Work Text:
Ding!
The sound of the microwave pulled Jungmo’s focus away from the television screen. He dropped the remote control down, rather carelessly, and ran to retrieve his popcorn.
He had burnt himself on microwave food many times before, so he was careful picking up the bowl. The slightly burnt smell hit his nostrils, and he grinned.
Work was rough today. It wasn’t the worst day he’s ever had, but he had to deal with one too many angry middle aged women for his liking. So, the only thing keeping him going through the day was the idea of coming home, eating cheap popcorn and watching a shitty movie; his Friday tradition.
Opening the fridge to look for a drink, he realised he didn’t have much in there, so he made a mental note to go grocery shopping tomorrow. He grabbed a large, almost empty bottle of cola, not bothering to pour it into a glass because it was almost gone anyway.
Jungmo carried the bottle and bowl of popcorn over to the small coffee table he had sitting in front his couch, facing the television. The exact second he sat down, somebody knocked on the front door.
It was almost 9pm. Who in their right mind would be knocking at this time?
He did get a package that was supposed to go to his neighbour, but since they weren’t home to receive it, he took it instead. Maybe it was just them coming to ask for it. He was pretty sure they were away until next week, but maybe they came home early.
Groaning as he stood back up, Jungmo picked up the cardboard box, and went to open the door.
“Hey Mr. Kim, here’s your pa- Wait, Wonjin?”
Standing right in front of him was his best friend Wonjin. He offered Jungmo a shaky smile.
“Hi. You weren’t expecting me, huh?” Wonjin’s lips started to quiver as soon his smile faded.
Jungmo knew it had been raining today, and it was obvious by seeing how absolutely soaking Wonjin was that he had walked in it.
“No, but… It’s fine. You can come in.” Jungmo put the package down carefully, since he wasn’t sure of what was inside. He stepped aside so Wonjin could come in. Wonjin hesitated, but stepped into the apartment anyway. The younger immediately went to sit on the couch, as Jungmo closed the door.
“Is everything okay, Wonjin? I thought you had a date tonight.”
Jungmo sat down next to Wonjin, but the younger was avoiding his gaze. Wonjin nodded.
“I did, but…” Wonjin bit his bottom lip, obviously trying, and failing, to hold back tears. “Serim broke up with me.” He croaked out, burying his face in his hands and sobbing into them a moment after. Jungmo’s jaw dropped.
“Oh, shit, Wonjie, I’m- I’m so sorry!”
Sniffling and wiping tears from his face, Wonjin shook his head.
“It’s fine, I should’ve known it was coming. It just… It still hurts, you know?”
Jungmo hummed in agreement. He wasn’t going to say it out loud right now, since the metaphorical wound was still pretty fresh, but he never thought Serim was good for Wonjin anyway. In his opinion, Serim wasn’t worthy of all of these tears.
“Well, is there anything I can do to make you feel better?” He asked, looking at Wonjin’s face.
“Just being here is enough for now.” Wonjin grinned again, and this time it looked a bit more genuine.
“Okay. Are you sure you don’t want a hug? Or… Some popcorn?” Jungmo said, while gesturing to the table.
Wonjin let out a small chuckle, and it made Jungmo smile.
“I’ll take the hug. Hope you don’t mind my clothes being soggy.”
“I mean… Usually, I would mind but I’ll ignore it this time.”
Jungmo opened his arms, and Wonjin leaned into him. Jungmo was warm, and it made Wonjin’s heart feel warmer too. He almost could’ve cried again, because it felt so nice. So comforting.
After he first met Serim, Wonjin started spending less and less time with Jungmo. He regretted it in hindsight, and he was sure that if he could have seen himself, standing at Jungmo’s door crying because Serim left him, he would’ve thought twice about abandoning his best friend. The only person who has ever been with him no matter what. Before he knew it, tears were falling from his eyes again.
“What- Are you crying again?”
Jungmo was about to go on a rant about how Wonjin shouldn’t waste his energy crying over a guy who didn’t really deserve him, but Wonjin spoke before he could.
“I’m not crying over him, don’t worry.” He sniffled, moving out of Jungmo’s embrace.
“Well, then why-“
“I’m crying because… I’m thankful for you. I’m thankful that you’re still here for me.”
Jungmo took a moment to reply, which worried Wonjin and he wasn’t sure why.
“…Of course I’m still here. Why wouldn’t I be here?”
Wonjin shrugged.
“Because I wasn’t always here for you. I spent all of my time with him and I feel like shit for that.”
Jungmo scoffed, placing his hands atop Wonjin’s leg.
“Wonjin, you’d have to do a lot worse than that to make me not be here for you. You could kill somebody, and I’d probably still be here.”
Wonjin laughed, which made Jungmo feel accomplished. He always felt proud whenever he could make Wonjin laugh.
“That means a lot to me, really. Sorry for being an emotional mess tonight.”
“It’s okay.”
They sat quietly for a moment, the only noise audible being the rain pattering on the windows. Jungmo sat up.
“Hey, do you wanna stay over? It might be better than being alone in your own apartment tonight. I can lend you some clothes to wear too, because there’s no way you can keep those on any longer.”
Wonjin nodded enthusiastically, the most energy he’d shown since he arrived.
“Yeah, that would be nice.”
“Awesome. We can talk and we can watch a movie… Because, I was gonna watch a movie you got here so, I still wanna do that. And also, the offer for the popcorn is still open, just for you.” Jungmo winked playfully, and Wonjin snorted.
“Sounds good.”
Pointing to the cola bottle on the table, Jungmo moved to get up.
“I was gonna drink that from the bottle, but… Since you’re here, I’ll get some glasses. You should go get changed while I do that!” He yelled, running off into the kitchen.
“Okay! I will!” Wonjin yelled back, reaching forward into the bowl of popcorn and throwing some into his mouth. It seemed to already be going a bit stale, but it was good enough.
Stretching his arms, Wonjin let out a sigh and stood up slowly. As he moved to go to Jungmo’s room and get some clothes from his wardrobe, he looked into the open doorway that led to the kitchen, and he saw Jungmo frantically rinsing off a glass. Wonjin guessed that he had forgotten to do the dishes earlier. A grin started to grow on his face.
As long as he has his best friend, he’s gonna be okay.