Chapter Text
Bin had a bad feeling the moment his coworker grabbed his sleeve before he left the faculty room; he knew what was going to happen next, and he honestly didn't have any energy left to deal with it.
"Moon Bin, do you have a minute?" Hwayoung asked. She was the English kindergarten teacher who became Bin's first friend when he started teaching Physical Education last year. Bin liked her, she was a good person and a fun company, but he knew that she liked him a little bit more.
"I'm sorry, I need to get home soon."
Hwayoung tugged at his sleeve again, unfazed by his initial refusal. "Do you really need to? We can go grab dinner and drinks. It's on me."
"I really do need to get home, Hwayoung. My boyfriend's waiting for me," Bin said. Deciding to hammer the last nail in the coffin, he added, "Remember Minhyuk? You've met when he picked me up from work last time. It's our anniversary today and he's baking a cake."
He felt a little guilty when Hwayoung's eyes widened and her mouth gaped open. It took her a few seconds to process the information, obviously waiting for Bin to take back what he said and tell her it was a joke. Bin only smiled sweetly. He really wanted to get home.
"Oh, wow. Congratulations, Moon Bin."
He nodded and made his escape.
The lights were on in the apartment—an unusual sight for Bin to come home to. He typically arrived home earlier than Minhyuk since his workplace was only a station away from their apartment. But coming home to a house that was already alive gave comfort to Bin after a particularly exhausting day teaching rowdy children dodgeball and rejecting his coworker's advances. The thought of Minhyuk’s warm presence, their leftover (but still delicious) beef stew in the refrigerator, and the promise of a hot bath put a smile on his face.
“Minhyuk! Have you eaten dinner?” Bin called out, his head bowed down as he removed his shoes and put on his slippers. He looked up to see Minhyuk slumped on the floor of their living room and glaring at a piece of paper.
“What’s that and why do you look so upset?”
Minhyuk didn’t reply. Bin raised an eyebrow at that but nevertheless teased, “Oh man, is that our electricity bill? I guess we’ve been watching TV too much these days. It’s that drama’s fault, it’s way too addicting. We still have to know who killed the CEO!”
Bin sat cross-legged in front of their ratty couch, grabbing the paper from an unresponsive Minhyuk. Bin’s eyes instantly focused on the name he had tried to forget for the past three years.
Kim Myungjun
The header then caught his attention.
We got married!
With a gulp, a blink, and a clench of his fist, Bin read the rest of the text.
Bin felt something crawl up his throat and attempt to escape his mouth. The name beside Myungjun’s in the card wasn’t unfamiliar at all. Written in a shiny cursive font, perfectly designed to mock Bin and Minhyuk, was Lee Dongmin . The same Lee Dongmin who used to live next door—who used to live next door with Myungjun.
Bin let the card drop to their carpet, instead of crumpling it in his hands like he wanted to.
“They weren’t… they were never that close before. How did this happen?” Minhyuk spoke, always the mirror to Bin’s own thoughts.
Bin could tell from Minhyuk’s unfocused gaze that his mind was reeling, trying to find memories that could have foreshadowed this turnout. Bin could tell, because he was doing the same; but no matter how much he tried to recall, he could only remember Lee Dongmin as just Myungjun’s popular but elusive roommate who was always too busy to hang out with him. Myungjun rarely brought him up, only sometimes talking about what his rookie actor roommate was currently filming. Dongmin was somewhat like a ghost in Bin and Minhyuk’s lives because they only saw him when they ran into him in the hallway, exchanging courteous but awkward greetings. The thought of Dongmin dating Myungjun, or them even getting married, never seemed like a possibility to Bin and Minhyuk.
Then again, they didn’t know exactly what was going on behind their apartment door and beyond the walls they share. It could be that Myungjun's indifference about Dongmin wasn't out of disinterest at all. The thought terrified Bin.
“They got married in America last week. They’re celebrating here with their friends and family as part of their honeymoon,” Minhyuk said. Bin wasn’t sure if he was explaining or trying to make himself believe reality by saying facts out loud.
Bin laughed—a sound too bitter for his own liking. “Friends? We fall under that category?”
Minhyuk didn’t respond. His fingers traced over Myungjun’s embossed name in the invitation; the action reminded Bin of how Minhyuk used to let his hands roam all over Myungjun’s body, and how Myungjun would giggle and snort and scream at the sensation. Those were times gone by, yet the memories were engraved in Bin’s mind, constantly reminding him of what he has lost.
“It's been three years, but we’re still stuck like this,” Bin said. “He’s happy, but we’re not.”
“Can you really blame him? He ended things. He moved on. We didn’t.” Bin sighed. Minhyuk was always the first to jump to Myungjun’s defense, even after everything that had happened. In Minhyuk’s eyes, Myungjun was still the exact same person they fell in love with, and he could do no wrong.
“Speak for yourself. I sure as hell tried.”
“If a dozen meaningless one night stands count as moving on, then I pity you. Don’t think I didn’t hear you scream Myungjun’s name when you were with that underclassman from the Marketing department,” Minhyuk said, drawing his face nearer to Bin’s to be able to stare him down. “The walls are thin, Bin.”
Bin let out a scoff.
“You pity me? It should be the other way around, buddy. Don’t think I didn’t see you secretly wiping tears away when you watch Myungjun’s stories on Instagram. And that’s not even the worst you’ve done. I heard what you did in the bathroom when you thought I wasn’t home yet, and I happened to also hear your phone playing an audio of Myungjun singing.” Bin smirked. “The walls are thin, Minhyuk.”
“Y-you heard that? Were you listening the entire time? Creep.” Blush filled Minhyuk’s cheeks and he drew back from Bin's personal bubble. It was a beautiful and triumphant sight for Bin. He won this round.
The roommates huffed and narrowed their eyes at each other for a few seconds, before laughing and lying down on their carpet with a thud. Minhyuk sighed out, “Let’s just say we’re both pitiful dumpees who can't move on from their ex-boyfriend.”
"Minhyuk," Bin called after a beat of silence, as his roommate responded with a hum. "You look at Myungjun's social media pretty much everyday… but you didn't see this coming?"
His best friend turned his head to look at him. "No. Myungjun never posted anything with Dongmin. He just posts selfies, pictures of his illustrations, and videos of his cat. I checked Dongmin's social media too, and there's no sign of Myungjun anywhere."
"Isn't Dongmin a bigshot celebrity now?" Bin remembered seeing advertisements with his face pop up as he scrolled through apps. He just never cared until now that Myungjun was involved with Dongmin.
"Yeah. Maybe that's why they don't make it public through their social media. Myungjun would suffer at the hands of Dongmin's fans." Bin almost wanted to roll his eyes at Minhyuk's eternal concern about Myungjun, but he was thinking of the same thing. Myungjun was already rising talent in the illustration field and he couldn’t afford to get into scandals. Sometimes, he thinks about whether Myungjun’s past with Bin and Minhyuk could become a weapon to use against him and hinder his growing success; their relationship wasn’t exactly conventional, which is why they tried to keep it a secret between themselves and their closest friends.
A growl was heard in the living room. Bin grinned at Minhyuk.
“I’m hungry.”
Minhyuk stood up and walked towards their kitchen. “I figured.”
"I haven't told you, but today I told my coworker I was dating you."
Minhyuk's chopsticks went still. "What?"
"I really wanted to get home already, and it wasn't the first time she tried so hard to have drinks with me."
"So you lied to her?" Minhyuk's tone caused Bin to wince.
"I feel guilty too, okay? I promise I'll tell her the truth someday."
"Tell her next week. Reject her properly, Bin."
He nodded, feeling like a 7 year old being scolded by his parent. If it was anyone else that spoke to him like Minhyuk does, he would be annoyed, but Minhyuk has been his friend since he was in grade school and his lectures have prevented Bin from making some dumb decisions in his life. But that doesn’t mean he enjoyed being scolded by his best friend; he decided to change the topic before Minhyuk could lecture him further.
“There’s still something we haven’t discussed, though,” Bin started.
“What's that?”
“Are you going to his wedding?”
“His wedding celebration, you mean.”
“Yeah. Whatever. That.” Bin watched as Minhyuk moved the food in his plate around. He could hear him tapping the heel of his foot on the chair’s leg. He could already predict what Minhyuk was going to answer, but he nevertheless asked, “Do you want to go?”
Minhyuk sighed, avoiding Bin's gaze. “I do, actually. Do you?”
Seeing the invitation at first caused Bin's remaining bitterness and anger to resurface; he was sure that he was never going to attend that wedding celebration. He didn't even understand why they were invited; was it out of courtesy and old friendship, or did Myungjun want them to see how he's getting by better without them? Either way, Bin didn't want to go. He didn't want to see Myungjun and be reminded of what he lost and could never get back. Myungjun was happy and married and completely unavailable. Minhyuk might be too weak for Myungjun to put his own negative feelings first, but Bin had decided three years ago that that was the last time Myungjun would ever hurt him.
But he would be lying if he didn't miss his ex-boyfriend. His traitorous chest fluttered at the thought of Myungjun wearing a white suit, with his hair long and brushed back. He thought of Myungjun laughing as he danced with his husband and being spun around as he shrieked. Curiosities invaded his mind one by one.
What is he going to wear? What is he going to say in his vows? How does he look at Dongmin? How is he going to react when he sees me?
Is he happy?
He couldn't deny it further. He wanted to see Myungjun. He wanted to see happiness on Myungjun—a look that suited him the best, even though he wasn't the cause of it.
Besides, if Minhyuk was going, he should go as support, too.
“I might regret this but… yeah. I'm going with you.”
Bin sprawled on top of his bed, staring at the paint chipping off the ceiling. His brain continued to process what he had learned for the past 2 hours. He discovered that Myungjun got married to his former roommate—to someone who had barely any presence in their lives years ago. He realized that he still missed Myungjun and that he wanted to see him happy, no matter how much Bin insisted that he regretted being with him and that all feelings had been cut off from the roots. He mistakenly thought that only bitterness and anger was left in him, but underneath all those were the same things he had felt for Myungjun ever since he helped him move in next door.
He gave Minhyuk shit for not moving on and still pining for Myungjun, but he knew he was just as pitiful. He never stopped missing his ex-boyfriend. But he had his pride to uphold. He didn't want to appear that way to Myungjun.
He needed to let Myungjun know he's not the only one who has moved on.
It wasn't exactly revenge, because he knew he wouldn't cause Myungjun pain; he was the one that broke up with them after all. What was it to him if his exes had moved on? Myungjun has a husband now, and Bin knew he wasn't someone that would marry just for the sake of it. Myungjun most probably loved Dongmin; Bin couldn't help but wonder if it started even before he dated Myungjun.
Moving on was, instead, a way to get even. Even if he was just to pretend that he was in a loving, committed relationship, it would be enough to send Myungjun a message. You can’t hurt me anymore.
He needed to show Myungjun he's happy with someone else.
And who better to do it with than the only other passenger in this sinking ship?
Bin found himself knocking on Minhyuk’s door at 2am, grinning from ear to ear and bouncing on the balls of his feet. A minute passed before Minhyuk opened the door with his eyes still half-closed. Bin grabbed his shoulders, shaking the sleepiness out of his best friend.
“I have an amazing idea.”
Minhyuk groaned.