyung started playing The Contact, roping his mom and Soojin ahjumma to watch with her. Renjun and Jaemin, who were also initially watching in at the start of the film, soon found themselves at the balcony.
Jeno would intrude, but he trusts Renjun more than he trusts Donghyuck. However, he still is slightly worried, because out of all of them, Renjun has the best judgment of people, and it would be reassuring if the two got along well. Jeno wants to hear what Renjun has to say about Jaemin, a person who effortlessly knocked down Jeno’s walls in only a matter of weeks, waltzing into his life as if he’s meant to make a residence in Jeno’s world.
Renjun is talking animatedly to Jaemin, to which the actor responds with as much fervor, genuinely engaged. This all feels both so bizarre and surreal for Jeno. Jeno’s in awe of Jaemin who’s effortlessly able to pull out reactions from his best friend, who doesn’t warm up to people easily. Maybe it just means even Renjun is not immune to Na Jaemin’s charm. Jeno smiles to himself, feeling slightly triumphant that his best friend likes Jaemin, whose company Jeno genuinely likes.
So when Haneul, who is comfortably seated on his lap giddily asks him “Are you marrying Jaeminnie oppa?”, Jeno just laughs before whispering a “Do you want me to?” without much thinking, swimming in the feeling of being up in cloud nine.
Jeno finds Renjun by himself a little later, calmly refilling his plate in the dining table. Jeno sits himself on the chair beside Renjun’s, casually bumping his shoulder onto his best friend’s.
“You enjoying the kimbab that much, huh?”
“It’s so so good,” Renjun mumbles theatrically. “You’re not getting any younger, Jen. Better start learning how to cook now or at least make these so you can properly marry Jaemin and start a family.”
“Renjun!” He lightly punches his friend’s arm.
“What?” Renjun interjects.
Jeno laughs at Renjun’s done-with-you face, stoically chewing on his kimbab. Renjun laughs thereafter.
This is nice, Jeno thinks. Everything about tonight just feels nice to Jeno. His eyes scan the living room and he sees Jaemin exchanging jokes with Soojin ahjumma and Donghyuck. Little Haneul is even sitting on Jaemin’s lap and Jaemin is just there indulging her, letting the little girl cling onto his sweater, as if they weren’t just strangers to each other just a few hours ago.
“You might be worrying for nothing, you know,” Renjun whispers.
Jeno frowns and responds with a stilted nod. He continues to look at Jaemin.
“I don’t think he’s faking it, Jeno,” Renjun adds, picking another kimbab with his fork.
“You think so?” Jeno asks. He tries to mask the glee he’s feeling from his best friend giving his stamp of approval, even if he never really asked for it implicitly.
“Actually, I’m not sure about how much he likes you yet. Like if he’s capable of dying and killing for you—”
“Hey.” Jeno hits Renjun’s arm again.
“But.” Renjun pauses as he swallows. “I do think he loves being here, around us all, I mean.”
Jeno hums, eyes on Haneul giggling at Jaemin as if he said the funniest joke in the world.
“For some celebrity who you randomly bumped into and helped you,” Renjun says. “He looks like someone who’s been here all along.”
Jaemin was preparing to leave when he told Jeno, “Your family is really nice. You’re really lucky, Jeno.” He said in a whisper, all soft, like a secret.
Jaemin’s ride arrived a little around past eleven, but it’s parked on the far end of the street. Jaemin was swallowed hug after hug by Jeno’s friends and family. Haneul, especially, was extra clingy and almost at the verge of tears when she’s told to let go of her hold on Jaemin’s sweater. Jeno’s mom was the last one to hug him, murmuring something into Jaemin’s ear, which Jeno wasn’t able to hear.
He sees Renjun and Donghyuck wiggling their eyebrows in unison at him. Jeno makes a face at them, scratching his neck briefly before he feels a light tug at his sleeve.
Walk me to the car? Jaemin’s eyes seemed to tell him, before turning back one last time at everyone to smile and wave goodbye.
The streets are quiet as they walk outside.
“Ï would trade anything in the world for a nice bowl of seaweed soup on my birthday,” Jaemin admits wistfully once they were out of earshot.
“Does your mom not cook for you?” Jeno asks carefully, not wanting to cross any boundaries Jaemin doesn’t want him to cross.
“She used to,” Jaemin replies instantly. “Then she got too busy, with her and Dad flying in and out, volunteering in the farthest of places, far from my reach and just...” His eyes turn resigned. “Just asked the help to cook for me. But sometimes she forgets to remind the help too and—” He pauses, sighing defeatedly. “I don’t know. I just never insisted that she cook for me again.”
Jeno looks at Jaemin, who’s just looking far into the distance, a sad smile on his face. Now, Jeno feels bad for asking about it. Jeno’s always used to the usual bright and infectious aura Jaemin radiates that he’s a little at loss for what to do at the moment. Jaemin seems to notice him staring so he looks back at Jeno again, smiling brighter, but the sadness still lingers.
“Soon enough I just accepted that it’s just, you know, like any regular soup, that I can eat on any regular day, from the restaurant of my liking,” Jaemin explains, turning to look at Jeno as he speaks. “I can cook too, just so you know,” he adds, matter-of-fact, his lips pouting. “It’s just, well having it prepared for you is different.”
Jaemin then wraps his arms around himself. “Makes you feel...” He trails off, then ends with a sigh.
Wanted, Jeno continues in his head, his chest tightening in sympathy. Loved.
It makes him say, “Then come here again.”
Jaemin stops on his tracks, the hood of his white jacket falling down.
Jeno steps forward, in front of Jaemin, hands in his pockets, reining his nervousness around Jaemin in general.
“Come here again for your birthday. I think my mom likes you anyway so perhaps we can give you a discount?” Jeno jokes.
Jaemin looks at him like a dam broke inside of him, his eyes a little bit glassy.
Jeno instantly panics. “I’m kidding, oh my God, we won’t charge you anything,” he says, raising both of his hands, unsure of whether to reach out and soothe Jaemin’s shoulders. “The ingredients are pretty cheap and easily available anywhere, and it’s just one of those basic soup recipes. You know what? Forget what I said—”
Jaemin holds him by his wrists, suddenly too close, a couple of breaths away from Jeno’s face. Jeno feels his hands retreat to his sides in surrender, burned by Jaemin’s touch.
Jaemin doesn’t seem to mind his reaction and just laughs at him, giving him one of his brightest and most genuine smiles, his eyes still glassy. His entire face is glowing.
A little unsure, but glowing.
And maybe it’s the cold spring air making Jeno a little light-headed, or the lampposts illuminating Jaemin’s beautiful face, or the increasing gallop in his heartbeat, but Jeno feels a spark of courage igniting in his gut.
“Like my mom said earlier,” Jeno starts, feeling a little braver with every second. “You can always come again, Jaemin, even if there’s no occasion.
“Lee Noodle Shop will always be open for you,” Jeno finishes lamely, smiling at Jaemin, who’s just smiling back at him, perhaps even brighter than before.
Jaemin looks like he wants to say something, mouth open and eyes focused on Jeno. But instead he turns away, a little hint of pink in his cheeks.
“Thank you, Jeno,” Jaemin whispers softly, a change from how he usually speaks. It’s hard to catch; on a regular day, Jeno would surely miss it, but he’s too attuned to everything Jaemin says and does whenever they’re together.
As they part ways with Jaemin getting into the car, Jeno wonders what he’s willingly flung himself into. He’s not sure if he understands how things are and how they will go from here, but when he assured Jaemin that he could come to the noodle shop anytime, he truly meant it.