Work Text:
"Appa, I thought Halmeoni's going to be the one sending me to school from now on?"
Danho and Yeondu were walking down the street that Monday morning. The weather was as good as one hoped it would be. Clouds were spread across the sky, and the sunlight only hit them just enough to make the people on the ground know that it's going to be a good day.
Or will it?
It wasn't new for Danho to be tired and only have a few hours of sleep, given the nature of his job. But today, he felt like there were heavy weights placed on his shoulders as the two of them walked downhill.
"I got used to taking you to school every morning. I figured I'm going to miss it," he answered with a smile. He tried to conceal the tiredness in his voice.
"But we still see each other everyday!" she reasoned. "I already told Halmeoni I'll help her cook for lunch and she'll also teach me Moeum unnie's favorite side dish. Oh! I also get to play inside unnie's room. Did you know she likes--"
"Yeondu, is it alright if. . ." He couldn't get the words out of his mouth. He knew he had to. But for some reason, he just. . . couldn't.
As they were walking, Yeondu waited for him to continue. But in the end, he didn't have the guts to do it.
Maybe because at the back of his mind, he knew that it's not alright.
Not in the slightest.
---
"Why won't it work?" Moeum tried to pull the pin from the can of beer she's trying to open, but to no avail. "Why isn't this working?"
Frustrated, she reached for the bottle of soju she hadn't opened yet. But just like with the can, she couldn't seem to open it.
Good God. Just when I'm about to get to my drinking limit! She tried to open the bottle once more. Just. One. More. Bottle!
Finally, she gave up and pushed the bottle slightly away. She fished her phone out of her belt bag to call one of her friends.
Her vision's getting a bit blurry. She's not entirely sure if it's because of the alcohol or the welling tears on the corner of her eyes. This isn't the time for self-reflection and awareness. What she needs is someone to dump these damn feelings that she couldn't get through that person.
"Bae Seokryu!" she greeted when she finally accepted the call. "Cancel whatever date you have with Seunghyo right now and join me here."
"Is that Moeum?" She heard Seunghyo's voice in the background. "God, is she drunk?"
"Yeah." Seokryu answered his question first because calling her attention over the phone. "Are you alone? You could've just bought drinks and went to your room so we can join you there. Why did you need to have a pity party in public?"
"I couldn't even drink!" she cried as she looked at her other hand not holding the phone. "It's not working. . . it's not working!"
"What's not working?" It was Seunghyo. Seokryu must have put it in speaker mode.
"My hands! I can't open the drinks anymore. I can't find my strength. Why won't it work? How could it not work?"
"Hey. . . don't push yourself too much at work. Are you even eating right?" Seokryu asked with concern.
"What do you mean it can't work out? Why shouldn't it happen?" she sobbed. She didn't hear any response from her friends from the other line. "I'm trying to extinguish the fire, but I can't. No matter how hard I try, I can't."
She then heard the two talking in hushed voices as if she wouldn't catch it.
"I'm sorry, you two lost me at saying 'work' for the nth time. What?"
"I got it." It was Seokryu. "Is this about Mudflat Man?"
"Mud--Who? Is that a new character in the serial comics you two were trying to make me read?"
"Choisseung, will you cut it out for a second and keep your eye on the road? Moeum, you're at the convenience store, right?"
She grunted to say yes.
"Ayt. I'll end the call for now. But we're just a few minutes away, okay? We're almost there."
She grunted again.
Right when the call ended, her phone slipped from her hand and it made a backflip on the ground and landed on the street a couple of feet away.
Good heavens, she's right here using her card to buy herself beers and soju despite being paid with peanuts. The last thing she needed was to get herself a new phone in this economy.
Despite being tipsy with the side of dizziness that she was certain was a little bit similar to the symptoms of vertigo, she got herself the courage to get off from the chair. Not to stand up, no. But to crawl with both arms and feet on the ground.
"Captain Jung, your phone."
"Huh? What? Where?"
That's when she looked up and saw him. Yeah, him. And yes. With the similar point of view of a dog standing on all fours looking up to its owner after a long day of missing him.
"Right here." He showed her phone. She couldn't see quite clearly if it has a new crack on the screen protector. Oh well. "But you need to stand up first. Here." He offered her his hand. "Theeere we go."
She murmured her thanks. She didn't feel the need to repeat it either. She's pretty sure he got it based on the look on his face.
"Can I have my phone now?" she nodded to his other hand that was not holding hers. "I think I gave you enough of what I have already."
"What? O-Oh, yeah. Sorry." He gave her the phone and retrieve his hand from hers.
"Where's Yeondu?" she asked while making her way back to her seat. She motioned him to sit down on the seat right across hers. "Sorry for the mess. I'll clean it up later."
"She's at your place," he answered while taking the plastic bag on the table and putting the empty cans in it. He even arranged the bottles neatly to the left. "Your mom insisted on looking after her. And Yeondu was quite comfortable at your home. Probably more than ours." He subtly laughed.
"Stop it," she found herself saying.
"Oh, sorry. Were you still going to drink this?" he asked, pertaining to the can of beer he just picked up to out away. "There's only like a drop in it."
"No, I meant stop this. I can't put out the fire. Not with alcohol. And most definitely not with you cleaning up after this!" She pointed at the cans and bottles while crying. Some of the passers-by stared for a second.
There was a minute of silence. It wasn't a total silence, for her sniffs and his heavy breathing acted like fillers in the air that people wanted to skip passed through to get things over with.
However, it was a breather for them both. It was the first time in a while that they sat next to each other, face to face, and slowly absorbing what the other person was thinking and feeling.
"Then maybe you shouldn't." He was the first one to break the ice. "Maybe there was a reason why it was ignited in the first place."
She looked up at him and stared at his face.
It's amazing how he could transparently let her see through him with those thick glasses.
Right now, his smile was genuine. Like always. But this time, their was a hint of relief and joy. Kind of like when someone was suddenly hit by a realization.
"And besides," he continued. Now with a hint of jest in his tone. "You don't actually think you could extinguish a fire with alcohol, do you?"
Hiccup.
She instinctively covered her mouth.
"Whoa."
At first, Moeum thought that sound came from her own voice. But it sounded oddly familiar.
She turned around to confirm her guess. She was right.
"Mr. Choi," Danho greeted.
The last thing she remembered was the sight of Seokryu greeting Danho with a slight nod, and Seunghyo frozen in shock while trying to say something.
"Wait, this is. . . "
---
". . . a lot to process."
Seokryu was in a daze trying to digest everything. The two guys made her catch up with everything that had happened and what they had known.
It was a lot, sure. But her main takeaway was. . .
"All this time, you're already part of our circle of friends? We're in one neighborhood here! How on earth could I have not known?"
"You're the only one who doesn't see him as much. He's busy with work and parenting, while you're--" Seunghyo took a couple of seconds to think of what to say next.
"I'm what? Go on. Say it."
"You're busy chasing your dreams, my dear," he replied in the most soothing tone that he can.
Danho blinked and looked away. This is getting awkward for him.
Seokryu gave her boyfriend a smug look. "Nice try."
Moeum passed out on the convenience store, and they all worked together to bring her home. It was late already, so Danho arrived to see her daughter sleeping soundly at Moeum's room. He had to carry Yeondu back to their house right after the three of them made sure that Moeum was settled on the bed.
He made a polite gesture of inviting the couple inside. But even he was surprised that they immediately agreed.
So now the three of them are sitting on the wooden seat at his front yard while drinking a cold beverage on a warm summer night.
"Moeum must really like you a lot," Seokryu said after a while. Seunghyo and Danho both looked at her for that. "It's amazing how love can shift a person's goal towards a whole new direction. In Moeum's case, it was an extraordinary thing that even we, her bestfriends, didn't know was possible."
"That's right," Seunghyo agreed. "Moeum may not be as ambitious as this weird little girl right here--"
"Hey!"
"But she knows how to get to her dreams in the smoothest way possible with little to no failure. She knows how to stick to it and make sure that no hindrances are there to distract her."
Seokryu turned to Danho. "She was determined to become a hero wherever the world takes her. But you know what you did?" She drank from her glass first before proceeding. "You showed her that a hero can be found in the most random day when you thought you're supposed to be one. And a heroic move isn't always seen as a flashy act where the hero punches the villain's gut or where the protagonist makes a signature save of a person from a tall building.
"Sometimes a hero becomes a hero by simply seeing the seemingly small plea from someone in need."
"Making way for an ambulance to get through traffic isn't exactly a small plea. That's a real emergency," Seunghyo pointed out.
She shot a sharp glance at him. "Will you stop trying to counter me? I'm trying to make a point here."
Danho's chuckle made them stop bickering. "You guys do match each other."
Seunghyo raised his glass. So did Seokryu. "That goes for you two as well."
***