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Despite having been coworkers for years, Seong Gi-hun could honestly say that he knew very little of Hwang In-ho. He knew the man had a reputation as a cold, quiet and somewhat cunning individual, but the actual interactions he’d had with In-ho could be counted on one hand. He knew the look in his eyes when was annoyed by the antics of their louder coworkers, how the corner of his mouth twitched when he was laser focused on something, the scent of his cologne as they passed each other in the breakroom. But Hwang In-ho as a person was a mystery to him. What he liked, disliked, what were his friends and family like, where he lived, what were his dreams and goals- he had no idea.
He sometimes wished he did, though. Mr. Hwang intrigued him. He respected the other man highly, as he was not only very accomplished in their field but also someone Gi-hun aspired to be. Someone who didn’t care about what others thought, someone who did what he thought was right no matter the personal consequences he might have to face. Gi-hun remembered how last year Kim Jun-hee, an intern at the time, had been bossed around and made to do tasks that were not a part of her job description by some of the higher ups, and how Mr. Hwang had been the only one to speak up against it. He had risked his working relationship with the browbeaters, and Gi-hun admired that.
He wished he could be Hwang In-ho’s friend, but befriending him wasn’t exactly easy. Gi-hun had tried, well, he never really stopped trying, even though others might have after trying so hard and never succeeding. Jung-bae, his other co-worker and good friend, told him multiple times to let it go already, that Gi-hun was only making himself seem foolish with his attempts. But Gi-hun didn’t care; he wanted Hwang In-ho to at least know Gi-hun respected him and would be honoured to receive his friendship, if nothing else.
Mr. Hwang never really pushed him away, per se, but didn’t really let him in, either. When Gi-hun would attempt to have a conversation with him, he’d alternate between intense eye contact and staring off to the distance, looking anywhere but Gi-hun, which confused him. He would also answer politely enough, but not really engage in the conversation as one normally would. Gi-hun assumed he wasn’t particularly interested in him, as he was in a slightly lower position than Mr. Hwang; surely he had more in common with the other people his rank.
All this to say, when he was sitting against a wall, bruises all over his face, and his nose bleeding, he never would have expected Hwang In-ho to be the one standing over him, looking… concerned? Almost afraid?
Two hours ago everything had still been normal, nothing out of the ordinary; it was Friday, and Gi-hun had gone out to the local bar with a few colleagues from the same floor as him. The group was big enough to include Mr. Hwang, but this also made it that much harder for Gi-hun to interact with him, as the other man remained close to the same people he always did, higher ups that Gi-hun could never really tell if he actually liked or just tolerated for their possible future usefulness. On the way to the bar, he’d occasionally glanced at Mr. Hwang, who seemed completely disengaged in the whole situation, just staring ahead.
One time when he’d snuck a glance at him, though, he’d found In-ho already looking at him, but the moment their eyes met, Mr. Hwang looked away, without a single perceptible change in his expression. Like it didn’t phase him at all. Perhaps it didn't. Gi-hun had felt his cheeks warming at the fact he’d been looking at him, but also his heart sinking slightly when the sudden eye contact had equally as suddenly disappeared. He assumed Mr. Hwang didn’t want him to know that he’d looked over at Gi-hun, because he didn’t want to pay him any additional attention. He was probably sick of Gi-hun’s incessant friendliness, and just wanted the man to back off.
So he did. Or at least he attempted to. After the unexpected eye contact, Gi-hun forbade himself from looking over at Mr. Hwang. He didn’t want to make the other man uncomfortable. The work week had been long and rough, everyone on Gi-hun’s floor working tirelessly on a surprise project their boss had thrown at them at the last minute. But they’d succeed, nonetheless, mostly thanks to Mr. Hwang. The man deserved to relax, and Gi-hun would do his part to make that happen.
Once at the bar, the group had divided into smaller ones, some gathering around the pool table, others crowding the bar to watch a game of football as they drank. Gi-hun stuck by his closest colleagues, Jung-bae, Cho Sang-woo, Ali Abdul and Kang Sae-byeok, who had also brought along her girlfriend, Ji-yeong. Ji-yeong didn't work at the same company as the others, but she and Sae-byeok came as a matching set one could barely separate, so no one really batted an eye when she tagged along.
The group ordered their drinks, Gi-hun, Sang-woo and Ji-yeong opting for soju, while the others preferred beer, and found a booth big enough for all of them. They settled into a friendly conversation, congratulating themselves over the week’s triumphs, praising each other, and toasting to the weekend. With good company and great drinks, time flew by so fast Gi-hun forgot all about Mr. Hwang, at least until Ji-yeong decided to bring it up, much to Gi-hun’s chagrin.
“Man, Gi-hun, it’s great to see you paying attention to something other than Mr. Hwang for once”, she quipped, clearly already a bit drunk after a few shots.
Gi-hun looked up at his friend, feeling the blush creeping onto his face. Ji-yeong’s words came so out of nowhere he felt his heart rate immediately pick up. He swallowed the soju he’d been sipping and tried to mask his sudden nervousness with an awkward laugh, but couldn't stop his eyes from darting all over the faces of his friends.
“What do you mean? I always pay attention to you guys when we hang out”, he tried, but as he met the eyes of Sang-woo, he immediately knew how unconvincing he sounded.
Sang-woo, who he’d known since childhood, simply raised one eyebrow, but didn’t say anything. Jung-bae, on the other hand, let out a snicker, nearly choking on his beer. Sae-byeok had to pat him on the back to make him stop coughing.
“Dude, you can’t be serious. Yeah, you never ignore us when we’re together, but please, everyone sees how your eyes are always wandering, especially if he’s near”, Jung-bae got out in between the coughing and the snickering.
Gi-hun let out an offended sound, looking to his other friends for help, but received nothing else than quiet agreement from Sang-woo and Sae-byeok, who wore creepily similar calm expressions, cool as cucumbers.
“Guys? I don’t do that, do I?”
“I literally caught you doing it five times during the walk here”, Sae-byeok said, and Ji-yeong nodded a few times with an evil grin on her face.
“You do have a tendency to look for him with your eyes”, Sang-woo agreed.
As his last ditch effort, Gi-hun turned to Ali, who conveniently just happened to take a sip of his beer. When everyone turned to stare at him, though, he quickly swallowed and tried to smile, but Gi-hun already knew what was coming.
“I don’t see it as a problem, but I do have to admit that they’re right… but I have actually seen Mr. Hwang sometimes staring at you, too, so it’s not that big of a deal.”
What.
“Mr. Hwang staring at me? Don’t make me laugh. Sure, maybe he sometimes glances at me while looking around the room, but-”
“I’ve seen it too”, Sae-byeok interrupted, “and Ali’s right. He’s not glancing, Gi-hun. He’s staring.”
“Oh god, don’t encourage him”, Jung-bae wailed, tilting his head back, “now I’ll never hear the end of is he looking at me, are you sure, are you sure he’s not looking at me, what about now. Think of the consequences, Sae-byeok… The consequences!”
“Shut up, this is Gi-hun’s happiness we’re talking about here!” Ji-yeong said, slamming a hand on the table.
“ I do not sound like that…” Gi-hun complained, his face feeling warmer and warmer by the minute.
He was fighting the urge to look for Mr. Hwang with his eyes, but resisted, knowing what hell would be unleashed if he did.
Jung-bae laughed at the comment, and even Sang-woo let out a small chuckle, to which Gi-hun turned to him with a look of disbelief. The betrayal! Sang-woo noticed his stare, and tried to disguise it with a cough, but as Gi-hun didn’t look away, he relented:
“Gi-hun, you have to admit that you’re a little bit obsessed with him. It’s cute, for sure, but I think you should learn how to let go.”
“I’m not obsessed with anyone”, Gi-hun argued, and hated how unconvincing he sounded.
“It’s not a bad thing”, Ali said, “you’ve just got a crush.”
The table went silent. Gi-hun’s eyes widened and his heart, already beating fast, now started hammering so hard he feared the others might hear it. He swallowed slowly, fingers tightening around the soju glass, desperately racking his brain on what to say. The alcohol in his system as well as his general awkwardness made him land on the pathetic:
“I do not.”
No one answered immediately, so Gi-hun lifted his head to meet their gazes, and found nothing but skepticism in his friends’ eyes. It was clear; no one was buying it.
“It’s incredibly obvious, dude. You shouldn’t try to deny it”, Ji-yeong said then.
“You- I can’t believe this. I do not have a crush on Mr. Hwang!”
“What would you call it then?” Sae-byeok challenged, crossing her arms.
Gi-hun blinked. He wasn’t prepared for a conversation about how he felt about Mr. Hwang out of all people to last this long.
“I-”
“You stare at him, you find ways to bring him up in conversation, even if he has quite nothing to do with the subject matter, you go to the break room very shortly after he does, and now, when accused of having a crush on him, you blush like a schoolgirl”, Sang-woo laid out callously. “Gi-hun, if that’s not having a crush, I don’t know what is.”
“Sang-woo”, Gi-hun cried, “where’s your loyalty?”
“You should be loyal to yourself, and admit how you feel.”
Gi-hun felt deflated, and his shoulders sank. His eyes fell to his soju glass, which he then picked up in one fluid motion and knocked back the beverage. As he lowered the glass, he let out a forfeiting sigh and grumbled:
“You guys don’t get it. He’s just… The man exceeds confidence. Nothing can get to him. What, is it illegal to find someone like that admirable? I just… We’re not even friends, really. But you all know how much I’d like to be his friend. That’s all this is, strong admiration and friendship.” He paused for a moment, gathering his courage. “And even if I… What would it matter, if I did feel more for him? He clearly doesn’t feel the same, so why care? I’d never have a chance.”
No one answered for a while, but the atmosphere had changed dramatically from playful and teasing to serious and emotional. Jung-bae reached for Gi-hun’s hand quietly.
“Hey now, don’t sell yourself short, Gi-hun. We’re just teasing, and I’m sorry if it got too far. You’re an amazing guy and I for one consider myself lucky to be your friend”, he said, offering Gi-hun a genuine smile, which lifted his spirits and made the corners of his lips twitch up as well.
“He’s right. I’m sorry, too. We were just messing around”, Sae-byeok added, still not smiling but eyes shimmering in a way Gi-hun knew she meant what she said. “If anything, Mr. Hwang would be lucky to have you.”
Gi-hun blushed at that, but couldn’t help but laugh at her words as well.
“Yeah, you might even be a good influence on him, if we really think about it. I mean, Gi-hun’s such a ray of sunshine, Mr. Hwang could benefit from that, you know how he has a real stick up his-”
Ji-yeong’s words were interrupted by Sang-woo smacking the back of her head, which she yelped at.
“Ow! What was that for?” she complained, rubbing the back of her head.
“There’s no need to use such language, especially at the risk of the person we’re discussing overhearing”, Sang-woo said calmly.
“Ugh, like he’d be interested in a conversation that doesn’t involve spreadsheets or deadlines.”
“Oh, so it’s perfectly reasonable to risk it? We’re still coworkers, and he’s our superior, Ji-yeong. I’m just making sure you don’t jeopardize our careers.”
“Jeopardize, leopardize. You wanna go, old man? I could take you. Sae-byeok has said so herself.”
At this, Sang-woo turned to look at Sae-byeok, who stared back nonchalantly.
“Really?” he beckoned, raising his eyebrows. “I don’t want to bring up gender here, but I am factually physically stronger.”
“And Ji-yeong could still take you. She could take any of you, I’d say. You don’t know what she’s capable of.”
Sang-woo scoffed. Gi-hun, Jung-bae and Ali followed this exchange between their friends with great interest, laughing at their antics. As Ji-yeong placed her arm on the table, beckoning Sang-woo to arm wrestle her, Gi-hun was glad all the attention was now completely off of him. He sipped more of his soju, until he noticed Ali looking at him. He blinked, lowering his glass and leaning towards him.
“What’s up?” he asked in a hushed tone.
Ali didn’t answer immediately, just looked quickly to the side and then back at Gi-hun without moving his head, hinting to look in the same direction. Slowly, Gi-hun did, and his heart nearly jumped out of his chest as he saw Hwang In-ho standing at the bar, staring straight at him. When caught, Mr. Hwang’s face again showed very little sign of a reaction, but he looked away quickly. Gi-hun’s heart stammered, and Ali’s words from earlier rang in his ears. But he couldn’t understand why. Why would Mr. Hwang stare at him? Maybe there were other plausible reasons - they were loud, for one - but the only one Gi-hun could think of made him blush deeper. He remade eye contact with Ali, who gave him a polite but knowing smile. Gi-hun looked away bashfully, and drank the rest of his glass at once.
The night wore on, more drinks were purchased, but the topic of Gi-hun and Hwang In-ho was seemingly abandoned for good. Eventually Gi-hun had to step outside to smoke, while his friends stayed in. It was a cold evening, and Gi-hun felt slightly under dressed for the weather as he stepped outside and was hit with a blast of freezing wind. He decided to round the corner to an alley, where the wind would not be as strong. Would make it easier for him to light the damn cigarette, as well.
But as he neared said corner, he heard noise. He paused. Yelping. Thuds, violent ones, like someone was being hit. A deep, male voice, aggressive and loud. Gi-hun couldn't really make it out due to the wind, but the voice sounded threatening. There was another voice, male as well, pleading and crying. Gi-hun froze. Someone was being seriously hurt.
Carefully and as quietly as he could, he peeked over to see the commotion, and as he’d expected, a few metres from him there stood two men, one with blood and bruises forming on his face, trying to shield his face from the other man, who was taller, heavier, and stood with his fist raised, knuckles already bloody. His other hand grasped the front of the smaller man’s shirt.
Gi-hun didn’t know what the fight was about, all he knew was that someone was being hurt. And he couldn’t just stand by and let it happen. Mr. Hwang wouldn't have just let it happen. So admittedly without a lot of thinking, he stepped into the alley and yelled:
“Hey! What’s your problem? Whatever it is, don’t you think it’d be better to solve it without hurting someone?”
The thug turned his head to look at him, clearly pissed off. The victim of the violence also turned to look, eyes full of fear and confusion.
“What’s it to you, beanpole? How about you mind your own fucking business and let me deal with mine?” the thug yelled back.
“I don’t think this is a productive way of dealing with any business”, Gi-hun fired back, walking closer to the scene.
He met the eyes of the man who was being attacked. In them, he found panic, but also an imperceptible message of please, for your sake, do not get involved. But Gi-hun was too committed now; he wasn’t about to back off.
“Really, why do all this? You’ve already given him repercussions of whatever wrong you’ve accused him of. So why don’t you just leave it for now, go home and sleep. When you wake up tomorrow, you might feel better that you left it at that.”
The thug’s eyes narrowed, and he let go of the smaller man’s shirt, instead beginning to trudge towards Gi-hun. The smaller man, now free, quickly touched his face, before backing away slowly, and then full-on sprinting away. The thug was now laser focused on Gi-hun, which, if he’d been sober, might have deterred him to do exactly as the previous victim had and run like hell, but alas, he wasn’t. He stood firm as the thug approached, eyeing him up and down with vitriol in his gaze.
“So, what? You think you’re some kinda hero? You don’t even know what this was all about. And I don’t like people putting their fucking noses where they don’t belong.”
“I’m not scared of someone like you. You think you can walk around and intimidate people into doing what you want because you’re big, but really you’re just pathetic. What kind of a man needs to hurt someone to get their point across?”
At that, the thug swung, letting out a frustrated grunt, and Gi-hun tried to dodge, but the alcohol in his system messed with his coordination. The hit landed square on his cheek and nose, pain exploding inside him. He fell back, yelping, but managed to catch himself against the wall of the alley. Catching his breath, he could taste metal in his mouth. He brought his fingers to his top lip and touched it feather lightly. Blood. His nose was bleeding. Not how he had expected this night to go at all. He gasped at the sight, then looked back at the thug. The man was shaking his hand out, wringing his fingers. He had a spiteful grin on his face, and anger bubbled inside of Gi-hun. He needed to wipe that grin off immediately.
So he lunged forward, swinging back at the man, managing to hit him on the chin, making him stagger back slightly and groan in pain. He’d clearly caught the thug off guard, but the element of surprise was now gone. Anger burned in the thug’s eyes as he surged forward then, bruising forming on his chin, and caught Gi-hun by the elbows, spun him around, trapping his arms with one hand, and pushed him roughly against the brick wall. The altercation worsened the injuries he'd already suffered even more, and the rough surface of the wall scraped the skin of his face. As he held him there, pushing him harder against the wall, delighting in the desperate grunts and yelps Gi-hun was making, the thug leaned in next to his ear and whispered:
“That all you got, beanpole?”
Gi-hun seethed with anger, he wanted nothing more than to rip the man off of him and shove him against the wall, see how he liked it, but before he could do anything, there was a sound. Then the pressure pushing him against the wall suddenly disappeared. The hand squeezing his arms together so hard it hurt suddenly let go. Gi-hun couldn’t see what was happening before he heard the thug now sounding panicked and confused, and then he heard the crack of a fist meeting skin. Someone yelped in pain.
Aware he was no longer being pushed against the wall, Gi-hun turned around slowly to see the man he’d been fighting laying on the ground, holding his rapidly bruising face, letting out small grunts of pain. He gawked at the sight, but then he realized there was someone beside him. He turned to look, and his heart stammered at the sight. There he was, none other than Hwang In-ho himself, rubbing his knuckles, holding his fist. The fist he’d just planted on the thug’s face.
All Gi-hun could do was stare. Hwang In-ho. The mysterious Hwang In-ho was here, in front of him, seemingly having just saved him from a way worse beat down. Mr. Hwang stared at the thug, his eyes full of rage and his chest heaving, and spat out:
“Don’t you dare call him that.”
Why was he so mad?
The words, paired with the intensity, made Gi-hun’s face feel warm. He couldn’t take his eyes off of In-ho. His heart was hammering in his chest. His nose was throbbing with pain, but he barely acknowledged it. Hwang In-ho was here. And Hwang In-ho had just punched a man… for Gi-hun.
The thought made his knees give out, and he slid down to sit, leaning his back against the wall. The movement made In-ho look at him, and they made eye contact for the first time since that moment inside the bar. Mr. Hwang seemed almost surprised, then horrified, and Gi-hun realised the man was assessing his injuries. Huh. Must look pretty bad then.
Gi-hun swallowed roughly, forcing himself to look down at his hands. He’d hurt his knuckles from punching the thug, not very badly as there was no blood, but he estimated there would be bruises tomorrow. He sighed, leaning his head back against the wall and closing his eyes. The alcohol was starting to wear off, and as a consequence, Gi-hun was beginning to seriously regret his actions.
Mr. Hwang seemed to stare at him for a moment longer, before turning back to the thug. He walked closer to him and said:
“Get out of here. Right. Fucking. Now.”
It was so intimidating that even though it wasn’t directed at him, Gi-hun felt the sudden urge to run. Clearly so did the thug, as he scrambled up, still holding onto his face, and disappeared down the alley, just as the previous victim had not that long ago. Gi-hun wondered briefly if those two might meet again and render his actions completely pointless.
Mr. Hwang sighed, straightening his jacket, then his cuffs. Gi-hun allowed himself to open his eyes again, and looked at his savior with mixed emotions filling his heart and brain. Slowly, he swallowed again, before getting out a quiet:
“Thank you.”
Mr. Hwang stilled. He let go of his cuffs, and turned to look at Gi-hun again. Concern etched onto his features as he took in Gi-hun’s face yet again. His eyes flitted around Gi-hun's nose, his cheeks, his lips- Gi-hun felt almost bashful under his gaze.
“What happened?” Mr. Hwang asked, taking a few steps closer to Gi-hun.
Gi-hun averted his eyes. In hindsight, everything he'd done felt incredibly stupid. He never would have been able to stand up to the thug.
But he knew he couldn't never have just let what he saw happen.
"He was threatening and hurting this guy. I stepped in... and provoked him."
"Why would you provoke him?" Mr. Hwang asked, confusion clear in his voice.
“I… I don’t know, really. I was drunk, he was picking a fight with someone clearly physically weaker than him… I just- I couldn’t let it happen.”
“But you’re also physically weaker than him.”
“Yeah, but at least then the other guy wouldn’t have been alone.”
Mr. Hwang’s eyes widened. He blinked a few times, then looked down at his shoes and chuckled.
“You really are… something else.”
Gi-hun didn’t quite know what he meant, but it made him blush anyway. Mr. Hwang looked him in the eye again, this time with a small, heart-stuttering smile, and held out his hand. Gi-hun blinked at the hand, blush deepening on his cheeks as he slowly accepted it and let Mr. Hwang pull him up.
As he stood, he noted that Mr. Hwang was actually slightly shorter than him, and had to look up to make eye contact with Gi-hun. For some reason, that thought made his heart start hammering again.
Mr. Hwang hadn’t let go of his hand yet.
Neither had Gi-hun.
“Come on”, Mr. Hwang said then, “there’s a first aid kit in my car.”
Before Gi-hun could say anything, he was pulled away from the alley. His hand still enveloped by Mr. Hwang’s, he knew he should probably pull it away, say he could follow Mr. Hwang even without holding his hand, but ultimately did nothing. And who could blame him? This was something he’d only dreamed of.
Mr. Hwang led him to a car parked a little bit away from the bar, closer to their workplace actually. He unlocked it, and opened the passenger side door for Gi-hun. If he wasn’t already a blushing mess, he was now.
Gi-hun slipped inside and closed the door, and watched as Mr. Hwang did the same, and then pulled out the first aid kit from the glove compartment. He opened it up, grabbed the antiseptic and some cotton pads, poured some of the liquid onto the pads, and then held them up, hand getting closer and closer to Gi-hun’s face. As he made contact, wiping at the blood around Gi-hun’s nose and lips, Gi-hun flinched. Mr. Hwang pulled back, looking into his eyes to silently ask permission to continue. Gi-hun nodded, and Mr. Hwang continued softly to clean up the injuries.
“How much of it did you see?” Gi-hun asked then, as Mr. Hwang was dabbing at the skin between his nose and top lip.
“Just the very end. I saw you were pushed up against the wall and just- acted before thinking.”
“Acted without thinking? You punched him so hard he fell to the ground!” Gi-hun protested.
Mr. Hwang stopped dabbing at his lip, and looked Gi-hun in the eye.
“Should I not have? He seemed to have you quite in a pinch.”
Gi-hun sighed, turning his head away as he was unable to keep his composure under the stare of Hwang In-ho's eyes. Those beautiful, dark eyes...
“I’m not saying you shouldn’t have, I just… I don’t understand why. Why were you outside to begin with?”
Mr. Hwang threw away the cotton pad, and closed the bottle of antiseptic firmly, not looking at Gi-hun or answering immediately. Gi-hun could tell he was thinking hard of how to word it. He let him take his time, even if the anticipation and confusion was overwhelming him. Mr. Hwang took a breath and started speaking, still not looking at him.
“I noticed you weren’t with your group. That in and of itself wasn’t enough to tip me off, but then when you were gone for a while… Your friends were getting worried, so I decided I’d come check… and there you were.”
Gi-hun blinked at the words.
“You noticed I was away for a while?” he asked quietly, seeking eye contact.
Mr. Hwang turned to him slowly, granting him his attention. In his eyes, there was a glimmer of worry that made Gi-hun’s heart rate quicken yet again.
“I always notice you, Mr. Seong.”
Gi-hun’s eyes widened at that, and he let out a small, involuntary gasp. Mr. Hwang wasn’t looking away, and neither was Gi-hun. Then he scoffed a little. It didn't feel real, to be having this conversation.
“You say that like it’s obvious.”
“Isn’t it?”
“Not to me”, Gi-hun said quietly, tearing his eyes away from his coworker. “I had a feeling you didn’t care about me at all.”
Mr. Hwang’s brows furrowed in confusion.
“Why did you think that?” he asked softly.
“Well, because- because you never talk to me.”
“I do talk to you. I’m talking to right now, Mr. Seong.”
“I know, I know, but I mean- at the office. When I try to make conversation, you give very curt, one off answers and never ask the same questions back at me. That to me is a pretty clear indication of your indifference, Mr. Hwang.”
“I’m not indifferent”, Mr. Hwang said, lowering his gaze to his hands, “I just… I’m not good at casual conversations.”
Huh?
“What do you mean?” Gi-hun couldn’t help but ask. “You converse pretty easily with the other higher ups all the time, like tonight for example.”
“That’s because those are always, without fail, about work. Work I can talk about. Work makes sense. I know work. Casual conversations, on the other hand - how are you, what was your weekend like, did you see that new movie - those I don’t know. I can attempt that with the other coworkers, sure, because they don’t matter. I don’t care if I leave a bad impression on them. But you…”
Gi-hun wasn’t sure he was ready for what Mr. Hwang would say next, as he was already a blushing mess and with the way this conversation was going, he wasn’t expecting it to get any better.
“You matter. I don’t want to leave a bad impression on you. But the problem is that I’m rarely ready for a conversation with you. You… You don’t know what you do to me, Mr. Seong. You have such positive energy within you, an energy I enjoy, and I'm afraid that one wrong word from me would sour your opinion of me so bad you’d never let me feel your sunshine again.”
Yup. Gi-hun was right. This wasn’t making him feel any less of a blushing mess.
“I had…no idea you could ever feel this way, Mr. Hwang. I’ve misjudged you horribly- I thought you just didn't like me that much, not that... you were just anxious.”
Mr. Hwang chuckled quietly.
“It’s not on you, it’s on me for not knowing how to communicate properly. I’m working on it, it’s just… I wasn’t raised in the healthiest household when it came to communication.”
“Mr. Hwang, I’m so sorry. That’s awful”, Gi-hun said, instinctively reaching out to touch his face. As his fingertips graced Mr. Hwang’s chin, they both jolted, remaking eye contact yet again. Gi-hun blushed, ready to pull back, but to his surprise, Mr. Hwang leaned into the touch.
“This”, he whispered, “This is the sunshine I’ve been craving.”
Heart hammering in his chest, Gi-hun tentatively let his fingers brush over Mr. Hwang’s skin, before softly cupping his cheek. Mr. Hwang leaned into it, almost nuzzling Gi-hun's hand, and let out a sigh. Gi-hun gasped involuntarily at the sound, blushing yet again.
“It’s a bit on me, too, though…” Gi-hun began, letting his thumb trace a pattern to Mr. Hwang’s cheek. “I could’ve asked you why you weren’t so responsive.”
“Don’t worry about that now. And even if I was cold, even if I seemed indifferent, you still made the effort. I thought many times that my inability to hold up a conversation would drive you away eventually, but you always came back. Always.”
Then he got quiet.
“Except tonight”, he said then. "Tonight... you didn't greet me. No small talk, either. You barely even looked at me."
“I- I didn’t wanna bother you.”
“You could never”, Mr. Hwang confessed, placing his hand on top of Gi-hun’s, still resting on his face, “I think I have a crush on you.”
Gi-hun stilled, instantly brought back to the conversation he'd had with his friends, and a horrifying realisation sunk in.
“Did you hear that?” he asked quietly, shrinking into himself in shame.
“You had my attention even before that, because for once, you wouldn’t look at me. I liked turning my head and finding that you were already looking at me, you know, but it barely happened tonight. So I admit, I stared sometimes. And of course, Mr. Park and Ms. Kang’s girlfriend are often loud at these gatherings, so it wasn’t hard to overhear”, Mr. Hwang explained, and then added, “you weren’t exactly quiet either.”
“I shouldn’t have said it so loud…”
“Your tone was also… not very convincing.”
Gi-hun groaned, tearing his hand away from Mr. Hwang’s face to hide his own. Mr. Hwang chuckled, reaching over to touch Gi-hun’s shoulder, making him jump.
“Why are you embarrassed? I just said I have a crush on you. You have made no such declarations. In fact, you’ve loudly claimed the opposite.”
“Shut up. The fact I had to yell that so loud with a tone you just described as unconvincing tells everyone within a kilometre radius that I do in fact have a crush on you.”
“Then, shouldn’t you be happy that I’ve just told you I return your feelings?”
Gi-hun blinked, suddenly hyper aware of what exactly Mr. Hwang had said.
“Wait… you have a crush on me too?” he asked quietly.
Mr. Hwang looked at him, this time with genuine confusion.
“Did you not hear me? Mr. Seong, I’ve said twice- three times now.”
“I guess it just… didn’t sink in before…”
His eyes bore into Gi-hun with such genuine shock and confusion that Gi-hun almost had to look away.
“You’ve got to be joking.”
“I’m not.”
“Do you need me to say it a fourth time?”
“I thought you were just making fun of me saying it…” Gi-hun groaned with embarrassment, but then looked up at Mr. Hwang again. “Wait… could you?”
Mr. Hwang let out a scoffing laugh.
“Only because I like you so much.”
He leaned forward, keeping intense eye contact and his hand on Gi-hun’s shoulder as he whispered:
“I have a crush on you, Seong Gi-hun. I really, really like you.”
Gi-hun’s heart could’ve exploded with happiness at that moment. He smiled so wide it almost hurt his cheeks, leaned even closer to Mr. Hwang and confessed right back:
“I have a crush on you too, Hwang In-ho. A massive one, really. One I had such trouble hiding that all my friends called me out on my shit tonight. And they were right. I really, really, really like you too.”
“I was wondering what that conversation was about”, Mr. Hwang laughed.
“You, mostly”, Gi-hun said, then added, “In-ho.”
He saw In-ho eyes widen at that, surprise painting his features, but then a small blush crept onto his face, and he smiled widely.
“Gi-hun.”
“Yes?”
“Can I kiss you?”
“Did you clean all the blood off?”
In-ho chuckled.
“Yes.”
“Then yes, you can.”
It didn’t take long to close the distance, as they were already very close, but the moment their lips met for the first time, something wonderful exploded inside of Gi-hun, and he sighed in contentment, bringing his hands to cup In-ho’s face yet again. In-ho responded by kissing him again and again, softly at first, then with a bit more passion as he leaned closer over, wrapping his arms almost possessively around Gi-hun’s waist. The action made Gi-hun’s breath hitch, and he let his arms tangle around In-ho’s neck, pulling them flush against each other. In-ho kissed him deeply, and as they ran out of breath, they pulled apart, staring at each other with tender contentment. Gi-hun smiled so hard his cheek hurt, letting his fingers softly trace patterns into the skin of In-ho's neck as they were catching their breaths. Suddenly In-ho leaned back even more, removing one hand from Gi-hun's waist only to adjust his seat enough to pull Gi-hun onto his lap with one fell swoop.
Gi-hun gasped again - the coworker he’d barely known an hour ago had just lifted him onto his lap like it was nothing. In-ho smiled at him, a genuine soft smile that made Gi-hun’s heart stutter. His hands came back to Gi-hun’s waist, enveloping him in In-ho’s arms. He felt safe - he might be reckless and impulsive, but In-ho saw beyond that. And he’d chosen to leave his colleagues, the people he got along with, to go look for Gi-hun, just because he’d been gone too long. And when he’d seen Gi-hun being hurt, he hadn’t even thought or hesitated for a moment- he’d just acted, as he’d said. Gi-hun’s heart swelled with affection for this man, and surged forward to plant another soft kiss on his lips. In-ho responded with equal enthusiasm, claiming Gi-hun’s mouth with hunger, squeezing his waist like his life depended on it.
Neither would have ever guessed the night would end like this. Neither was complaining, either.
Back at the bar, Ji-yeong, almost the full bottle of soju in, asked:
“Have you noticed that Gi-hun and Mr. Hwang have been away for a while?”