Chapter Text
One drink after the other spawned in your hand, you were either forgetting you were ordering more or the waiter was getting it refilled without your knowledge.
It had been a long night enduring Gyeong-seok's amazed gazes towards Hyun-ju. It wasn’t anything new, you were used to it, and most of the time you tolerated it fairly well. But right now the alcohol running through your veins was stealing any sort of ability to mask your jealousy.
You knew Hyun-ju well. She was the apple of everybody's eyes, despite not being aware of it. She was kind, hardworking, smart and friendly, so it was only natural that she often caught people's attention. You noticed it in everybody's eyes; everybody stared at her with that tender gaze and that smile impossible to suppress.
Everybody wanted her. And you knew it well because you did too.
You had decided early on your friendship to repress your feelings, because you didn't think yourself to be someone special, you didn’t stand out particularly out of the people close to her. Or at least that’s what you thought.
If you were less focused on glaring at the man sitting beside Hyun-ju, you'd notice her worried eyes looking at your inebriated self.
A shy smile hung on her pink lips when she saw you frown as the man complimented her to Junhee when they brought up an old story, but she barely paid any mind to his comment besides muttering a polite thank you.
There was a certain charm to your intoxicated attitude, but she couldn’t help but feel hurt and nervous when you'd avoid her eyes the second they'd come in contact. It was obvious that something was troubling you, you were quieter than usual, weren’t engaging with the group at all, absolutely focused on shooting daggers at Gyeong-seok as you swallowed glass after glass of alcohol.
You jolted awake from your trance when you felt her warm hands over yours. An endearing glint shone in her eyes while her lips curled into a sweet smile.
"Wanna go home?" she whispered low, only for you to hear.
Your expression softened and a sharp pain on your forehead rose. Frowning all night had its consequences, you supposed.
You nodded shyly, a tiny pout on your lips.
She excused you both without bringing too much attention to your gloomy state. That was another thing you loved about her, she took care of everything. Even if you didn’t ask her, she saved you from embarrassing situations, she offered you help even when you seemed to shy to ask her, and she always looked out for you.
It was her care, the attention she gave to the details, her ability to read you and discover things you weren’t even aware of what made you fall for her. She made you feel seen.
"Do you want to talk?" she asked once you both arrived to the car.
She didn’t grasp how wasted you were until you opened your mouth and she could count with one hand the number of words she understood. She doubted she had lost count of how many shots you had, she had kept a close eye on you all night, but maybe you were just more lightweight than she thought.
"I don’t…" she tried to interrupt your rambling to no avail.
By the time you two arrived to your apartment, Hyun-ju’s ears adapted to your new accent, but she wasn’t quite sure what you were talking –or complaining about at this point.
"Does he think he has a chance?" You stopped suddenly, "Does he have a chance?"
The light of the lamppost reflected on your horrified face when you turned to her in panic, and she had to bite down on her lip to not laugh in front of you. Whatever debate you were having with yourself, she was sure you were losing.
You didn't even have the chance to try to open the door before Hyun-ju was taking the key from your hand, not without muttering a polite "Can I?" that nearly made you punch a wall from how gentle she sounded. However, you were thankfully still conscious enough to not damage public property, so you made a much tamer version of that urge in the form of a whiny cry, and you heard her giggle as she opened the door for you.
With a surrendering sigh, you plopped down on your couch. Hyun-ju sat down next to you, holding her hands together awkwardly against her chest, not quite sure of what to do with herself.
"I just don't understand why he can't be more subtle like me" you grumbled. "It pisses me off"
This piqued her interest, but she debated asking you about it when she saw you accommodating yourself on the sofa as if you were about to sleep. Maybe she should have left you there, you definitely had to sleep this night off... But her curiosity always got the best of her.
"What do you mean?" she inquired, voice soft. It was almost as if she wished to let the universe decide if you would hear her or not. If you dozed off, she'd let it be, but she felt she had to pry this time.
"What could I be talking about?" You whined. "If he's in love with you he should get in line or something"
Realization washed over Hyun-ju's face like a bucket of cold water. She had noticed your behavior shifted when you were with her from how you were with the rest, but she couldn't have guessed it was something like this.
"What?" she asked, not willing to let you sleep yet until you clarified what she thought you meant. "You...?"
"I love you, silly" you said almost like you were nagging her for making her state the obvious.
Her lip quivered when she attempted to reply, and no words left her lips.
For someone so attentive, it was hard to believe she couldn't pick up the signs. But there she was, poor oblivious Hyun-ju, looking at your sleeping form rest so peacefully, leaving her with a racing heart and a tumultuous number of questions for the rest of the, presumably, long night.