Chapter Text
A blinking neon sign, unoccupied white tables by the open window, the tinkling of the bell when the door opens.
These are all things Park Jongseong has become all too familiar with, a certain wave of dread washing over him whenever he thinks of them combined, a bitter taste in his mouth whenever he so much as looks at prepackaged triangle kimbaps. For the past three years, Jongseong has been working at a convenience store, the 7-Eleven close to his college campus. As an architecture student at one of the finest institutions in the nation, he has to keep himself afloat financially somehow when internships haven’t been gracious enough to reciprocate his efforts. Even then, they don’t even pay that well, so why does he bother trying? A stupid question, Jongseong knows, because he’ll never be able to secure a job without one, but it’s easy to spite the system that has him studying 40 hours a day before he finally graduates and actually draws buildings. That’s how he’s landed himself—read: trapped himself—at this convenience store at an ungodly hour. It was an unfortunate coincidence when Jongseong was looking for a part-time job as a freshman that the 7-Eleven had a spot open. The hours weren’t ideal and neither were the conditions, he still doesn’t know what possessed him into thinking that it would be a good short term thing, but freshie eighteen-year-old Jongseong readily applied and was readily hired. If he had known what he knew now, that he’d still be working here after so long, he would’ve never applied. But recently, the goddess of luck has decided to finally smile upon him and grace him with an acceptance into a proper, professional firm in the next city over. Receiving the email from Miller Architects was the greatest thing that has happened to Jongseong all week, perhaps in his entire life. It was like he never knew what real excitement was until this morning, and suddenly everything's looking up again. Most of all, his admission into the internship means that he’s most definitely going to kiss this godforsaken job goodbye.
At long last, Jongseong thinks to himself as he slips into his usual vest, the name tag glimmering under the LED lights, I get to have some proper sleep. Although frankly, regardless of whether they work a 10 PM to 4 AM night shift like him or not, architects hardly get any sleep. He doesn’t continue pondering on it before he takes out his notebook and rips out a sheet of college-ruled lined paper, all too eager to write his resignation letter.
The only kick is that the internship doesn’t start for another month, so until then, Jongseong has to keep hanging on. But he’s sure that’ll be easy; if he’s managed to somehow stick through the job for the past three years, then a measly four weeks will be nothing.
“I’m heading out now.” The coworker who has the shift before him, Kazuha, bids as she leaves, not sparing Jongseong a single glance. It’s routine at this point, and he doesn’t even look up to see her go either.
Now he’s alone again, in this convenience store all by himself, just like he often is four out of seven days of the week. Not that he minds, really. Having time to himself, whether it’s in this dingy convenience store or his tiny room, is always a pleasure. Jongseong is friendly and outgoing when he needs to be, but otherwise, he prefers to be quiet, left to his own devices. Maybe it’s the reason why he was good at this job at the beginning, because his hours meant he dealt with less people and he had time to do practically anything else. Wait, what? Who is he kidding? He’s glad that he won’t have to work here anymore. It’s just the sentiments that are getting to him because he’s been here for so long, and Jongseong is an emotional person after all.
Shaking his thoughts away, his resignation letter already half-written itself, Jongseong gets up and does a sweep around the store to see if there’s anything that needs to be restocked. Strawberry milk, honey butter chips, Shin ramen, mostly food items. As per usual, since most people have dinner before his shift. When he was just starting out as a cashier, Jongseong often silently reprimanded people who would come up to the counter with obscene amounts of snacks and cup noodles. Processed foods are terrible for your health, everyone knows that. If he had been able to manage a clean, healthy diet after coming to college, mostly credited to his mother’s scoldings on how he shouldn’t eat any of that junk or else he’ll die young, then surely these other kids should be able to do the same. Current Jongseong can’t even bother with it now, he really doesn’t care. It’s not his business what people consume and when they do die young like his mother says, he’ll only think I told you so.
The surfacing memories make Jongseong smile to himself as he’s placing plastic cups of ice into the freezer. Is it really that time of the night already? He pulls out his phone, reading 11:12 PM. Guess not. With a heavy sigh, he shoves it back into his pocket and keeps working.
By the time he finishes stocking up products, barely five minutes have passed. No customer has yet to walk in either, which isn’t strange for a Monday night, so the clock ticks even slower than normal. It’s summer break, his finals ended days ago, meaning there’s no homework to do and because it’s summer break, his friends are out on vacation, meaning there’s nobody to bother. Jongseong diverts his attention back to the resignation letter, which stares at him waiting to be finished. In all honesty, he isn’t sure whether he even needs to submit a resignation letter or not. There’s a high chance that this letter might just be an unnecessary formality for a convenience store clerk, but again, he’s an emotional person. It’d feel weird to depart from his job of five years without a proper adieu, wrapping up his feelings and gratitude towards the place as his source of income for so long and the kindness his manager, Shuhua, has shown him. Initially, he didn’t think he’d have much to say. Nothing more than a “Hey, I’m leaving on June 23rd!” and a “Thanks for having me for the past three years!” His pen, though, seems to move on its own. However sick he may be of this old place, he’s almost one-hundred percent sure he’s never going into another 7-Eleven after this again, he has many things to say about it. A part of him might even miss it, only a little.
When Jongseong finishes his letter and searches for the time again, it’s 11:47. Right on cue, the bell to the door rings, and a customer ambles in. The gray hood obscures Jongseong from seeing the customer’s face, but he quickly shrugs it off. Before, he used to greet every person who came in with a cheery “Welcome!” Eventually, he realized that it wasn’t worth the effort, so he held his tongue. Tonight is different. Tonight is already the start of an end, and Jongseong feels it even more after sealing his resignation letter. For old times sake, he decides to address the stranger, even if the latter is already on the far end of the store.
“Welcome in!”
The customer doesn’t turn around to acknowledge Jongseong, but that’s alright. He assumes that their headphones are plugged in, which is understandable considering it’s the middle of the night. Curious, however, Jongseong’s eyes trail them as they walk around. First was the drinks, then it was the instant ramen, and lastly, the candy aisle. Sooner or later, they come up to the counter, and that’s when he finally gets a glimpse of the customer’s face.
A student. A young man. A gorgeous, gorgeous boy. Jongseong has never believed in love at first sight, and he still doesn’t, but this feeling has to be the closest thing to it. There’s an incredibly strong, magnetic attraction that’s drawing him into the boy’s eyes, his nose, his lips. Everything about this stranger is incredibly pretty, enough to stun Jongseong into utter speechlessness. Something magical just happened to him. He’s beautiful.
“Um… excuse me?” The customer waves a hand, snapping Jongseong out of his trance. What just happened? “I’d like to pay for my things.”
“O-oh, right. Uh,” Jongseong scrambles to scan his items, mind in an absolute flurry, “that’ll be 5,800 won.”
There’s a rock lodged into Jongseong’s throat that he can’t swallow down. It grows even larger when the customer fishes out his wallet, a worn black leather card holder, and hands his credit card to him. Their hands graze as he takes it, zapping all sanity out of him. Jongseong can’t believe he’s this nervous over a little touch, nor can he believe the fact that his eyes involuntarily spot the customer’s name on the card. Yang Jungwon, sheep garden.
What a lovely name for a lovely person.
Shakily, he swipes the card through the reader and returns it to Jungwon. He grabs his things and plugs his earbuds back in, Jongseong doesn’t even remember when he took them out, sliding into one of the red cushioned bar stools by the window after filling his ramen with hot water.
Fuck, now Jongseong gets even more time to stare at this guy peacefully eating. So awesome.
Jongseong has had his fair share of convenience store crushes before. None of this was new. Dating was always out of the question for the majority of his life, putting his education as the highest priority above all else. Relationships took up too much time and effort, things that he could be using to study instead. His friends often teased him for it, telling him that he should let himself relax a little and connect with someone. Ridiculous, he would respond, but getting too attached to someone was—is one of his greatest fears. Jongseong is too much of a sap and hopeless romantic to do hook ups or flings. Heart break is an experience he’s sworn to protect himself from, and the shield has been standing strong to this day. That aside, like aforementioned, he still just didn’t have the time. So, he’d harbor many, many small crushes instead. Airport crushes, cafe crushes, hallway crushes, Jongseong has had them all. This new crush, conceived mere minutes ago, will be just like the rest. Fleeting, insignificant, he will probably never meet Jungwon again after tonight.
Jungwon drinks the last dregs in his bowl with a satisfied ah. Jongseong’s heart does somersaults in his chest at how cute that was, observing his every move. It’s a little creepy, Jongseong’s quite aware, but knowing that he’s never going to see Jungwon again justifies that in his head. And this crush is probably the worst he’s had so far. Everything about Jungwon is perfectly his type down to a tee, even his mannerisms Jongseong adores. If he were a more confident man, he would’ve asked for his number already instead of stare longingly from afar like an idiot in his work vest and Kurt Cobain sweater.
As Jungwon turns around, Jongseong’s eyes quickly dart across the room looking everywhere except for him. To Jungwon, Jongseong’s sure he looks like a maniac or some perverted freak. Turns out he didn’t spin around just to judge him but to toss away his bowl. Just as he thinks Jungwon’s leaving, Jongseong’s heart on the verge of crumbling apart, he sits back down in his seat, tearing open his pack of peach jellies.
If Jungwon knew how much he was controlling Jongseong’s emotions right now, he could become a ride operator.
Watching the only customer in the store eating and doing nothing else is strangely entertaining. Although it’s getting late, almost half past midnight, Jungwon is still here. Jongseong begins to wonder why. Why is Jungwon having a late night snack at this 7-Eleven? Did he perhaps do well on an exam and wanted to treat himself? Maybe he was on a walk and got hungry and decided to stop here, because if he had visited before, Jongseong would have definitely remembered him. The questions eat up at Jongseong. He’s so curious about Jungwon but he doesn’t have the guts to ask.
Nonetheless, it’s too late. This time, Jungwon is really going out the door. Leaving Jongseong alone again with his thoughts and feelings, because that’s all he has. By this time tomorrow, he will have forgotten Jungwon had ever existed. Just another crush never to be seen again.
Strange things have been happening to Jongseong since last night, and he’s not sure how to feel about it. Normally, when you have a small-time crush, you’d probably barely even remember their face after an hour. Hell, maybe even after five minutes. But Jongseong woke up this morning and Jungwon’s face was the first thing that popped up in his vision. Like a picture with inverted colors that people online tell you to stare at so that when you blink, the image with the correct colors appears. Cool at first, but incredibly obnoxious and hard to get rid of after a while. Except for the fact that Jungwon’s face is pleasant to look at, and the only thing obnoxious about his constant presence in Jongseong’s mind is how he’s yet to see him again.
“You’re spacing out again.” One of his roommates and close friends, Park Sunghoon, dryly comments as they’re eating breakfast. It’s not something they’d normally do together, but on days where neither of them work in addition to school being out, they find themselves convening at the dining table for meals more often than not. “Don’t do that. You’re going to take my only hobby and then I’ll be a talentless, miserable moron.”
“You’re not a talentless, miserable moron.” Jongseong pauses. “You’re a sarcastic, handsome moron.”
Sunghoon shrugs. “I think both are right. What’s on your mind?”
Well, his best friend was bound to find out eventually, and Jongseong would rather admit his feelings now than later. “There was this cute guy that came in last night. He hasn’t left my mind.”
Unsurprisingly, Sunghoon perks up at this, like a dog flinching at the sound of a squirrel, intrigued. Sunghoon wasn’t none the wiser to Jongseong’s many infatuations. As a serial heartbreaker, he’d always encouraged Jongseong to do something about it, but of course, he never does. His back was like target practice for Eros. All love to give with no action. Or so Sunghoon and their other best friend and roommate Jaeyun say. “And? Did you ask him out?”
“No.”
“Did you ask for his number?”
“No.” The embarrassment was heating him up every second he was under Sunghoon’s scrutinizing stare.
“Do you at least know his name?”
Finally a question Jongseong can answer. “Yes, I do.”
“Okay, but did you find out by asking him or by coincidence?”
Dejection is so apparent on Jongseong from his jutted bottom lip and slumped back that he doesn’t even need to reply for Sunghoon to know the response. Sunghoon sighs, “You could’ve been a taken man by now.”
“Not that fast!"
“Whatever. Anything better than single.”
“You’re just bitter because your boyfriend hasn’t texted you back yet.”
Sunghoon groans as he taps his phone screen again, no new notifications. “You don’t have to remind me. I feel pathetic.”
“Maybe because you are pathetic.”
“What happened to you being sort of nice to me earlier?”
“That me died.” Jongseong slurps the last of his milk in his bowl and gets up to wash it. “If you’re not doing anything today, wanna go visit Shuhua with me? I gotta meet her so that I can turn in my resignation letter.”
“You haven’t told her that you’re quitting yet?”
“Resigning,” Jongseong corrects, even though Sunghoon technically isn’t wrong. “She knows; I just have to turn in the letter.”
Breaking the news to Shuhua was much easier than Jongseong thought it’d be. He’d texted her about it sometime during his shift, after Jungwon had left, not expecting her to respond at that late hour. Revenge bedtime procrastination bests most of the Korean population though, Jongseong supposes after taking one psychology course, and she texted back immediately. Something along the lines of “Really? I’ll miss you” and “Let’s meet tomorrow to talk!” Before Shuhua was his boss, she was also his friend, a mutual turned buddy before she became the manager. She dropped out of college from stress and now she lives a simple life taking care of the store and then selling her art for fun. Frankly, Jongseong is quite envious of that, he wished his own life was less complicated. If only he weren’t so ambitious, maybe he’d live a simple life as a guitarist busking from street to street.
“I’ll tag along. I haven’t seen Shuhua in a while.” Sunghoon’s familiar with her because of his boyfriend Sunoo, who seems to know everyone on campus. It’s a mystery how a social butterfly like him gets along with a quiet recluse like Jongseong’s roommate.
The two of them arrive at the store in the afternoon, when the sun is still high in the sky and cicadas are buzzing all around them. Seeing the store in broad daylight is such a strange sight for Jongseong, since he only goes to work at night. It’s so foreign he almost questions whether they’re even at the right place or not. But when Shuhua walks out to greet them, the discernible sound of the bell ringing from the door reminds him that they are, in fact, at the right 7-Eleven.
“Oh, Sunghoon’s here too!” Shuhua smiles bright enough to outshine the sun. “It’s been a while. How are you guys?”
They reach in for a hug, Shuhua having to get on her tip-toes to throw her arms over their shoulders, before she seats them at one of the white tables outside.
“Good, and you?” Sunghoon replies for both of them.
“Great! Do you guys want any drinks? It’ll be on me,” Shuhua winks.
Jongseong shakes his head, “I already had coffee this morning, it’s okay.”
On the other hand, Sunghoon grins, “Yeah, I’ll take a coke.”
She hastily returns with his soda and a strawberry milk for herself. Sliding the can over to Sunghoon, she says, “Congrats on the internship, Jongseong. I knew you could do it.”
“Thank you so much.” A strong wave of pride washes over him, glad to hear it. “For that and for letting me work here for so long. I’m really grateful for your generosity over the past three years and I’ll miss you bossing me around.”
The white letter is presented to Shuhua in Jongseong’s two hands, his head bowed down so low it’s almost touching the table. She’s quick to wave away his solemnity, “Oh my god, please don’t be so formal. You’ve been one of the best employees I’ve ever had, I should be thanking you.”
“Finding a replacement for Jongseong’s going to be pretty hard.” Sunghoon offhandedly comments, sipping on his coke. “This man works like a dog.”
“You wouldn’t know what that’s like, would you, Sunghoon?” Shuhua jokes, kicking his shin.
Sunghoon not-so-graciously yelps, and it gets a good laugh out of her and Jongseong. Truthfully, Sunghoon is one of the most hardworking people Jongseong knows. He has a good work-life balance, knowing to take breaks when he needs to and locking when he gets too distracted. Much unlike Jongseong, who works 80% of the time and relaxes by sleeping the other 20%. Had he not been so stubborn, he would’ve definitely asked Sunghoon for tips on how to live life. Although sometimes, he already gives out the advice to them like free candy.
“Okay, Jongseong’s just a workaholic. It’ll be hard to come across someone as insane as this one.” Sunghoon jests, poking a finger to Jongseong’s shoulder.
Jongseong knows more than anyone else that he’s a workaholic. Insane would be pushing it, Sunghoon is quite histrionic after all, but in some ways, Jongseong finds it not being totally inaccurate. Only a fool would put themselves through this much work just for a slightly higher than average salary. The one thing that Jongseong can grant himself is passion, though even that seems to be diminishing in his life. “Whatever.”
“Excited to finally get sleep at a normal time?”
“Definitely,” Jongseong replies. The thought of sleeping through the night peacefully has him drooling already. “I can actually get eight hours of sleep a night, which is great.”
Rolling his eyes, Sunghoon tips back in his chair in a way that would have him scolded by his teachers in high school. Good thing they’re no longer in high school. “If you already don’t do that on the nights that you’re not working, what makes you think that it’ll be easier to do when you have a legitimate job?”
“Are you saying that working part-time at a convenience store isn’t legitimate?”
“Just saying.” Sunghoon’s hands fly up and he shrugs. “Maybe you’ll just stay up wishing that you were here.”
Wishing that I were here, Jongseong silently thinks to himself. Suddenly his brain flashes that image of Jungwon again. His brown hair somehow still glimmering under the horrible fluorescent light, eyes glossy and sparkling as they gazed at Jongseong. There’s nothing that pulled Jongseong in more than those shiny, wide eyes. If Jongseong got to see that face every night, he would most definitely be wishing that he were here, getting to know Jungwon more.
Shuhua snaps her fingers right in front of Jongseong’s face, and he’s drawn away from the confines of his mind. “You zoned out a bit there. Are you good?”
“I-I, uh,” Jongseong scratches the nape of his neck, palms clammy, “I’m fine.”
“Oh god, he’s daydreaming about that guy again.”
He slaps Sunghoon’s arm and looks at him with the most imploring expression that he can muster, but it’s too late. Shuhua already caught on. “Who?!”
Like Sunghoon, Shuhua’s interest peaks at the mention of gossip regarding Jongseong. Sunghoon chuckles, leaning back in prepared to spill the piping hot tea. “Last night, he met a guy he thought was super, super cute. He was staring at him and everything while the guy was just eating peacefully, but then he never even asked for his number! Isn’t that crazy?”
Mouth agape, Shuhua turns to Jongseong, who has his head in his hands from pure embarrassment. “You met a cute guy and you couldn’t even ask him out?”
“You know what? We really don’t have to talk about this. And you guys both know that I’m socially awkward, especially around the guy who I’m pretty sure was the love of my life—”
“The love of your life?!” They simultaneously shriek at Jongseong while he sinks into his chair even further. The wind should just blow him away right now. Why did he have to let his mouth run like that?
That being said, it’s news to both Sunghoon and Shuhua that Jongseong would call any stranger “the love of his life.” As much as Jongseong is a hopeless romantic, he still has quite the practical approach to attraction. In Jongseong’s defense, technically his crush isn’t a complete stranger since he knows his name. Although he did find out by being sly, it should count for something.
“Imagine if you run into him again tomorrow night.” Sunghoon snickers. “He’d have no idea you’re pining for him so hard already.”
“I’d never imagined this type of meet cute would happen at my convenience store.” Picturing the scene in her head, Shuhua smiles to herself. “You have to ask for his number if you meet again, okay?”
Jongseong scoffs, taking a long swig of his drink. “I’m probably never going to see him again, so neither of you have to worry about that.”
Shuhua and Sunghoon share a mischievous look, but he decides to ignore it. Jongseong is more than confident that there’s really no way he’d ever see Jungwon again. He’s said this before and he’ll say it again: Jungwon will be just another fleeting crush he’ll forget by tomorrow.
Those were Jongseong’s famous last words. Because lo and behold, again, at exactly 11:47 PM on Wednesday night, Jungwon is strolling through the door. He’s not the first customer who came in, unlike Monday night, but now it’s still just him and Jongseong alone in the store. It’s strange how small the world is, how Jongseong has found himself in the exact same situation twice. What’s even funnier is that Jungwon is wearing the same thing he was the night before. A gray hoodie and sweatpants, earbuds plugged in.
A small part of Jongseong hopes that Jungwon came back because of him. That maybe, just maybe, Jungwon returned to this specific convenience store because he thought Jongseong was cute too. Maybe this is all just the exposition to an epic romance that’ll have Jongseong swept off of his feet. That is to say if Jongseong hasn’t been swept off of his feet by this stranger already since day one, which he thinks he already has been.
When Jungwon comes up to the counter, he’s holding the same three items from different brands. Instead of peach jellies, he has a bag of sour gummy worms. And instead of a can of coke, he has a bottle of banana milk. The Shin ramyun is replaced with Jin ramen, Jongseong’s personal favorite. He scans each item calmly and quietly, still mentally reeled back by the low chances of a second encounter unfolding before him. His reaction to Jungwon’s beauty and mannerisms is all the same, a silent awe that has his eyes hypnotically glued on Jungwon.
“Thank you,” says Jungwon this time around before seating himself at the same stool by the window. It was small, barely above a whisper, but it knocked the wind out of Jongseong’s chest. How is someone this adorable?
This time, Jongseong decides to text the group chat with his roommates, even though he can already guess what they’re going to say.
Guys, I need your help.
Jaeyun replies immediately, It’s literally midnight dude. What do you want.
Aren’t you working rn? Sunghoon chimes in. What could you possibly need help with?
THE GUY!!!!!!!!!!! Jongseong spams as he’s looking at Jungwon, eating his noodles while scrolling through his phone. It’s a good thing his back is faced towards Jongseong. Otherwise, he’d be witnessing all the sheer amount of panic he’s going through. HE. IS. HERE. AGAIN!!!!!!!!
Oh my god. Holy shit. Ask for his number what are you doing texting us?? Sunghoon instantly sends.
Their other roommate, who’s been out on vacation with his family, responds with a sensible ????? What guy?
Following a quick debrief from Sunghoon, Jaeyun keyboard smashes multiple times. WHY DIDN’T ANY OF YOU GUYS TELL ME THIS SOONER?!??!
THAT DOESN’T MATTER, Jongseong glances over to Jungwon again, who’s moved onto his dessert, HOW AM I SUPPOSED TO ASK FOR HIS NUMBER??
Go up to him and be like, hey you’re pretty what’s your insta? And then the rest will work itself out.
I’m not like Sunoo, I can’t just go up to handsome guys so easily you can’t just use what worked on you for me.
How about you pretend like you’re wiping down the tables or something and then ask him because you’re like, omg I’ve been seeing you so often what’s your number?
Jaeyun, you’ve literally never dated before how am I supposed to trust you.
He sends the middle finger emoji and Jongseong returns it before Sunghoon puts them back on track. What if you just compliment his shoes or his clothes or something and then ask for his number?
Complimenting Jungwon is easy, so long as it’s all in Jongseong’s head.
Amidst the chaos going on in their group chat, Jongseong doesn’t notice Jungwon getting out of his chair and walking towards him. It isn’t until Jungwon is standing right across from him does Jongseong notice. For the first time, Jongseong sees Jungwon smile. It’s not so much that it shows his full set of teeth, but it’s enough to let it spill into his eyes, turning them into two crescents. And if Jongseong thought he was beautiful before, then Jungwon might as well be Aphrodite right now.
“I like your sweater.”
Jongseong looks down, and he forgot that he was wearing the same Kurt Cobain sweater that he’d worn the last night too. “T-thanks?”
Jungwon smiles again—what Jongseong would give to see him smiling all of the time—and leaves the store, the tinkle of the bell following his exit.
From his periphery, Jongseong can see his phone blowing up with notifications from his best friends, asking where he went, but his mind is filled with only Jungwon. It’s only been two nights, perhaps even the only two nights Jongseong will ever see Jungwon, but somehow, he’s already left the convenience store every night carrying Jongseong’s heart along with him.