Chapter Text
Hey girl, open the walls
Play with your dolls
We'll be a perfect family
Wooyoung adjusted the tie around his neck as he waited for his friend, unused to wearing such formal clothes.
“Stop messing with it, you’ll have to redo it at this rate” San said as he smacked his friend’s hand away from his tie for the umpteenth time.
“I can’t help it! Wearing a fancy suit feels so stiff and uncomfortable, I don’t know how Yeosang does this all the time” Wooyoung whined.
“Suck it up, it’s just for one night. I figured you would be a little more used to suits by now. You’ve known Yeosang the longest out of all of us, you’ve been to more of these events than the rest of us combined.”
“That doesn’t mean I like having to wear a suit.”
San huffed in fond exasperation for his friend as the two fell into comfortable silence. As the two continued waiting for their friend, Wooyoung couldn’t help but reminisce all the years he spent with Yeosang. They had met in fifth grade when Wooyoung’s family had moved into the area and he had switched to Yeosang’s school.
It was rather strange the juxtaposition between the two. Wooyoung had switched to a new school partway through the final year of their elementary education and yet he had no issue making a whole group of friends for himself. Yeosang, on the other hand, had lived in that area his whole life, had grown up with all these kids and known them since they were all just learning how to read and write, yet he had no friends to speak of. Wooyoung, being the social butterfly he is, had noticed this and wanted to reach out to this lonesome kid. He figured the other boy was just shy and maybe needed a bit of a helping hand making some friends. Luckily for him, Wooyoung was great at making friends!
It had taken some time and more than a bit of coaxing to earn the shy boy’s trust, but through his hard work and sheer determination Wooyoung had managed to do it. He became good friends with Yeosang so he figured the biggest hurdle was out of the way and from here it would be easy to help him make more friends. Wooyoung had never been so wrong in his life. It turned out that Yeosang didn’t have friends not just because he was shy (which he was) but because he intentionally made it that way.
This bit of info had completely flabbergasted Wooyoung. Why on earth would anyone intentionally not make any friends? As someone who lived to make friends, this concept was absolutely alien to him and he had to get to the bottom of it. Wooyoung pushed and pressed but Yeosang was extremely reluctant to tell him why he didn’t want any more friends. It took even more time and coaxing than it took to become friends with Yeosang for Wooyoung to finally put all the pieces together. You see, Yeosang’s family was rich. Stupid rich. His father was the CEO of one of the biggest corporations in South Korea. By the time Yeosang had reached the 5th grade, he was fed up with all the kids trying to be his friend only for the chance to be invited over to his mansion to play or to possibly get free stuff. No one wanted to be friends with Yeosang for him, only for his money and things.
Yeosang had cried when Wooyoung found out his secret, terrified that their friendship would change, that Wooyoung would end up being just like all the other kids. But Wooyoung remained the same. He still wanted Yeosang to come over to his house to play video games, he still wanted to go to the park and the arcade together. Not once did he ask Yeosang if he could come over and see his mansion, or if he could borrow any of his fancy and expensive toys and gadgets. Wooyoung proved that he genuinely wanted to be friends with Yeosang just because he was Yeosang. Wooyoung felt like he had won the lottery the first time Yeosang had invited him over for a sleepover, not because he got to spend the night in the rich boy’s giant bedroom and play with all the newest toys and games, but because he had finally earned Yeosang’s complete trust.
Since then, the two had been inseparable. They went to the same middle school together, Wooyoung frequently trying to get the other to open up to the idea of making more friends and Yeosang shooting him down every time. It wasn’t until they reached high school that Wooyoung had finally accomplished what he had set out to do when he had first noticed the shy, withdrawn boy in his new school.
They met San in their first month of high school and immediately hit it off with Wooyoung. There had been a bit of drama centering around Yeosang’s insecurity of possibly losing his only friend, but San had inexplicably earned Yeosang’s trust and the duo turned into a trio. (Wooyoung still likes to whine about the fact that he had to work his butt off to get Yeosang to trust him but it only took San a few weeks.)
Shortly after, the trio met Yunho, and with Yunho came his childhood friend Mingi. Three grew to five and Yeosang seemed a little overwhelmed with how much their group seemed to be growing after so many years of self-imposed isolation. However, each and every one of them had proven to be worthy of his trust and Wooyoung was nothing short of ecstatic that he had helped the shy boy get to this point.
It wasn’t until halfway through the first year of high school that Hongjoong had come along. Wooyoung had needed a tutor to help get his Korean grades up (“Seriously Wooyoung,” Yeosang shook his head, “how do you do so bad in Korean? You speak it.”
“Shut up! Writing is hard!” Wooyoung spat back with no real venom) and Hongjoong was appointed to him by the school.
Hongjoong was in the year above them and found Wooyoung endlessly annoying, yet the hyper teen had somehow managed to worm his way into his senior’s heart and Hongjoong found himself dragging his best friend, Seonghwa, over to his junior’s table to eat lunch with him and his friends.
The next year, the group of seven met Jongho when they overheard the sounds of bullying and went to go intervene only to find that a first year had already taken care of it with his quiet strength. Thus the group of eight friends was finally complete.
Wooyoung was snapped out of his thoughts by the sharp sting of a smack on his hand.
“Stop messing with it!” San said.
“I wasn’t!” Wooyoung rebutted, indignant until he glanced down and noticed that his hand was in fact clutching his tie again, “well if the collar on this shirt wasn’t so stiff I wouldn’t feel like my tie was cutting off circulation to my brain!”
“Stop being so dramatic, I’m sure you can handle it for a few hours. Besides, it’s an important event. Twenty-five is a big anniversary, you should feel honored that Yeosang’s parents invited you to their celebration.”
“It’s not like I’m not thankful, I just don’t like suits with unreasonably stiff collars. You talk like you weren’t invited too.”
“You and I both know I was only invited to keep you company because Yeosang won’t be able to stay by your side the whole night” San chuckled.
“Sorry I took so long, you know how my parents are, wanting me to look perfect for these events. Took forever to get my hair and make-up done” Yeosang interrupted the two friends playful bickering as he descended the stairs to greet his friends waiting in one of the many living rooms.
“Yeosang!”
Wooyoung jumped up and ran to give his friend a hug which Yeosang tried to evade but was unsuccessful. “You look amazing!”
He did in fact look amazing, hair and make-up professionally done to compliment his designer suit from the latest collection. Yeosang cried out as Wooyoung planted a kiss on his cheek.
A chuckle sounded from the doorway and Wooyoung looked over to see Yeosang’s father watching them with a fond smile. Wooyoung let go of his friend and smiled back, happy to see the man. Yeosang’s father was known to be one of the most generous, big name CEOs in all of Korea. His corporation enjoyed endless success not just because Mr. Kang was a good business man but because he had an impeccable reputation that drew in business partners and investors like moths to a flame. He was constantly making big donations to charities as well as organizing events to raise even more money for them. Not only did he get involved in public welfare programs but he was even seen volunteering by himself or with his family on occasion when his schedule would allow. This man may have been filthy rich, but unlike many corporate executives, he seemed to give away just as much money as he spent on himself. He was exactly the type of person you would want in his position.
“Wooyoung! So good to see you! How’s the new suit treating you?” he asked as he strode over to his son and his friends.
“Fantastic, I love it, thank you very much!” Wooyoung smiled up at him.
San suppressed the urge to scoff and roll his eyes.
“Splendid! I am so pleased it suits you, I picked out the very best suit from that collection just for you. Can’t have you showing up to my wedding anniversary in any plain old suit now can I? And you, San? How did I do picking out your suit?”
“Wonderful, Sir. Thank you so much for your generosity” San said with a bow.
“Oh please, no need to be so formal. You’re my son’s precious friend, you’re practically family!” Mr. Kang chuckled and pat San on the shoulder, “How have you boys been? Keeping those grades up?”
“Nothing quite like Yeosang’s grades but I’m usually in the top ten of the class” San replied.
“I’m doing okay with mine, Yeosang helps me keep on top of it” Wooyoung chuckled.
“Helping him with his schoolwork is a good way for me to study too” Yeosang quickly chimed in.
Mr. Kang laughed along with the boys and pat Wooyoung on the back. “That’s good to hear. Besides, you’re still teaching him some social skills, right? That can be just as important as academics!”
“Of course!” Wooyoung beamed at him, “Yeosang teaches me book smarts and I teach him street smarts. That’s why we work so well!”
Wooyoung threw an arm over Yeosang’s shoulder and his heart warmed at the small smile on the other boy’s face and the fact that Yeosang hadn’t recoiled away from his touch.
“As much as I would love to continue to catch up with you boys, the party is about to start so you two should head downstairs and Yeosang will catch up with you later.”
Wooyoung and San were led by one of the staff to the ballroom in the Kang mansion where the celebration was to take place. In a few moments, the whole Kang family would make their entrance down the grand staircase and officially start the party.
They didn’t have to wait long until the whole room’s attention was drawn to the staircase as the Kang family descended together to greet their guests. Each member looked amazing dressed in the latest designer fashion. Yeosang’s mom had a gorgeous red gown complimented by dazzling ruby jewelry while his dad and brother wore dashing suits that matched his own.
The whole family beamed at their guests as they applauded and took pictures. Once the noise died down, Mr. Kang stepped forward to address the crowd. “Thank you all so much for joining my family for this most precious and joyous occasion. It feels like it was just yesterday that I was watching my stunning and lovely bride walk down the aisle to join me at the altar. Yet, here we are, already celebrating twenty-five extraordinary years with the love of my life and our two fantastic sons. I truly could not ask for anything more, I have all I need right here” he swept and arm out to gesture to his family as the crowd murmured an aww at the heartwarming words.
“Please, enjoy yourselves this evening. We have so much planned, dinner will be served shortly and I have some fabulous entertainment lined up so grab a drink and some hors d’oeuvres and have some fun!”
The crowd applauded his speech as the family made their way down the rest of the grand staircase and joined the party. Yeosang met up with Wooyoung and San for a bit before he had to join his family at the head of the large banquet table for dinner. An exquisite seven course meal was served before various entertainers performed a variety of different acts for the guests. There was music and dancing to let the guests’ dinner settle and digest before the massive and intricately decorated five-tier cake was brought out. Everyone settled back at the banquet table for dessert and chatted merrily before the clinking of a glass caught their attention.
“Once again I thank you all from the bottom of my heart for attending this most happy celebration,” Mr. Kang had stood up to give his final speech, “I have no words to describe how much joy it brings me to be able to celebrate such a big milestone in our marriage and I look forward to the day that we get to celebrate fifty happy years. That party will be at least twice as good as this one!”
The guests chuckled along with him as they all raised their glasses.
“Now, before we all part ways for the evening,” Mr. Kang continued after setting his glass back down, “I, of course, have something to give to my beautiful wife.”
He pulled out a delicate black velvet box and presented it to Yeosang’s surprised and delighted mother. Opening the box, she revealed a stunning diamond necklace and matching earrings.
“Thank you, Darling, it’s beautiful! I’ll treasure them” she said, standing up to give her husband a kiss on the cheek.
“Only the best and brightest diamonds for the light of my life!”
The guests let out an “aww” once again at the sweet interaction of the couple.
“If I ever get married, I hope I’m just as in love after twenty-five years as they are” Wooyoung leaned over to whisper to San who let out a hum of agreement.
“And finally, one last announcement to make before you are all free to enjoy the rest of your night. As you know, my son, Yeojun, has graduated high school several weeks ago. It is not his wish to enter the family business, instead he will be starting college in a few weeks to pursue his own dreams.”
San noticed something flash in Yeosang’s eyes at this announcement that he couldn’t quite place. Was he unaware that his brother wasn’t going to be taking over for their father one day?
“As his father, I do not want to force a future onto my son that he will not be happy with so I, of course, fully support his decision not to inherit the company. It gives me great honor and pleasure to announce that my youngest son, Yeosang, is the new heir to the corporation!”
Wooyoung watched as his friend’s eyes grew wide in shock as he took in what his father just announced. The guests all clapped and beamed at the newly appointed heir. After some prompting by his father, Yeosang stood up and bowed politely to everyone and gave a small smile as he schooled his appearance. His face was set back in the polite expression he wore most of the night but Wooyoung could tell his friend was reeling from this news.
Mr. Kang finished his speech and let the guest loose to enjoy the last drops of alcohol and mingling before the party fully wound down. Wooyoung and San sought out their friend to congratulate him.
“Yeosang!” Wooyoung exclaimed when he spotted the other in the crowd.
He ran up to his friend and gave Yeosang a big hug. “I can’t believe you’re going to be a big CEO someday!”
“Yeah…me either” he said in a daze, like he was still trying to catch up with this turn of events.
“Did you know you’re brother wasn’t going to take over?” San asked.
Yeosang shook his head. “No, not at all. I had no idea any of this was happening.”
“Hey, if I end up failing high school can you promise me a position in your company?” Wooyoung said.
San smacked his shoulder and shook his head.
“What? I was just asking! It doesn’t have to be anything important! Just a small office job would be fine with me. What’s the point in having connections if you don’t use them?”
Yeosang let out a small chuckle at his friends antics. “Sure, Wooyoung.”
Wooyoung pumped his fist in celebration and San gave him a shove on the shoulder. “What was that for?!” Wooyoung squawked.
“For exploiting our friend.”
“I was not exploiting him! I was just securing my own future! Not all of us can be good at school like you guys.”
Yeosang huffed out a small laugh at his friends once again. Wooyoung looked over at him and really took in his appearance for the first time since the announcement. As much as Yeosang was trying to appear normal, he noted the paler than usual expression, the wide, unfocused eyes, and fingers that refused to stop fidgeting. “Hey, you okay?” he asked in a soft tone, a stark contrast to his loud, boisterous voice just a moment ago.
“Hm? Oh, yeah. I just…it’s a bit overwhelming…kind of a lot to take in, you know?”
“You’re gonna be great, okay? You’re the smartest person I know and this is a great opportunity for you. Your future is basically all set!”
Wooyoung patted his friend on the back and gave him an encouraging smile.
“You have all of us to rely on too. Don’t forget that” San chimed in.
“Yeah…I won’t” Yeosang gave a small uncertain smile before his father made his way over.
“Well boys, as much as I’m sure you all want to celebrate this good news with my son, my drivers still need to get you two back home and I don’t want to keep them out too late” he said as he placed an arm around Yeosang.
“Of course, thank you for letting us come and for the ride back home” Wooyoung bowed.
“Yes, thank you for everything you did for us. It was a lovely evening” San said as he bowed as well.
“Oh, don’t even mention it! It’s my pleasure to take care of my son’s precious friends.”
They all bid goodnight to each other as Wooyoung and San headed outside to the car that was waiting to take them home.
“Do you think Yeosang is okay?” San asked after they got settled into the back seats.
“Yeah, I think he’s just shocked. I’m pretty sure he always thought his brother was going to take over the company. He’s never really known how to handle big surprises like that, I think he just needs a bit of time to process” Wooyoung replied.
San hummed in acknowledgement, but he couldn’t shake the feeling that Yeosang wasn’t just merely shocked at the news. There seemed to be a whole storm of emotions flickering through his wide eyes that night and none of them had seemed very pleasant. At times he thought he caught a hint of fear but it was difficult to tell with how hard Yeosang was trying to mask his emotions. Wooyoung didn’t seem to be too worried, but San decided to keep an eye on Yeosang just in case.
Wooyoung, on the other hand, was full of excitement for his friend. He was so proud of Yeosang for earning such a huge role and while it seemed to come as a big shock he was sure Yeosang could do it. He always saw such great potential in his friend and he was sure that the nerves that he saw in Yeosang that night was just his own insecurities in his ability to fulfill this great responsibility. Wooyoung later wished he had taken San a little more seriously and looked a bit closer at Yeosang’s reaction to the news.