FLPR 4.3

Doyul walked into the agreed-upon restaurant. Hyunsoo was already there, waiting for him. He made his way to Hyunsoo’s table. As soon as he sat down, he fanned himself with his hand.

“It’s so hot.”

“The weather is insane.”

Doyul poured himself a glass of water and drank it down. The cold water felt incredibly refreshing as it slid down his throat. Across from him, Hyunsoo perused the menu.

“Can I order anything I want? ”

“Yeah, go ahead.”

“I’m going to order everything on the menu.”

“Just order what you can eat,” Doyul said, pouring himself another glass of water. Hyunsoo didn’t reply, his eyes glued to the menu, a determined glint in them that screamed, ‘I’m going to order something expensive.’ Doyul chuckled and looked out the glass door.

The neighborhood, which he hadn’t seen in almost two months, had a completely different atmosphere. “For Sale” flyers were plastered everywhere, countered by posters and banners protesting the redevelopment. Feeling a sense of unease, Doyul had gone home earlier. In contrast to the chaos outside, the inside of his house was largely unchanged. It was a bit dusty, so he’d opened the windows and vacuumed. He’d sorted through some things to throw away before heading to the restaurant to meet Hyunsoo.

Hyunsoo looked up.

“Let’s start with three servings of large intestines and some soju.”

“Order it.”

Hyunsoo pressed the call button. After they ordered, the grill was brought to their table. Hyunsoo remained silent as the grill and side dishes were set up. Only after the intestines were sizzling on the grill did he speak.

“So, what kind of work are you doing that you’ve been completely out of touch? ”

“I’ve been busy. I’m working out of town.”

“Do you have a place to stay? ”

“Yeah. My workplace provides room and board, so I’m staying there.” Doyul replied, flipping the intestines. Hyunsoo’s eyes narrowed.

“Hey… you haven’t gotten suckered into some pyramid scheme or something, have you? ”

“Of course not! ” Doyul scoffed. The place he was working was worlds better than any pyramid scheme. The air conditioning was great, the house was nice, and the food was delicious. Most importantly, he got to see Woohyun constantly, except when he was sleeping. Hyunsoo, however, looked genuinely concerned.

“If it seems dangerous, get out of there.”

“Do I look clueless to you? ”

“Well, kind of…”

“You don’t want me to pay for this, do you? ”

“…Not at all! You’re incredibly smart.” Hyunsoo quickly changed his tune. Doyul pressed his lips together and cut the intestines with a pair of scissors. He felt like he was being treated like an idiot, even though he was managing just fine. If Hyunsoo knew how much he was getting paid and the kind of environment he was in, he wouldn’t be saying such things. But he couldn’t tell him. Hyunsoo, sensing Doyul’s mood, spoke again, cautiously.

“I just said that because if someone sets out to deceive you, they can clean you out completely.”

“An amoeba doesn’t have anything to be cleaned out of.”

“Look at you holding a grudge,” Hyunsoo said with an exasperated laugh. Doyul tapped his soju glass on the table.

“Fill it up.”

“Yes, sir.” Hyunsoo opened a new bottle of soju and filled Doyul’s glass to the brim. Doyul licked his lips, eyeing the shimmering soju. He flipped the intestines once more and was about to pour soju for Hyunsoo. But Hyunsoo poured his own. Doyul frowned.

“What are you doing? ”

“Another year of being single for you,” Hyunsoo said nonchalantly. He was a ridiculous guy. He’d heard some strange rumor that if the person across from you at a drinking table poured their drink, you’d be single for a year. Ever since, he’d done it every time they met, all while asking Doyul when he was going to get a girlfriend. He should just stop asking. Doyul said sarcastically,

“Thanks a lot.”

“With all the years you’ve accumulated, you’ll probably be single for the next 100 years.”

“If that happens, you’re not getting a wedding gift from me.” Doyul held out his glass. Hyunsoo clinked his glass against Doyul’s.

“I’ll take a refrigerator instead of a wedding gift.”

“Then I want a house.”

“Get a girlfriend first.”

Hyunsoo was fun to meet, but he often got angry. He was basically a good friend, but he was a guy who could get on people’s nerves. When I was in school, I saw him get scolded by his teacher for making a lot of mistakes with his mouth. Thinking about it that way, I realized that people really don’t change. I don’t know how he would treat his lover, but if he treated his lover like he did in front of me now, he would never get married.

Hyunsoo drank his soju and put down the glass. He picked up a piece of sizzling intestine and popped it into his mouth.

“Hot!”

Doyul snickered as Hyunsoo scrambled for water. He then drank his soju and took a deep breath. It had been a while, and the alcohol fumes were strong. He could feel the cold liquor sliding down his throat into his empty stomach.

“Ahhh.”

“You seem to be handling your alcohol well today.” Hyunsoo chuckled at Doyul’s satisfied sigh and poured him more soju. Doyul nodded, drank some water, and picked up a piece of intestine. The alcohol tasted incredibly sweet after such a long time.

“Hey. Have you contacted Min Woohyun? ”

“You disrespectful brat. Call him Hyung. He’s two years older than you.”

“I’d call him hyung if he was in front of me. I hate that guy because he’s unlucky.”

Hyunsoo said with a grunt. Doyul refuted, getting upset at his words.

“He’s probably a jerk to you because you’re disrespectful to him.”

“Have you ever considered that the cause and effect might be reversed? You’re probably the only one in our grade he was nice to. He used to ignore everyone else when they greeted him.”

“Nah. He probably just didn’t see them,” Doyul said, taking another sip of soju. If Woohyun had ignored his friends’ greetings, there must have been a good reason. Hyunsoo beat his chest dramatically.

“You only think that because he wasn’t like that with you! ”

“Well, you believe what you see.”

“Anyway, I didn’t like him because he was a jerk.”

“If you dislike him so much, why are you so interested? ”Doyul said, drinking more soju. Then, before Hyunsoo could pour his own, Doyul quickly grabbed the soju bottle and filled Hyunsoo’s glass.

“Another year of being single for you too.”

“What are you talking about? I have a girlfriend.”

“You got another one already? Didn’t you just break up? ” Hyunsoo shrugged, a smug smile on his face. As far as Doyul knew, it had only been four months since his last breakup.

“I’m pretty capable, you know.”

“Such a fleeting love.”

At that, Hyunsoo raised his voice, offended.

“Hey, Fleeting? I was always sincere! It’s better to make a clean break and start a new love than to drag things out. Nothing makes a person look more pathetic than dragging out a finished relationship.”

This time, Doyul had no comeback. Hyunsoo was right. He was better off than Doyul, who was still pathetically lingering by Woohyun’s side after being rejected. Doyul silently drank his soju and put down his glass. Hyunsoo quickly refilled it. Doyul looked at him, his voice laced with disbelief.

“What are you doing? ”

“I just felt a little uneasy.” Hyunsoo glanced at Doyul and said with a slight smile,

“I’ll take responsibility for keeping your glass full.”

“Are you ordering another bottle of soju? ”

“Sigh, order as much as you like.”

Doyul pressed the call button firmly. He had no intention of going home sober tonight.

* * *

He and Hyunsoo went to a pub for a second round and parted ways just before the last train. On his way home, he stopped by a convenience store. Doyul habitually reached for a cheap beer, then put it back, grinning foolishly.

“I can afford the expensive stuff now.”

He started picking out imported beers, four cans for ten thousand won. He chose four popular-looking beers, paid, and walked home with them in a bag. The walk home felt longer than usual, probably because of the alcohol.

It was slightly cooler than during the day, but still hot even after sunset. As soon as he got home, Doyul put the beers in the refrigerator and took a shower. Then, he turned on the fan and took out one of the chilled beers. Despite the fan, he was starting to sweat again.

“It’s hot.”

He missed Woohyun’s cool house. He wanted to lie on the air-conditioned bed and stroke Woohyun’s hair.

He took a sip of beer and picked up his phone, which he’d left on the floor.

“Huh?”

He had a ton of missed calls and messages, all from an unfamiliar number. He checked the messages first.

Doyul-ah, I got a phone!

What are you doing now?

I’m bored. I want to play with Doyul.

Why aren’t you replying?

You’re not answering your phone either. I guess I’m the only one who misses Doyul.

Checking the call times, he saw one had come in while he was choosing beers at the convenience store and walking home, and another while he was showering.

“When did he call so many times? ”

Doyul quickly pressed the call button. After a few rings, a familiar, welcome voice answered.

“Hello.”

“Hello. Hyung, it’s Doyul. It’s pretty late. Are you still awake? ”

“Yeah. “I can’t sleep,” Woohyun whined. Doyul, his head fuzzy from alcohol, tried to remember if Woohyun had gone back to the villa today or not. Come to think of it, he’d said he was going back as soon as he got his test results. Woohyun was scared of sleeping alone in his room. Doyul felt guilty and asked cautiously,

“Are you still scared of sleeping alone? ”

“Doyul always used to stroke my hair before I went to sleep. I can’t sleep because Doyul isn’t here to stroke my hair.”

A warm, fuzzy feeling spread through his chest. He was happy to hear Woohyun say he couldn’t sleep because he wasn’t there. Doyul chuckled softly.

“I guess I need to come back quickly and stroke your hair.”

“Yeah. Come back soon. I miss you.”

Woohyun’s pleasant voice uttered words Doyul desperately wanted to misinterpret. He felt like their conversation was like one between lovers. The thought made his heart race. Hyung probably just missed him because he was his only friend. He wished those words “I miss you” held a different meaning. But he knew that was just his selfish desire. Doyul hesitated, then said in a trembling voice,

“I… miss you too.”

He’d given up on the dream of always being by Woohyun’s side a long time ago. But surely it was okay to show his affection, as long as Woohyun didn’t find out.

“No, I think I miss you more.”

He knew Woohyun was only saying such things because he’d lost his memories and Doyul was the only person he knew. But hearing those words made his heart feel like it would leap out of his chest. His face grew hot, and a smile spread across his lips.

‘I hate myself so much.’

He felt cheap for being so happy about such words. Woohyun was just treating him as a friend, but Doyul felt like they were in a romantic relationship. The thought filled him with self-loathing.

Seeing these thoughts, he thought he had drunk too much. If he hadn’t been drinking, he wouldn’t have been so shaken by Woohyun’s usual words to him. Doyul drank more of the beer he was holding. Woohyun asked curiously, hearing him gulp on the other end of the phone.

“What are you drinking? ”

“Bee… juice. I’m drinking juice.”

Doyul, his mind clouded by alcohol, wondered if it was okay to be talking to Woohyun in this state. He hadn’t even drunk alcohol at the villa because he didn’t want to negatively influence Woohyun. Talking to someone drunk was probably just as bad. Doyul shook his head to clear it.

“It’s late. You should go to sleep now.”

“I can’t sleep.”

“Still, if you lie down with your eyes closed, you’ll fall asleep eventually.”

He heard a frustrated sigh over the speaker. Doyul chuckled softly. Woohyun said in a disgruntled voice,

“Alright.”

“I’ll come back as soon as I can.”

“Okay.”

“Good night.”

Woohyun said good night too, and they hung up. Doyul stared at the blank screen for a moment, then finished his beer and put the can down. He briefly considered what to save Woohyun’s second number as, then typed in a name.

“Ah… it’s really hot.”

He muttered to himself and picked up another beer. It was too hot; he doubted he’d be able to sleep well tonight.