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Kim Dokja first met Han Sooyoung in the bookstore.
Dokja was more of a webnovel person, if he had to tell the truth. Reading on a phone was much more convenient than a whole book. However, some of his favorite webnovels had just recently concluded, and others were put on hiatus, so, having a lack of reading material, Dokja went to the bookstore.
Sooyoung was an author, and she was currently there at a book signing. Her first published book, apparently, according to the sign. Dokja was about to pass—he was looking for books, not author signings, after all—when he caught sight of Sooyoung. That made him pause.
She was beautiful.
Dokja didn’t call many people beautiful. Yes, he was bi, but that didn’t mean he slathered over every single person he met, like his old bullies claimed he did. But Han Sooyoung embodied the very idea of beauty that Dokja held in his mind.
Sooyoung turned in his direction and, catching him staring at her, grinned and beckoned him over. Dokja paused, then, having nothing better to do, walked over. “What’s your name?” she asked casually.
“Kim Dokja,” he replied. “And you’re Han Sooyoung, right?”
She nodded, grinning. “I am.” She picked up a copy of her book and offered it to him. “Would you like to read it?”
Dokja picked up the book and flipped the cover open so he could read the summary. Immediately, his eyes lit up. This was the kind of story he enjoyed reading. Amazing how the author herself had offered it to him! He nodded. “Yes, I would.” He pulled out his wallet and began counting out the money he would need.
Sooyoung lightly took the book back and signed her name, and Dokja felt a warmth in his chest. He was getting a signed book. Sooyoung flipped the book closed and offered it to him as he handed her the money. She smiled.
“Tell me what you think,” she said before turning to the next person in line.
Dokja felt a faint sense of confusion at that statement. How would he tell her what he thought? It’s not like authors had book signing events every day. Walking a little ways away and flipping open the cover of the book, he immediately understood.
Sooyoung had left him her number.
Working at a gaming company like Mino Soft meant that Dokja knew quite a lot of pro gamers. One of the most well-known was Yoo Joonghyuk.
Mino Soft was hosting a gaming event right now, and Dokja was supposed to be present, despite the fact that all he did was test out games. He was definitely not anywhere in the pro gamer department, and he doubted the pro gamers would even need to talk to a staff member.
Dokja was texting Sooyoung an update on his thoughts of the book when he heard a fight break out. His head shooting upwards, he gaped in surprise as he saw who was on the floor.
“...Song Minwoo?”
His old bully was at the event, and was glaring at the man pressing him down, a foot dangerously close to his throat. Dokja immediately recognized him as Yoo Joonghyuk. “Really,” Joonghyuk was saying. “If you’re going to come here, then don’t rig the games.”
Minwoo’s eyes narrowed even further. “I wasn’t-”
Joonghyuk’s foot got even closer. “And still, you deny it. And then you attack me when I point out what you did.”
Dokja jolted as he realized that it was his job to stop things like this, and he immediately rushed over. Before he could say anything, Minwoo caught sight of him, and a wicked grin formed on his face. “Oh, if it isn’t Kim Dokja,” he sneered. “Of course someone like you is working for a shitty game company like this. You seriously invite psychopaths to these events?”
Dokja froze, and in that moment, Joonghyuk kicked Minwoo furiously. Minwoo was immediately knocked out, and Joonghyuk looked at Dokja. “I was tired of him talking shit,” Joonghyuk stated to the gathering crowd, then began to walk off.
Dokja raced after him. “Wait!” he called. “Yoo Joonghyuk, right?”
“And you’re Kim Dokja,” Joonghyuk said. “Unless that asshole was trying to insult you with a fake name.”
“No, it’s a real name,” Dokja said. “I just want to say that I’m a fan.”
Joonghyuk paused, then turned back to him. “A fan…?”
Dokja nodded. “Yes, I am.”
Joonghyuk stared at him a while longer before turning back and continuing to walk away. “I’ll come by again,” he said, his voice barely audible.
Dokja’s eyes widened, and his eyes stayed on Joonghyuk’s back as the man left.
Months later, after a lot of bonding time with both of them, Dokja realized he had fallen in love with both Sooyoung and Joonghyuk. This was most certainly a problem. Okay, he knew polyamory was a thing, but the fact remained that Sooyoung and Joonghyuk did not know each other, and he didn’t know if they were interested in polyamory or, well, him.
He certainly wasn’t going to ask.
He was lucky that one day, Sooyoung had gotten bored and visited him at Mino Soft, somehow making her way into the employee room despite not working there. Dokja certainly wasn’t going to complain. She was typing up a new manuscript on her computer, due to the success of her first book, when Joonghyuk entered.
“Yoo Joonghyuk,” Dokja said, and Sooyoung’s head rose. Her eyes caught Joonghyuk’s, and they gazed at each other for a moment before both turned their gazes toward Dokja.
“I was not aware,” Joonghyuk said, “that you knew Sooyoung.”
“I didn’t know that you knew her either,” Dokja muttered.
“Joonghyuk and I go way back,” Sooyoung said.
Dokja immediately noticed her lack of honorifics. It wasn’t surprising that Joonghyuk didn’t use any, since he never used honorifics, but Sooyoung used them for quite a lot of people. But then again, she didn’t use any for him, so…
“How do you guys know each other?” Dokja asked, taking his mind off the honorifics question.
Sooyoung gave Joonghyuk an awkward look, and Joonghyuk said, “Private matters.”
Dokja immediately knew what private matters meant. “...ah.”
“It’s been a long time, though,” Sooyoung said. “To think we had a mutual friend.”
“Kim Dokja is not my friend,” Joonghyuk replied, the bastard that he was.
Sooyoung shrugged. “Companion?”
Dokja got up. “I… need to check with my coworkers.” Why weren’t any of them in the employee room right now? Maybe this awkward conversation wouldn’t have happened if they were there… or maybe it would have been even more awkward. “Have fun.” With that, he hurried away.
As he walked the halls, straining for a glimpse of one of his coworkers, Dokja realized that he didn’t have a chance with either of them at all. They were still clearly enamored with each other.
He forgot about the polyamorous solution.
Good thing that Joonghyuk and Sooyoung were both aware of it, because one week later, they came to him with a proposition.
“We talked,” Sooyoung said, “and we realized both of us had gained romantic feelings for you.”
Dokja’s mouth felt dry. “Oh.” That was… not what he expected.
“And since Joonghyuk and I… might have had a thing in the past… we were wondering if you wanted to date both of us. And we’ll date each other too,” Sooyoung said.
Dokja’s eyes flickered over to Joonghyuk, who gave a small nod. “That is what we want,” he agreed.
“Okay,” Dokja said. “Then I agree as well.” He smiled. “I like you guys too.”
He had known that after months bonding with both of them, he could never be satisfied with only one. This was the perfect solution. It was the one that was meant to happen.