Work Text:
Soleum hadn't planned for all of this, really.
The plan, which he strained to remember at this moment, had only been to meet briefly with Baek Saheon, have him brief him on what's been up, or down in Daydream, make just enough small talk to pass off as close friends to the cafe owner and patrons, and then, fake an emergency call, pretend to be on good enough terms with his former roommate to amiably part ways and be on his own merry way.
That had been the plan, and Kim Soleum rarely ever strayed from his self made plans, and yet…
Here he still was, with the very roommate in question, all huddled up, knees knocking, in this cramped private space of some niche net cafe tucked somewhere deep in the recesses of the city.
The digital clock blearily blinked its red numbers at them. It's been a little past an hour since Soleum should've ended this.
He knew it had backfired, almost belatedly. For one, he hadn't considered that the private room was… well, this private?
There was technically no need to put on a show, as there's been no expected audience. They didn't need to seem like good friends. It's a net cafe. Nobody would've cared.
Not the girl at the front desk with the dark circles, terrifyingly muttering exam review materials under her breath every other time she wasn't attending to them.
Not the highschoolers tucked away in a corner of the public rooms, loudly cursing at their screens as they spammed the keyboard with more force than necessary.
And certainly not the other occupants of the private booths… They were certainly… busy with other things.
Kim Soleum was not one to judge.
It was the same reason he picked this place. Secluded. Quiet. Somewhere people would be disinclined to eavesdrop. Somewhere people wouldn't think twice about two young men speaking so closely to one another.
He knew, as he arrived, that he didn't have to do any of this, that he could make this speedy little rendezvous, even speedier.
He had other things to do, too! He was a spy, for gods sake!
Baek Saheon, despite all his bravado, was quite easy to terrify too. He only needed to shake him up a little bit, startle him enough to not make a fuss, and just leave. He knew how easy it would be, he knew because he'd seen him every day the past months, back when they were still cohabiting.
He'd gotten know all his little quirks and habits. He knew Saheon would instinctively draw his shoulders a little closer when intimidated, though he'd puff up his chest rather proudly, as if to compensate. He’d seen the shadow of a flinch in him upon hearing any loud noise. He noticed the way Saheon’s steps would soften upon passing his door.
(Such a scaredy cat, that one! Braun would say to him, as they both pressed their ears to the door to listen every so often.)
It would be so easy, but… At the same time, he didn't really want to.
Soleum thought perhaps, his senior had been right. Perhaps, he was just too kind, as she'd put it.
Not that Soleum particularly believed it, but how could this be anything but that?
He'd gotten the information he wanted around an hour ago, and yet here he was, still sipping idly on his iced Americano, or simply an Americano, now that the ice had melted, staring blankly as Baek Saheon continued to recount his trivial gossip.
Honestly, Soleum barely kept track of the story, he was sure it had something to do with extramarital affairs, fraud and career sabotage, or something.
Just the typical office fare, really. The gossip wasn't even that interesting, he was sure he'd overheard half of this from assistant manager Eun, while she was drunk out of her mind at one of their team dinners.
I should probably tell him to stop. This much should be enough, right?
Kim Soleum did not tell his former roommate, now co-conspirator to stop.
Instead, he leaned on the table, rather languidly, sipping his nearly gone Americano as he watched the man before him go on, and on, about how Mr. Section chief already had a girlfriend back home, he lived all the way in Busan, but he kept saying he was single, even though the girlfriend kept calling, and calling every other day, even during meetings, can you believe it?! And all the while, he's stringing along this assistant manager at work, and she does fuck all in the squad, but the chief kept giving her special treatment, and everyone's so fed up—
Kim Soleum wondered, idly, whether this was considered a Darkness too. Or a supernatural phenomena.
Perhaps it was the atmosphere, or the way his colleague’s almost melodic voice bounced so smoothly on the booth’s walls, creating this pleasant resonance that, in his opinion, would ensnare anybody in it.
Perhaps it was the way he tended to gesticulate and the big, varied expressions he made as he recounted every high and low point of his tale. It was somewhat hypnotizing, the way those hands grasp at empty air. His tiny mouth seemed to have a mind of its own, the way his already pouty lips would pucker while the muscles on his face would go subtly taut with every oohs and ahhs.
Perhaps it had been those eyes. Or well, eye. It was almost funny, how bright Saheon’s gaze got when he's dishing somebody else's dirty laundry.
It almost seemed as if he had a passion for it, Soleum thought, holding in a chuckle.
Maybe in another life, he could've been a reporter…. Just like Eun Haje.
No, he wouldn’t have the integrity, would he?
Hold on, actually, why was he even thinking about this?
He's doing all this just so he could go home. Why else would one consider corporate espionage, right?
Perhaps this too, was a ghost story, and he was simply caught in it. Was it on Saheon, attached to his person, or perhaps the net cafe itself?
Did Daydream find out, that he wanted this vague sense of normalcy, that they would try and place something to snuff it out?
No, that's just ridiculous. He wasn't quite that important, was he? Sure, he had a fast track promotion, but anybody could have that if they knew what he did. No, really, the idea that Daydream would go that far to control his interpersonal relations was just silly.
Besides, there were barely any relations to begin with. Baek Saheon was simply his roommate, nothing more, and Darknesses couldn't be wasted on something so small, they were a resource as valuable as gold to the company. No, definitely not.
He could feel the corners of his lips quirk up as Saheon’s reactions began to look particularly boisterous.
Perhaps this too, was another strange influence, maybe even by Baek Saheon himself.
Yes, that could be it.
It was probably no Daarkness, but… he must've used some kind of charm boosting item to smooth out the deal?
A deal, right. That’s all this is.
All Baek Saheon cared about were items. Having some sort of insurance to secure the procurement of that item seemed very on brand for him.
Why else would his plain brown hair look like molten gold under the shitty booth lighting?
Must be a real hefty item, the effects seemed to be nearly as potent as the Smiley Sticker.
Kim Soleum smiled to himself.
He wouldn't put it past him, really. After all this was Baek Saheon. He's tried the same schtick before, with the fountain pen.
It was almost endearing.
Well, it's not as if the hourly rates here would break my bank.
He might as well got some down time.
Down time, huh?
That could be it. He'd just been desperate for this normalcy to return. He'd craved the casual chats he had with friends, the silly, unimportant things they'd talk about after work, at the end of the week, or maybe at the end of the month. Soleum couldn't really remember it that clearly, honestly, but he thought that was right.
He was probably just aching for some company, whatever it was, whoever it was with.
Baek Saheon was the easiest, the most convenient. He was there, and he could be used. He'd known him enough that there weren't may unpredictable variables involved. It was safe. It was well within his control.
Speaking of control…
Baek Saheon went off on some other tangent on how someone else was being sent off to the branch office and Kim Soleum realized then, that it was probably time.
“Alright, that's enough,” he said, much softer than intended.
Baek Saheon pouted, the way a grown man shouldn't be able to pull off so well.
“…I was just getting to the good part,” he trailed off, before looking up pointedly through his thick lashes and adding rather belatedly, “…sir.”
“Pfft. You seem to be having fun,” Kim Soleum continued, relishing in the way his companion's face reddened.
Just like a tomato.
“…but I'm afraid this is it for me today,” Kim Soleum finally wrested himself from the gravitational pull of his comfy chair, and then, roughly going through his coat, he placed a paper bag on the table.
“The item is in there, you may check it now if—”
It didn't even take a second for Baek Saheon to roughly look into the bag, nearly tearing the sides.
Wow.
Kim Soleum knew this was how he was, yet he couldn't help feeling a bit neglected.
“Hah… it's like you don't even see me,” he muttered, before quickly covering his mouth upon realizing what he'd just said. The fatigue must be getting to him.
Let's just go back.
“Then I'll be on my way.”
“Mhm.”
Even now, he was busy inspecting the new item.
So serious.
Kim Soleum wanted to tease him a little, and so he bent down, held his shoulder and told him, “You know, next time, you don't need to use a charm item. Those things are better used in Darknesses.”
Baek Saheon froze.
“Huh—”
“I'll text you the venue for next time.”
With that, he successfully made his exit, his steps a little lighter than before.
Somehow, it felt like it'd been a good day.
Meanwhile, in the net cafe booth, Baek Saheon felt as if the tips of his ears were about to melt off!
“Fuck. What did that bastard even mean? What the hell even is a charm item? They exist?”