Chapter Text
Yeosang had met Yujin once before, and Jongho had re-introduced them one day when they all ran into each other in the cafeteria. Yujin had seemed… fine, he supposed. He didn’t particularly care for the way Yujin had talked about the girl he was trying to date. Something about the way he only mentioned her appearance and nothing at all about her personality when Yeosang asked what she was like just didn’t sit quite right with him, but he wondered if he just didn’t have a good sense of what was normal in the early stages of dating someone.
Between finals and the holidays, it had taken several weeks to find a night when all three of them and all three girls were free. They finally settled on meeting for dinner on the Monday after Christmas. Winter session was already busy, but they were still in the early weeks, and a school night provided a natural end point to the date if things ended up being too awkward.
“Jongho! Hello!” called a girl with a sharp bob from their agreed-upon meeting spot at the edge of campus.
Yeosang could see that Yujin had arrived before Jongho and himself, and was standing with the three girls, shifting awkwardly.
“I hope we didn’t keep you waiting,” Jongho said as they approached the group.
“No, not at all!” Jimin answered. “Yujin just arrived, too. I didn’t even have a chance to introduce everyone yet.”
“Well, that works perfectly, then!” Jongho said with a charming grin. “This way, you won’t have to do it twice!”
“This is Yujin and Jongho,” Jimin said, glancing at her friends while gesturing at the guys. She hesitated slightly.
“I’m Yeosang,” he said, wanting to avoid any awkwardness so early in the night. He couldn’t help but feel that he had failed to smooth things over completely, but Jimin handled it gracefully.
“And Yeosang,” she repeated. “Jongho’s friend. These are my friends, Chanmi and Hana.”
Everyone murmured names and exchanged polite bows of greeting. Yeosang couldn’t help but notice that Yujin’s eyes were locked on Chanmi, rather than focusing on Jimin.
That seems rude, Yeosang thought. Yujin organized this to get to know Jimin better…
He supposed he couldn’t fault Yujin for being entranced. Chanmi had long, straight hair and enigmatic eyes that reminded Yeosang of a cat. Her looks were definitely striking—Yujin and Jongho both had taken notice.
“Yeosang-ssi?” Jimin asked.
“Hmm?” Yeosang said, and shook himself back into the moment.
“I don’t remember seeing you around school much…”
“Well, I’m not an Exercise Science student…” Yeosang started.
“He’s a year ahead of us,” Jongho broke in.
“Oh? How did you two become close?” Jimin asked, still focused on Yeosang.
“Do you know Choi San-seonbaenim?” Jongho replied again. “They’re friends.”
Yeosang smirked slightly to hear Jongho call San “seonbaenim.” It was perfectly correct, but it reminded him that he had never heard anyone outside of their friends talk about San.
“Oh, you know San-seonbaenim?”
“Yes,” Yeosang said quickly, before Jongho could answer for him again. “We became friends through the mentorship program our first year.”
“Oh! Were you paired together?”
“No, my partner was old school friends with his partner, so we ended up spending a lot of time together.”
As they made the short walk to the trendy restaurant they had chosen for dinner, Yeosang examined the others in the group. He liked Jimin already. She was warm and friendly with just a bit of tomboyish energy, and held just a bit of something in her eyes that reminded him of Yunho. It seemed like she was reading the room and waiting for the right moment to flip the situation into a joke, just like Yunho always was.
Chanmi, who was still holding most of both Yujin’s and Jongho’s attention, had a somewhat cool, aloof vibe that Yeosang found intimidating. She hadn’t been rude or cold when they were introduced, but she was brushing off Yujin’s attempts at conversation. Maybe she just also thought it was rude of him to ignore Jimin.
The third girl, Hana, wore her hair down in soft waves and had a sweet, open face. She also held back, letting the others banter back and forth. She seemed kind of quiet and reserved, just like he was. Yeosang was grateful that it seemed he’d be paired with Hana for most of this date.
As they entered the restaurant and approached the table for six, the guys automatically moved to sit on the same side of the table, but Jimin stopped them quickly.
“What is this, the boys’ team versus the girls’ team?” she teased, stepping easily in between Yeosang and Jongho and placing a casual hand on each of their shoulders as if they didn’t both have several inches of height on her.
“We’re supposed to be getting to know each other, right?” Jimin encouraged. “Yujin, why don’t you sit across from me? I’ll split these two up…”
And so Yeosang found himself settled at the end of the table, across from Hana and Yujin, and next to Jimin. He had to lean around her to even see Jongho.
This is fine, he thought. I can talk to people. Not a problem.
As they settled in and placed orders for drinks, conversation proceeded unevenly around the table. The attention of both Jongho and Yujin kept returning to Chanmi. Jongho, to his credit, was trying to make sure Jimin was included in the conversation, since the whole evening was premised on Yujin getting to know her. Jimin, for her part, was splitting her own attention between becoming increasingly frustrated with Yujin and trying to get some conversation going between Yeosang and Hana.
Yeosang admired the work that Jimin was doing, trying to shift to suit the different energies happening within the group.
“Yeosang, what’s your major?” Jimin asked warmly, perfectly matching the energy at their end of the table.
Yeosang smiled, feeling proud that he had anticipated how this conversation would work. It wasn’t difficult. Most conversations with other students ended up with them discussing their studies sooner rather than later.
“Ah, I’m studying computer science…” he said hesitantly, anticipating a rather quick shift from his major to one of the others’. Few people he met outside of his department were actually interested in the particulars of what he was studying.
“Oh, that’s interesting!” Jimin said with a smile. “That’s a broad field, isn’t it?”
“Yes, I suppose. Computing is so ubiquitous, there’s a lot of different things to study.”
“Do you have a specialty, then? Or do you have to take mostly general classes?”
“Oh, we started out with a variety of classes, to get a feel for everything. I started taking more specific courses last term, now that I’ve decided what areas I find most interesting.”
“And what are you focusing on now?”
“Oh, I’m sure it would bore you, I don’t need to go into it.” Yeosang tried to wave off the question and was about to re-direct when, to his surprise, Hana chimed in.
“Oh no, I’m curious, too.”
“Well. I’ve been focusing more on machine learning…”
“Oh, like artificial intelligence?” she asked.
Yeosang blinked in surprise. He didn’t remember when he had last spoken with someone outside his department who knew enough about machine learning to ask any follow-up questions when he mentioned it. Over the course of the next few minutes, Hana listened carefully to his explanations about the difference between machine learning and what most people called “AI,” and she asked more thoughtful questions. She clearly didn’t study computers herself, but she had more awareness of the latest advances than most people he talked to. Finally, his curiosity got the better of him.
“Hana-ssi, what are you studying? It must be math or engineering, right?”
“Oh! No, nothing like that,” Hana giggled shyly, hiding her hand behind her mouth. “My dad is a computer engineer, so I hear about the latest technology from him. I think he hasn’t given up trying to convince me to study it, too.”
“Oh? What do you study, then?”
“Nothing useful, unfortunately.”
“She studies dance,” Jimin broke in. “And she’s really good, too. Not that you could ever get her to admit it…”
Hana’s other hand flew up to cover her blush. In the process, she knocked into her mostly-full drink. Her eyes went wide as it tipped and flooded the table, soaking the napkins and pouring off the edges—mostly straight into Yeosang’s lap. Jimin let out a little yelp and jumped up, grabbing for the napkins. Yujin was also on his feet with a shout, and began swiping at the drips on the leg of his own pants. Hana appeared frozen in shock for a moment before speaking.
“Oh my god, I’m sorry! I’m so, so sorry!”
“Oh!” Yeosang interjected, reaching for a handful of napkins as well. “How did you know I like Coke?”
Everyone at the table froze for half a beat before Jimin, Jongho, and Chanmi burst into laughter.
“Ha! You’re funny!” Jimin exclaimed, laughing loudly.
Hana just stared with wide eyes.
“You’re not mad?” she asked, timidly.
“Why should I be? It was an accident, right?”
Yeosang held a wad of napkins out to Hana and grabbed more for himself, laying some at the edge of the still-spreading puddle before pressing a handful onto the spreading stain on his pants.
Another trickle of cola dripped off the edge of the table, landing near Yujin’s shoe. Yeosang and Jimin looked up at the same time as Yujin made a small irritated sound. It was noticeable that Yujin hadn’t made a move to clean anything other than his own jeans. Chanmi reached across to his spot with her own handful of napkins to catch the drips escaping off the table on that side.
A worker came over with a tub and several rags so they could get the mess properly cleaned, and the spill was finally dealt with.
The rest of dinner passed smoothly, from Yeosang’s perspective. The ice had been thoroughly broken between him and Hana, and they spent the rest of dinner chatting about the usual, predictable topics. He asked more about her dancing—he had picked up a little knowledge over the years by going to Yeonjun’s shows and listening to him ramble—and she asked thoughtful questions about his hobbies. To his delight, they enjoyed some of the same anime. Jimin sometimes joined in on their conversation, but she was more occupied trying to remind Yujin that he had invited her out in the first place.
Yeosang cringed as he overheard both Yujin and Jongho try to impress Chanmi with stories of their basketball feats. She responded only with bland platitudes. If they wanted to talk about sports, why didn’t they talk to Jimin, who was in the Exercise Science program with them? Surely it would be more interesting to include another person who knows something about the topic.
As they finished their meals, Hana offered to pay for everyone, to make up for spilling her drink, but Yujin was the only one to try to accept. In the end, Jimin had steadfastly refused to let Hana pay for any more than her own share of the meal.
“Well, let me at least get dessert!” Hana had pleaded. “There’s a hotteok stand at the park…”
They agreed that a few thousand won for hotteok was a much more proportional way to apologize, and they all made their way the few blocks over to the park, where the trees were still strung with lights after the Christmas holiday. Yeosang and Hana fell slightly behind the rest of the group, watching as Yujin and Jongho continued to vie for the attention of Chanmi. Jimin appeared more annoyed by the spectacle every moment.
“So you said you don’t know Yujin well, right?”
Yeosang hummed in affirmation.
“We had been introduced once before, I think, at a party. But that’s not like really meeting someone.”
“But you know Jongho?”
“He’s my friend. And one of my roommates.”
“One of?”
“Yeah, we have one of those big apartments. There are eight of us.”
“Wow, that’s a lot of guys in one place! There are four of us girls in ours, and that’s already too many…”
“The three of you are roommates, then?”
“Yeah. We’ve been friends since high school, so it just made sense that we’d stick together.”
“I get that. There are a couple of us in the apartment that have friendships that go back that far.”
They chatted for a bit, about roommates and classes and campus drama before Hana suddenly changed the topic.
“Yeosang-ssi?”
“Mm?”
“I don’t want to sound like I’m not enjoying this conversation, because I am, but it doesn’t really feel like you’re invested in this date.”
This was the observation he had been dreading. Now was the part where he’d have to deflect and offer excuses.
“Ah. Yeah. I’m sorry…” Yeosang hesitated.
Hana wilted in on herself slightly, and Yeosang hurried to continue.
“Talking to you has been lovely, I promise. I’m just not looking to date anyone right now.”
“But you’re on a date…”
“Yeah, it’s… hard to explain. Jongho asked me to come as a favor to Yujin. He said the group really needed a third guy.”
Yeosang sighed and shrugged.
“Also, I think he’s decided I need help finding a girlfriend. And he’s stubborn.”
“So, you came on this date to help a guy you don’t even know, even though you’re not looking for a girlfriend?”
“Umm… yes.”
“That’s a little weird, Yeosang-ssi. But very nice.”
“I’ve been called that before.” Yeosang said with a small grimace.
Hana giggled, a hand flying up to cover her mouth.
“And you’re funny, too.”
Yeosang just shrugged. He hadn’t even been trying to be funny—it was just the truth.
A few beats of silence passed before Hana spoke again.
“Do you want to know a secret?”
“Sure…”
“I’m not really dating right now, either,” Hana giggled.
“And yet, you’re also on a date tonight.”
“Well, you see,” she leaned in and whispered conspiratorially. “I’m also doing a favor for a friend.”
“Oh?”
“It’s a bit of a test, honestly,” Hana shrugged. “We always do the group date first, before any solo dates. The three of us are so different. It can be… useful to see how guys treat each of us. And also to see what kind of friends they have. You can learn a lot about a guy from his friends…”
Yeosang took a long moment to consider this as they watched the rest of the group interacting a few paces ahead of them.
“What have you learned about Yujin?”
“Mostly, that he’s not getting a second date, I think.”
Yeosang lifted his hand to cover his laugh, and Hana continued.
“Obviously, he’s been trying to get with Chanmi the entire time, which is rude. But also, he’s ignored me since introductions.”
“Except for the Coke thing.”
“Yeah.”
“Was the Coke part of the test?”
“No, the Coke was an accident,” Hana gave him a quizzical look. “You think I’d spill a whole glass of Coke for a test?”
“I don’t know, I don’t know what’s on the grading rubric.”
Hana giggled. “Well, no. It wasn’t intentional. It was… convenient though, I guess. Sorry again about your pants.”
“I can wash them,” he shrugged.
Hana hummed thoughtfully and looked up at the others.
“It’s funny,” she commented. “I think this is the first time that we’ve ever done this where the guy is awful, but his friends are good.”
“Oh?”
“Normally, it’s the other way around. The guy is on his best behavior, but his friends aren’t always trying as hard.”
Up ahead of them, the discussion was starting to get heated. It sounded like Yujin had asked to exchange contact info with Chanmi, and Jimin had had enough. She had finally rounded on him and was thoroughly chewing him out for having the audacity to ignore her on this date that he had asked her out on.
Yeosang paused several paces away. He wasn’t eager to wade into the middle of this argument between people he had just met.
Hana didn’t appear to want to join in the fray, either, and hung back with him.
“Yeosang-ssi? Do you have Instagram?”
“Hmm? Oh, yeah. I don’t post often. Mostly just drone footage, but I don’t get to fly much.”
“Would you like to exchange info? I post some dance videos and things, and I’d like to see your drone videos.”
“Oh, sure.”
As they swapped phones and chatted about each other’s recent posts, Jimin finally finished, turned on her heel, and stalked off, arm-in-arm with Chanmi.
“Oh, I have to go! Bye, Yeosang-ssi! It was nice to meet you!” Hana called as she scurried off after her friends.
Yeosang turned to the others. Yujin was fuming and Jongho was trying to talk him down. Yeosang couldn’t shake the feeling that this entire messy situation could have been easily avoided. Why did anyone want this hassle in their lives anyway?