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Open curtains let the July sun to rush into the large white painted bedroom allowing light in all the corners of the room.
Donghyuck tossed and turned in his bed in an attempt to stay in his dream state although his sleep began to lighten. He started to stir awake and his eyes fluttered open.
Eyes fully open he looked to his left and saw that his bed was empty. Confusion masked Donghyuck’s face until he looked further and saw Mark walking up and down on his balcony on the phone taking a call.
Julia, Mark’s girlfriend, who else would it be?
The two had been together for just over a year and every time Donghyuck opened the door for Mark to enter his apartment his heart blead for her a little bit. She didn’t deserve any of this.
Donghyuck grabbed his joggers and t-shirt that had been haphazardly thrown on the ground the night before and put them on. He grabbed his lighter and a box of cigarettes and entered the balcony.
Donghyuck had no intention of smoking this early in the morning but he was nosey, and he wanted to know which lie Mark decided to go for on this fine Saturday morning.
“Babe, I told you I’ve been working late. My manager has been on my ass recently.”
Donghyuck rolled his eyes with a scoff and leaned back further into the purple bean bag that he was sitting on. As much as he could feel sorry for her all the red flags were painstakingly obvious and it was like she was actively avoiding them; ‘manager had been on his ass’, Mark was self-employed, he had no manager, even Donghyuck knew that and they had been sleeping together for 3 months. It was like Mark was digging his own grave and still managed to walk round it.
While continuing to smoke Donghyuck ardently eavesdropped on their convocation, there was nothing that interested him until he heard something about a birthday.
Who’s birthday?
“How could I ever forget? And of course, I’ll sing a song at your party, I’m writing an original just for you, Angel.” Mark spoke with an overbearingly sweet tone and it was obvious that he was yet again lying to her. Mark himself found it insane how accustomed to lying he had become, yet he had no intention of changing his ways now.
Mark wraps up the phone call with a series of byes and I love yous and looks down at Donghyuck.
“Oh me, oh my.” Donghyuck shook his head with a breathy chuckle, he put out his cigarette in his hand made resin ashtray, courtesy of Renjun, and continued speaking. “Neither you or your story’s straight. ‘My manager has been on my ass recently.’” Donghyuck paired his impression with a pair of overly dramatic air quotation marks. “Oh please, a blind man could see straight through that.”
“Stop I feel bad enough- “
“Shut up, you don’t feel bad. You couldn’t give less of a fuck. If you actually felt bad you would have broken up with her months ago and spared her the embarrassment, but you didn’t. Instead, you call her ‘Babe’, ‘Angel’, ‘Princess’ just so you don’t call her the wrong name.”
Mark stared into the middle-distance avoiding eye contact with the younger because he was right. However, Mark would rather eat his own nipples than let Donghyuck live with the satisfaction.
Donghyuck waited for Mark to look at him before continuing. “But listen to me when I tell you she’s so thick she wouldn’t even notice you called her Lee Donghyuck, elongating each syllable.”
An agitated Mark tapped on the back of his phone with each word that was spoken. He was like a camel, and each sentence was a weight being added to his back. The last sentence that escaped Donghyuck’s lips was too heavy, and it broke the camel's back.
“I don’t have to listen to you.”
Mark walked back into the bedroom (with Donghyuck trailing behind) and started to gather his things, mumbling under his breath about how he was a good person and how Donghyuck is just exacerbating the situation.
With the last things in his hands Mark took long strides to the door and looked back at the younger boy who was lighting another cigarette and grinning like the Cheshire cat.
“Goodbye Markie, see you later.”
Mark let out a deep sigh because he was right. He knew he would be back here; he always ended up back here.
***
The sun had finished her shift and the moon had taken over, the stars had taken residency in the sky and darkness blanketed the city.
Donghyuck turned off all the lights in his apartment laid on the floor in his bedroom and let his thoughts engulf him.
“I’m going to tell her; she deserves to know.” Donghyuck concluded he was going to be the bigger person. Although he may not be too fond of Julia if he were in her place he would want to know too.
“I’ll wait though, I may not like her but I’m not going to ruin her birthday.”
Grabbing his phone, he gave her a quick follow on Instagram, not before viewing her story and seeing the abundant amount of guests in the obnoxiously decorated hall. While viewing her remarkably long story he did notice the absence of her boyfriend who she would be parading around like he was a prize winning cow at a farmer’s auction.
Putting his phone down he diverted his focus to his worst habit. Struggling to locate his lighter in the dark he retrieved his phone to turn on the torch. His search was interrupted by three harsh knocks on his front door.
“Fuck me.” Donghyuck groaned and hoisted himself up onto his feet and walked to the door.
Once he opened the door, he rolled his eyes so far back he was pretty sure he saw his brain, suppressing his instinct he let the elder into his apartment.
“Aren’t you supposed to be singing an original song for your Angel ?”
“I’ve been faking a cold all week to get out of it.”
A suspicious eyebrow was raised at Mark, Donghyuck didn’t understand him. Mark was so complicated it confused him and his superiority complex did not allow him to be confused; he had to know everything, always.
The expression on Donghyuck’s face made Mark uncomfortable so he took it upon himself to change the topic.
“Wanna watch The Lion King?” Mark inquired.
Donghyuck’s face lit up immediately and he frantically nodded his head.
Ten minutes later Mark and Donghyuck were residing in Donghyuck’s bed with the latter’s favourite film on.
Cuddling closer to Mark, the younger verbalised his thoughts. “I really think that you should tell her, it's literally her birthday and you are in my bed. I know I have played my part in this, but I’ve been real from the beginning. Promise me you’ll tell her.”
“I promise you I’ll tell her.”
Donghyuck leaned up and left a small peck on Mark’s cheek, he tried to maintain the smile on his face, but he knew Mark was telling yet another lie.