Work Text:
Jihoon was baffled. Everything had seemed like a bolt from the blue, and he doesn’t like it.
He didn’t understand why Soonyoung was suddenly making him do all these weird errands when he specifically planned to lay down on his soft bed, not letting a single ray of sunlight touch his skin for the rest of the day. It was the weekend, for Pete’s sake! After that heavy load from work the whole week, he knew full well that he deserves this rest. Soonyoung should have known better.
And if there’s one thing he has to worry about, it’s his hangover.
Soonyoung: Jihoonie~ please? :<
Soonyoung: It’s just a little treasure hunt! Plus, I know you love those things! You told me you were gonna do it last night~ I had your words recorded. I have proof!! >:(
Jihoon: Soonyoung, did you take me all the way out for a drink last night just to make me agree to that?
Soonyoung: …
Jihoon: I’m going to sleep. Bye.
Frustrating made him throw his phone mindlessly, hoping it didn’t bounce off the bed. He couldn’t help it, to think that Soonyoung had all this planned out—making him drunk last night just to accept this treasure hunt activity the Kwon family was having for their family reunion. Jihoon remembered him saying that the prize was a massive amount of money or something. He, in that hammered state, ended up agreeing to the male’s persuasion.
But now that he’s sober? Hell no.
Well, why would he, even? He was not part of the family in the first place. It doesn’t make sense. Soonyoung has many friends to call over; why would he ask lazy boy Lee Jihoon for the job? Wonwoo’s a better pick since he’s a little smarter among the rest of the group, as far as he knows.
Jihoon, with all his might, was trying to wave all these thoughts away when his phone started vibrating. He watched his phone shudder for a few moments before his curiosity taking in—but no, he stopped his hand from taking the phone. Who cares, anyway? It’s just Soonyoung. Sure, the male’s probably going to sulk about it for a few days, and Jihoon just has to act like his pouty lips and dejected eyes won’t affect him.
“Damn it,” he grabbed his phone. Soonyoung, as expected. A sigh escaped from his lips upon realizing to himself that he has never, ever, said no to this man before.
He’s not sure if that was a good thing or not. Probably the latter… Probably.
Soonyoung: JIHOOOOOOONIEEEEE T___T
Soonyoung: if ever you change your mind, i placed the map in your drawer :(
Soonyoung: sent a photo.
The picture was Soonyoung giving out a pleading face. It seemed like he took it right off the bat seeing how barefaced he was in the selfie. It was just a normal photo, yet Jihoon seemed to have almost lost his sanity the moment he saw it. Soonyoung was just too fucking adorable.
He cleared his throat upon noticing how much he was staring. Swiping back to the conversation, he typed a reply.
Jihoon: this will be the very last time, kwon soonyoung.
Tapping that send button, he turned his phone off right away and mustered up the strength to get out of bed. The soft mattress wasn’t being a good help as it felt like he was being pulled down, tempting him not to go. If this wasn’t for Soonyoung, maybe he would have let himself fall into temptation—but this was Soonyoung.
This is not him. This is so not him. This is not Lee Jihoon on weekends, not at all.
Lee Jihoon on weekends is re-watching the Avengers for the hundredth time with an order of takeout food served for five people. Let’s not forget about three liters of cola, too. Taking a bath in the morning, the idea of going outside—god, his vocabulary does not even equal the word ‘outside’ to ‘relaxation’. That’s an abomination! He must be out of his mind to have agreed to this.
But at least, he gets to see Soonyoung later.
-
“What do you mean I’m doing this alone?!”
Bewildered Jihoon yells on his phone upon discovering Soonyoung wasn’t going to make it. “Then why the hell did you sign me up for this in the first place?!”
He gripped the steering wheel tightly as he held the phone with his other hand against his ear. He called just to ask where Soonyoung was so he could fetch him, but things didn’t go the way he imagined it to be.
“I texted you saying I had other plans for today,” Soonyoung sounded so guilty on the other line. “I really just wanted you to solve the treasure hunt in my place since I was going out.”
Jihoon quickly swiped his phone to the conversation in their inbox, and the male was right, he did mention it. He cursed under his breath for not opening his messages.
Jihoon does have a love for solving codes and ciphers, but he expected to spend it with Soonyoung. Going to different locations, using up all of his brain power to figure out where this treasure could be will never sound fun if there wasn’t anyone annoying him with questions and side comments about why this is this or that is that. Soonyoung was a pain in the ass to be a partner during treasure hunts, but he was the only person Jihoon would want to spend it with.
He sighs, what a waste of gas.
“Jihoonie, I’m sorry~ I have to ask someone out today.”
Ask someone… Out?
Jihoon blinked for a few seconds, those words ringing in his mind. He froze there in place, his mouth open in shock. He wanted to ask Soonyoung to say it again, just to make it clear for him in case he was just hearing things, but he knew he wasn’t so he stopped himself from doing so. There was four bars in his signal, his volume was maxed, Soonyoung said those words loud and clear. He didn’t hear things.
It felt like a huge bucket of iced water was splashed all over him, and he was brought back to the reality that they were just friends. Nothing more than just that.
“Jihoonie? Are you still there?”
Jihoon shook his head to get his shit back together, “Y-yes,” okay, maybe not. He tried to answer nonchalantly, but his voice couldn’t help but quiver a bit. He just hoped Soonyoung didn’t notice.
“Good, I really have to go now. Hit me up if you need some help, okay? Bye~!”
“W-wait, Soonyoung, I ha—”
The call ended immediately. He tried calling him again but Soonyoung wouldn’t answer. He shut his eyes tightly, rubbing circles on his temples and trying to process what just happened.
So he has to do this stupid treasure hunt alone. Fuck. After all that contemplation of what to wear, what cologne to put one, he just wanted to punch on the fact that he was going on this stupid family reunion activity that wasn’t even prepared by his own family. Fuck’s sake, he even gargled using his favorite mouth wash thinking he might sound like spoiled spit in front of Soonyoung if he didn’t. He really felt stood up, even if that wasn’t it.
What’s even worse is knowing that he was going to meet someone else.
He shook his head again to wave away all unwanted thoughts before it could consume him. The last thing he wanted to do was to disappoint Soonyoung, he wouldn’t dare do that.
His field of vision caught the treasure map lying on the passenger seat. He looked at it, sighing as he reaches it. The paper looked old like one of those antique maps one sees in movies. Rolling it open, it showed three points referring to vague locations he should probably stop over, and of course, the last destination which is where the treasure might be hidden. He analyzed the map a bit longer and wondered where he would start. When he flipped the map, he saw phrases printed at the back.
The first location,
Is a battle dimension.
Jihoon stares at it for minutes and revved the car after. There’s only one answer that he could think of and that is the arcade nearby. To think that it has a lot of role-playing games and is usually one versus one player actually makes sense with the riddle. So, without wasting time, he went directly to the location.
He pulled up his car to a near parking lot and walked his way to the arcade. The cold breeze air touched the warmth of his cheeks. It felt nice, he thought. After a week of trying to meet the deadlines of his work presentations and breathing in nothing but the air condition, this walk actually eased him up.
There’s not a lot of teenagers inside the arcade when he went in. It’s not like the usual setting too, but the familiar lights coming from the game machines somehow made him reminisce of the old days. Back then, he played a lot here with Soonyoung. A small smile appeared on his face as he walks over to the game machine he and the male used to play.
“Oh,” a hint of surprise in his voice. Jihoon saw an envelope that’s actually looks similar to the color of the treasure hunt map. It was placed between the game machines, just above the screen.
He grabbed it without hesitation, opening it and then revealing a card that says:
Go and chase where you spent your youth.
Someone out there will give you the truth.
His forehead creased automatically. It was getting kind of hard. Jihoon went outside to see if there was any place in their neighborhood that fits in with the riddle, but minutes passed and he still couldn’t figure it out— not until he saw a group of students on their way to school, judging by the uniform they wore.
“Right, I spent my youth at the school,” he muttered under his breath. Jihoon walked behind the students only to find out that the school they were going to was his alma mater. He spent high school with Soonyoung there. As he reached the front gate, he wondered where he could find the same envelope again. The campus felt too big and he thought it might take him forever to find it.
He stayed there standing near the gate when a man in uniform, a guard, approached him and handed him an envelope. “Someone instructed me to hand this over to you,” the guard told him. His tone of voice slightly took Jihoon aback, but he was able to take it from him and even mouthing a small thank you.
He opened the envelope right away and read what’s written on the card.
Smell of the delicate aroma lies,
Where the bird resides.
This one was tough. There was nothing nearby that could match well with the riddle. Jihoon looked around his surroundings in deep thought, his field of vision saw the karaoke bar, some fast food restaurants, bookstores—nothing. It doesn’t make sense.
The bird shop! He couldn’t help but let out a snap from his fingers upon remembering the bird shop from the next street. It was a few walks away from where he was standing, so he opted not to use his car. He went brisk walking upon realizing the time, he was well aware how the shop closes around this hour, and upon reaching it, he wasn’t wrong. It was already closed.
Where is it? He thought. There wasn’t any more place he could think of relating to the riddle. He scanned his surroundings once again hoping he could find any clue to what it could mean.
His eyes focused on the coffee shop across, and then they widened. Quickly, he crossed the street upon seeing the streetlights giving him the go signal.
It all made sense now. The decorated birdhouse embellished on the tree just right in front of the café. How could he forget that birdhouse he made with Soonyoung? It was originally for their project in school, but it got rejected by their teacher back then so they decided to just place it on that specific tree—of course, with the permission from the café owner. It’s surprising to him how it was still there after all these years.
All these memories of him and Soonyoung that used to be so vague because of the years had passed, suddenly they were so vivid. There was a smile that never left his lips. He stared at the birdhouse a little too long before he snapped back to reality and searched for an envelope around it. It didn’t take him long to find one and he quickly opened to read the next riddle.
Riding this is great in spring,
It moves you like a pendulum swing.
This is a great thing for leisure,
And this is where you’ll find the treasure.
Unlike the previous ones, this was long. Jihoon read it over and over again and tried piecing everything together to make up a place—pendulum swing… leisure… His forehead creases, as he struggles getting his mind to work.
Ah, the playground.
Completely forgetting he had a car, he ran to where the playground was located. Years of living in this town was enough for him to know all the intricate turns and landmarks to reach the place.
The sun was about to set upon arriving. The sky showed a beautiful tinge of orange mixed with different shades of red, and no clouds in sight. It was tranquil, beautiful. Jihoon heaved a breath of relief. He walked around the area trying to think where the envelope could be hiding. He passed by the sandbox and his mind went traveling back in time to when they were kids. Another smile plastered on his lips once again.
This is where everything started. This was the place where he met Soonyoung.
Jihoon put his trip to memory lane into a halt upon noticing something under the swings. He ran up to it and found a miniature treasured chest purposely buried under dirt with only the top part peeking out. His hand reached for it and he analyzed the box. It wasn’t really grand, this was something one could see in the toys section in a mall. A quick snort escaped from him upon realizing how his expectations were shattered; he actually expected to dig a hole and find a large treasure chest like the ones pirates get to find.
He noticed the lock was bulging out like a button so he pressed it without hesitation. The lid opened with the sound of a click and there inside was a small folded piece of paper. He wasn’t supposed to open anything since he was doing all this as Soonyoung’s stupid cheat tactic to find the treasure in his place, but curiosity took Lee Jihoon over and he opened the paper.
(+63)8913242378
Wait, this looks familiar. “Soonyoung’s… Number?”
-
Soonyoung was a man full of surprises. That’s what his friends would always describe him, and he eventually learned to acknowledge it over time. He loves the idea of witnessing people’s pleasant surprised reactions every time, and it brings him delight how he gets to be the reason for their smiles. That is why he decided to do this little surprise confession plan for Jihoon. Despite being stupid when it comes to technology, he tried his best coming up with those riddles by Googling rhyming words and preparing the locations—Google Maps awed him. He even searched this DIY treasure hunt map with the envelopes and cards he watched in YouTube.
Damn, the things you could do with a computer, he thought. It took him a long time, longer than a normal person could because of his horrendous rivalry with electronic devices, but he was willing to waste all those weeks just to prepare this for Jihoon. All for Jihoon. Just so he could see that beautiful familiar smile he always adored seeing.
Soonyoung smiled as he saw Jihoon. He was watching from afar, silently waiting for the mail to call him. Everything was all going according to plan and he loved it. The only thing he has to do now is to confess. His heart began to pound, and it felt louder the moment he felt his phone vibrate from the pocket of his pants.
“Shit, this is it. I’m really going to do it,” he muttered to himself, taking the phone out and accepting Jihoon’s call.
He began to walk the moment he held the phone right next to his ear. His hands started sweating and his heart beat felt the ticking of some kind of time bomb about to detonate once he nears Jihoon. He took a deep breath, gathering his courage.
This is it, it’s now or never.
“Hey, Soonyoung, what the fu—”
“Turn around,” the sound of Soonyoung’s voice felt all too real for Jihoon, and so he did and found himself facing the male who was smiling widely.
Soonyoung thought he was going to smile back or something. But to his surprise, Jihoon wasn’t very pleased to see him.
The next thing he knew, his line of sight faltered and he felt a painful strain from his neck as it turned all the way it wasn’t supposed to. He just got punched by Jihoon.
“Jihoon, you—did you just? Wait,” Soonyoung couldn’t spout the right words to say as he was too stupefied to even think. He just got punched—his friend just punched him. What the fuck? Moments later, his mouth tasted a mix of sweet and salty and realized by the use of his thumb, there was blood coming out of his lips.
“Serves you right! You wasted my time solving this dumb treasure hunt just to find out that all I get is your fucking number? Seriously, Soonyoung, I’m so tired of your silly games! This isn’t even fu—”
Soonyoung bursts out into laughter, cutting Jihoon off. It wasn’t very funny for the latter though, as he warns: “Soonyoung, I swear I am going to punch you again.”
“Jihoon,” Soonyoung manages to let out in between laughs, “You’re not even the slightest bit curious as to why the treasure is my number?” He tries pulling himself together, his laughs finally stopped. Jihoon, on the other hand, was getting even more frustrated as well as perplexed it was pissing him off.
“Jihoon, listen, okay? Before you punch me, let me explain,” Jihoon rolls his eyes at the statement. But fine, ears open. “This is all a set-up, yes. They treasure hunt was originally for you. I did it for you to solve it.”
Jihoon, gritted teeth and fists clenched, replies: “Is it fun? Making me go all over the place like a dumb fool?”
Soonyoung could just smile softly, sighing. “Hoonie, haven't you realized something along the way?”
Jihoon shook his head, still angry about everything, but it didn’t take him until a few seconds later for his head to start connecting all the dots. Oh, he thought, his hand relaxes and his eyebrows were now raised in realization.
"The arcade is where we used to play, right? I admire you a lot for getting the highest scores to almost all of the game machines. Not only in games, but you were also the ace in almost all of our class back then and I'm the one who always slacks off," Soonyoung chuckles in between his words as he reminisce the moments he had with the young man. "That's why all of our teachers end up pairing this naive and wreckless Soonyoung to you. The birdhouse hanging in front of the cafe is the product," he proudly remarked. "And this playground? This is where we first met. Still remember?"
Annoyed Jihoon went back to his usual state, nonchalantly listening at Soonyoung as if his heart wasn't beating out loud and his mind wasn't thinking the conclusion he longs for.
"Jihoonie, you know I'm asking someone out today, right?" Soonyoung stepped another foot forward closer and held the male’s hands. He stared at his eyes with the fondest smile he could muster. “W-what are you doing?” Soonyoung chuckles for a bit, amused by his friend’s reaction.
“I like you," Soonyoung confessed.
What, it felt like that phone call all over again from this morning. Jihoon wanted Soonyoung to repeat the words again so that he could make sure, but Soonyoung was literally centimeters away from him, there was no other noise but the sound of wind gusts and the trees rustling because of it. Soonyoung said all of those words clearly.
It felt as if time had stop for a minute as no one dared to speak. It made Soonyoung feel a little dejected realizing that the silence must be Jihoon’s way of rejection. “I-I’m sorry,” Soonyoung uttered, voice shaking.
“It’s okay, I’m not expecting you to like me back or anything—I just wanted to tell you what I—”
Jihoon eyes stared at Soonyoung’s lips while the latter blabbered. None of his words registered in his mind and without warning he pulled him closer to let their lips meet. It was a quick peck on the lips, but to Soonyoung, it was enough to affirm everything was mutual. All of a sudden, the world seemed to suddenly stop and there was no one there but him and Jihoon.
Soonyoung is baffled, everything seems like a bolt from the blue. But he likes it.