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Seonghwa can't help his face from frowning at the sign in front of his favorite chicken restaurant. It's insane how out of all the days he could've had a significant other to kiss in exchange for two buckets of original chicken for free, Eighties Chicken wasn't offering that kind of deal for Valentine's. It's as if the store was actually rubbing it in Seonghwa's face that he didn't have anyone to spend the special day with.
Beyond the infuriating promo that reads Valentine's Offer for Couples: A Kiss for Two Buckets, the place was brimming with people, from young couples to married ones.
With each kiss done in front of the staff, all couples have received not one, but two buckets of fried chicken - which just so happens to be Seonghwa's favorite, thus his frequent visits to the establishment. And as to how often he gets his chicken fill, he had already familiarized himself with the staff, too, despite them not being able to recognize him in the supermarket aisles (Seonghwa prefers to keep it that way, to be honest).
He sighs, feeling utterly defeated. It's not as if he'd have a boyfriend appearing out of thin air just to get free chicken for free. Seonghwa, despite his failed relationships and unfortunate blind dates in the past, knows love just doesn't waltz in like that.
Cash was no problem, Seonghwa has it. But getting it for free is kind of a big deal.
It would also be a pain to call his friends over to the other side of town to pretend to be his boyfriend when he couldn’t even get Yeosang out of his bed for his morning classes or Jongho to stop using up all the hot showers and keep his feet off the coffee table. It was hopeless at this point, or from the beginning, seeing as Seonghwa was supposed to binge-watch Disney movies on Valentine's while eating two said buckets of chicken alone.
Seonghwa readies himself to cross the street, figured he was standing there for too long. He accepted the fact that he would just have to get chicken through paying like the single person he was.
Still bitter, he builds up the confidence to walk to where a long line was forming outside when the spotlight turned green, despite his lack of accompaniment. Seonghwa is going to get his chicken, free or not.
"Oh, it's you." Hwanwoong, a staff he'd seen plenty of times in the restaurant, comments when Seonghwa arrives at the desk positioned just outside the doors of Eighties. And as if Hwanwoong felt like rubbing more salt to the wound, he adds, "I've always thought you had a boyfriend, even though you always eat here alone."
Seonghwa doesn't note how the other kept on darting his eyes behind as if waiting for a significant other to pop out.
"Seonghwa-ssi, right? Are you here with someone? I've always seen you alone here, though. But we have a Valentine's offer for couples today," he gestures at the sign before rummaging underneath the table for the sign-up forms. "Ah, but he needs to be here for it to count. Where is he?"
Hwanwoong, unaware of Seonghwa's inner turmoil, grins in triumph as he pulls out the form he was looking for. He hands Seonghwa the pen, not even giving the other time to speak up.
Seonghwa tries, though. "Uh," ever so eloquent. He can feel his confident resolve crumbling. "You might be mistaken, Hwanwoong."
Seonghwa was about to give the staff the special form back when someone snatches it out of his hands. He barely registers what happened when someone speaks up.
"Sorry I'm late, babe," he feels a hand slide over his waist, pulling him closer to a familiar, nice-smelling stranger who just looked like he punched his way through the crowd of couples as if his life depended on it. "I had trouble parking the car. Did you wait long?"
He stills for a bit, not knowing how to react. Confused at the sudden intrusion, Hwanwoong's quirks his brow up, to the stranger and then back at Seonghwa, as if waiting for an explanation. A few seconds have passed and neither of them are speaking up.
Just like his entrance, the man all of a sudden coughs, breaking both of them from their reverie. Seonghwa turns to look at the stranger, tilting his head when he knows he saw the bluish-green hair somewhere and tries to keep himself together when he gets to the tall man's face. The latter scrambles to scribble his name with his free hand on the form on the table.
Seongwha would've stared a little bit longer if it wasn't for the fact that the stranger's hand is still on his waist and he still has no clue on who the other was.
Seonghwa gets a hold of his bearings and squints at the name on the form despite the scrawny handwriting: Jeong Yunho. "No. You weren't that long," he lies through his gritted teeth, internally panicking at the situation he just put himself into. Well, forced into. Although he wouldn't admit that his closeness with the man comforts him just a little bit more than being alone.
"Just in time to sign up the forms," he adds. Yunho smiles at him in relief.
It clicks to Seonghwa all of a sudden, Jeong Yunho was one of his classmates he's had the pleasure of partnering up for a few projects. He'd recognize the smile anywhere, and Seonghwa might or might not have developed a small crush over him in the span of one semester. Hwanwoong coughs, fishing Seonghwa out of his thoughts.
"And you are?" Hwanwoong inquires, and Seonghwa felt a chill run down his spine when the staff doesn't look like he's close to believing their small act.
"His boyfriend," the man says confidently, offering his free hand to Hwanwoong, who, albeit reluctant, shakes it in return.
Seonghwa releases a breath of relief he didn't know he was holding. "I’m Jeong Yunho," Seonghwa flushes as Yunho tightens the hold on his waist, flashing his smile both at him and the staff. It seemed to ease Hwanwoong's reluctance a little bit.
Hwanwoong nods at Yunho and offers the pen to Seonghwa, gesturing at the form. "Name, please."
Yunho tilts his head to him and Seonghwa almost drops to his knees. He briefly remembers how often he had seen Yunho do the gesture in class when he couldn't understand the lectures being thought to them or when he can't keep up with how fast Seonghwa was explaining a topic.
Seonghwa averts his gaze and finishes writing his name with a smile. He's one step closer to getting two buckets of chicken for free. "I’m Park Seonghwa," he said, more to Yunho than Hwanwoong.
"I know, babe," Yunho says, easily. But Seonghwa doesn't miss the way Yunho mutters the string of letters under his breath, and Seonghwa immediately likes how his complete name sounds from Yunho's deep voice.
"Hello," he breathes out, looking at Yunho with a small smile.
"Hi," Yunho, as if in a trance, answers back.
"Now," Hwanwoong interrupts the moment, tapping his pen on the table, unperturbed at the blatant flirting happening in front of him. It must've been because he’d been manning the table since this morning and was witness to hundreds of kisses at the start of Valentine's. Seonghwa feels a bit better about his situation, given that Yunho's hand is back on his waist, his thumb circling at the fabric of Seonghwa's striped-shirt. "Kiss."
Something around them snaps, and Seonghwa feels like he's back at square one. They both still, eyes darting anywhere but in each other. If Seonghwa had looked deeper enough, he can almost see the uncertainty and longingness swimming inside Yunho's eyes. "Uh," Yunho jumps back as if electrified, and resorted to scratching the back of his neck, looking at Seonghwa through his peripheral vision, Seonghwa does the same.
"Well?" Hwanwoong asks again, raising a brow at the two. "We don't have all afternoon."
Seonghwa looks back at the line and wonders how long they were taking. It's a miracle that someone hasn't complained about the time, but he figures that the couples must've been as blinded as he is for the free chicken, or distracted at each other, he's not sure. He figures that he can't take long.
"Uh, you know what, babe?" Seonghwa blurts out, all of a sudden, turning to Yunho. "I don't want the chicken anymore."
Hwanwoong looks taken aback. Yunho, too. "What?"
"Yeah, what?" Yunho asks, not knowing what direction Seonghwa is going. "You said you wanted chicken."
"I do, but I'm not feeling it now. What do you want, Yunho?"
Yunho looks at him in concern. "I want what you want, though."
Hwanwoong coughs again, catching both their attention. He is squinting at both Yunho and Seonghwa, trying to figure out what exactly going on. It's not like Seonghwa could blame him, though. They've caused quite a scene and took up everyone's time with their situation, as to how the couples behind them aren't complaining at how slow they were was beyond Seonghwa.
Under the staff's scrutinizing gaze, Seonghwa feels himself scoot closer to Yunho, with Yunho planting his hand back on Seonghwa's waist.
"Alright," Hwanwoong says after a while, failing miserably to hide his glee. Seonghwa didn't know what had dawned upon the staff to get his emotions to shift in 0.2 seconds. "Tell you what, I'll let you guys avail the promo without the kiss. It's on me. No need to worry about it. Just don't go around saying I give free coupons or else I'll hunt you both down and steal your kneecaps," he added.
Seonghwa feels the wind knock out his lungs. "What?"
"Just," Hwanwoong drops his gaze on the hand holding Seonghwa's waist. "Sort it out."
"I don't know what you're talking about," Yunho says, Seonghwa can feel him get restless by the minute.
Hwanwoong winks at Seonghwa. "Sure you don't. Now move along. Show Keonhee the slip by the entrance. Have a good day."
-
"He's weird," Yunho says after the waiter, Keonhee, leads them to their table.
"I don't think you're in any position to say that, Yunho." Seonghwa taps his fingers on the table, his excitement going up because of the free chicken he's about to eat in less than a few minutes.
He had somehow forgotten that they literally don't know anything about each other but just Yunho's inabilities to solve advanced math and Seonghwa's habit of drowning in coffee when he's stressed from their late-night, study and project sessions. Beyond that, they aren't even friends at all. Seonghwa can't remember how many times he has talked Yunho during classes, besides asking and answering math-related questions. "Why did you help me?"
"I saw you," Yunho starts, looking at anywhere but Seonghwa. "Standing across the street. I was at the flower shop next to Eighties. I have been watching you for quite a while - not in a creepy way, of course - so I thought I should step in when you were clearly having trouble with the staff," he toys with a few tissues he's pulled out while he's talking. Seonghwa finds the gesture cute, just like everything else with Yunho since he stumbled along the line.
"That's embarrassing, please don't do that ever."
"If it's you, then I guess I would do it over again."
Seonghwa didn't know how to respond, mouth hanging open at Yunho's statement. But before he could say anything else, much less mask his shock at the moment - Keonhee waltzes in with their chicken. Seonghwa guesses he'd have to ask Yunho what he meant after eating - he feels like they'd have all the time in the world. Seonghwa finally gets what Hwanwoong must've seen, he rolls his eyes at how clueless he must've looked like.
If Seongwa thinks they're going to where he thinks they're going, at least he might have someone to kiss next Valentine's.