Work Text:
"Haha, I didn't do it just to work here or just to match with the logo" The man put the customer's food in a bag with a smile on his face.
"Sorry," Soonyoung replied softly. He didn't ask any question but supposed that his staring probably got out of its way "didn't mean to be rude. It's just.. because it's cool, really"
"No worries. Everyone's asking" He said, careful to drop just enough amount of sincereness in his voice while turning half around to grab some more sauces. The color of his hair was visible despite it being neatly tied up and hid in a black cap. Especially remarkable was a little ponytail, red as fire but look soft like rain.
It's his face though, that soonyoung had been observing.
"Here you go, thank you" more smile from the counter side. Excellent service for a fast-food chain.
"Thanks"
Soonyoung walked out awkwardly. He couldn't help thinking of the man again when looking at the logo on the bag. A long brutal mentally fight took place in his brain not to name the fast-food employee ' The Wendy Man '
He was defeated.
This place was within walking distance from his room yet it's been ages since he set foot on it. Soonyoung had never been a big fan of fast food. It was only on this vacation without the university's canteen that he was left with no choices. He decided to push the red restaurant door.
Then he was greeted with a bright smile. It’ s a small store, with just a couple of employees. There supposed to be two people but today there's only one man in the counter, waiting to take his order. And the second year's man couldn't help but thought when did this town has a man like this, ever.
Incredible eyebrow shapes, eyes round, so ideally black it reminded him of a 100% dark chocolate, rich of cacao, no sugar added. No sooner than a second later that the customer found out the sweetness he lacked in the eyes, the smile made up.
His hair, red in the same tone as Wendy's and was put in a ponytail. Right, it was that long, long enough to be tied up and put in a ponytail.
Long hair was more than fine, Soonyoung had nothing against length.
***
"Wendy's? " Soonyoung spoke as soon as he closed the door
"Yeah just keep me your leftover" Jihoon shouted back from the living room. It looked like he came out to grab some snacks.
His roommate had been busy on his new Soundcloud project, he's the type to emerge in one activity and forget the time
Before the small guy returned to his talent grooming habitat he asked
"Wendy around the corner?"
"The one and only. Why?"
"nothin, one of my friends works part-time there."
"Oh really?" he resisted the urge to ask who was the friend. Because, you know, in every k-drama Jihoon supposed to say the one with red long hair
"Does your friend have long hair?"
"No," The smaller guy answered casually "Why?"
"Nothing"
So life wasn't a drama. Stick to reality.
***
Life was a sequence of strange events.
"He's not a friend, he's a senior" Jihoon explained to Soonyoung an unexpected appearance of 'the wendy man' on their reserved table at the Chinese restaurant downtown. It's an easy destination they came to hang out whenever they received the evaluation of each semester which, to everyone's irritation, often came on vacation.
Whoever was still around the campus gather to eat the GPA away.
Soonyoung called Seungkwan, Seungkwan dragged Seokmin with him.
Chan tagged along Jihoon and Jihoon's boyfriend aka Seungcheol, guess it, was a friend of the Wendy's man who also was a good 'bro' to both Chan and Seokmin.
In short, reality sucked. Seungcheol and Chan brought the guy and he sat there with Seungcheol. They were laughing about something both Jihoon and Soonyoung had no idea because they were at the entrance for the past five minutes, discussing. Well, not totally, the discussion itself consisted of Jihoon nagging Soonyoung to go in the restaurant already and Soonyoung kept saying I wear the ugliest t-shirt ever , followed by Jihoon assuring him no one cares about his harmless Nickelodeon tee.
And to defend his statement the other day: "I didn't say I don't know him. You asked me if my friend that worked there had long hair, not if I know the long hair working there. Do you see the difference?"
(Soonyoung did not see the difference)
Speaking of, his long hair was no longer hidden, his lips pretty rosy and his smile mischievously sweet.
The guy ran his hand through that hot red hair and you could tell he proud of it.
Soonyoung finally agreed but not because he let the shirt debate go, because he's starving.
When they went in, Seungkwan started guessing what took Soonyoung so long. It's all wrong.
"By the way, this is Jeonghan, he's a friend."
Five minutes into a chaotic conversation of agonized collegers, Seungcheol realized two individuals had been stealing a look at each other because they had no idea who's they looking at.
"And Jeonghan, this is Soonyong, he's my boyfriend's roommate."
He introduced Jeonghan to Soonyoung and Soonyoung to Jeonghan.
Surprisingly to Soonyoug, he's the only one in the circle of that table who never knew Jeonghan existed.
The guy looked up to meet Soonyoung eyes, for real this time, tilted his head as if he remembered they had met before.
A few seconds later let out the cheerful 'oh'
"Have we met before?"
"I think you sell me a nugget the other day."
Jeonghan grinned
Seokmin added a comment " I think you sell me a nugget, Sound like you swap drugs man"
Seungkwan continued the interrogation, "He sold you a nugget where"
"Wendy's" Jeonghan replied
"I thought you're going to Starbucks"
"I tried. They said they don't hire any more. Enough staffs"
"Too bad"
"Right I make a better barista than a chef"
"Chef. Jeonghan you can't cook"
"I worked in a restaurant" he protested
"You put frozen bread in the oven and wait for a ding"
"Alright," The man dropped an argument at ding, went back to his plate, but he met Soonyoung eyes before he got a chance with his noodles "I made ok coffee."
He said it like it was a random fact Soonyoung might wanna jot down in his journal.
***
"Cool earrings" Whenever Soonyoung heard Jeonghan's voice he made assumptions. Was he flirting? He made a compliment so naturally that it's hard to tell "Cool shirt, too"
And he doubled it. Jeonghan sounds like he was saying the weather broadcast The weather's nice It's sunny today
"Thanks?"
"Got a date?"
the weather's nice I heard it's sunny today. got a date? see that did not sound flirty
"Not trying to lurk it's just that I can draw you a heart on the french fries bag like in Starbuck, to jump start your date."
"Not a date," Soonyoung said, scratching his neck, even though it's not itchy "I'm pretty single actually."
"Pretty single as in 'very single' or 'pretty and single' "
Soonyoung scolded himself for blushing. A friendly joke, body please don't react.
"I don't know "
"I think it's the latter"
Fuck he's so slow compared to Jeonghan, no wonder the guy worked at a fast-food store
"Oh ok. If you say so"
***
"Jihoonie do you want Wendy's? " Soonyoung asked his roommate before noticing that Vernon, one of the rappers in their college brand, also sat there "Hi Vernon, do you also want Wendy's? "
"Dude I am sick of fried chicken"Jihoon replied
"well, they also have fries, hamburgers, Frosties, and sandwich etcetera etcetera"
Jihoon narrowed his eyes. He knew exactly what was happening.
"Be brave. If you want a date, ask for a date, not a breakfast burger set"
"What? am I not allowed to be hungry?"
"Soonyoung, you hate fast food. You rather eat cereal with water"
"shit" Soonyoung sort of gave up and admitted
"Seriously, we can bet right now if you ask Jeonghan that he will say yes"
Vernon nodded his head along with the conversation. He's familiar with the name and the face. Firstly, he'd been to Wendy's a lot. Secondly, he's fast at picking up teas.
"I never say it's about Jeonghan"
"Is it about Jeonghan?" Vernon inserted out of pure curiosity
"..."
"Yes"
***
"You have to do it the other way around, here, let me--" Jeonghan took a piece of weird-looking wood that should have become a desk an hour ago from Soonyoung hand. Yes, their fingers slightly brushed. Yes, nothing happened.
This whole furniture thing should stop calling itself D.I.Y
Do it yourself? more like I call my friend by myself and they do it for me.
Actually, Soonyoung told Jihoon to call Seungcheol. "your boyfriend build that body he can build anything"
Thirty minutes later he opened a door to zero Seungcheol and one Jeonghan.
Jihoon said Seungcheol's busy, here is Jeonghan because Jeonghan's not busy.
"Doesn't he have to sell the burgers?"
"He's a part-timer. Also think of your co-worker man, hour distribution"
Whatever. Jeonghan's here.
He did the desk.
This was the second time he saw Jeognhan in his casual outfit, the first was at the Chinese restaurant. He looked great in jeans.
"Thank you"
"very welcome"
"um--do you want soft drinks? I'll get you a cola we have cola in the fridge"
"That'd be great. thanks"
In addition to a bottle of Coca-Cola, Jihoon who was standing in front of the refrigerator followed Soonyoung back to the living room.
"Hyung It's 5 pm do you want to stay for dinner?"
"Should I?"
"yeah join us"
"I think we'll just order something if you don't mind" Jihoon said "I want to go outside but picking a restaurant can result in hospital"
"I can pick" Jeonghan offered "If you guys don't mind. I know a place with grilled pork belly"
"Great. Soonyoung loves non-frozen, fresh, especially homemade meal"
"Really? You'll be thrilled"
Soonyoung's already thrilled.
***
"How about if you lose this round you ask Jeonghan out"
"I"ll never do that"
"I'll buy you that sneakers" he referred to the shoes Soonyoung always spent five minutes grieving over whenever he walked past the store.
There was no actual sense of drawing the competitiveness into a game they played. They supposed to have chill time on weekends. Soonyoung has been losing forever because he didn't put enough ambition in the game.
"It's just Mario Kart why are you torturing me"
"It's Mario Kart 8 deluxe"
"You bet your money in exchange for a brief entertainment retrieved from watching my disastrous love life?"
"Yes," Jihoon answered as if it's the most obvious thing ever "Why not?"
***
He's brave. He's strong. He's attractive. He kissed this really pretty boy at the party once during the dumb bottle game and the guy said he wanted to kiss him again.
He got this.
Soonyoung wanted so much to put 'Jihoon forced me I lose the bet' label on his forehead, walked straight (walked) into the restaurant.
It's okay Soonyoung it's okay
"Can I get an order of a nice and breezy date?"
"Sorry?"
Looking up he met an unreadable gaze. For all this time, why was this the day Jeonghan put on a poker face? He never pokerfaced him before.
It was less okay.
"I mean I mean I think I .. do you want to go on a date or something? Like, you know it's weird and all and I think you're cool and.. and Jihoon said you told Seungcheol you think I'm cool, too"
"I think you're really cool"
"Yeah thanks, so is that a yes?--Draw a smiley face on a bag if it's a yes"
"Sir," Grinning at last, the man on the other side of the counter slowly replied "this is Wendy's"
"I know, ah sorry I shouldn't have -"
"But I get off work at 8 today" said the man behind the counter, and top it with a wink.
Soonyoung just reversed the quote Even when you win you lose.