Chapter Text
“Come find me when you’re on your break” Yeonjun said.
Yeonjun. Choi Yeonjun. It all started just like that, when Kai found a retail job at the shopping mall in the city centre, in a women’s clothing shop. His head feeling numb and his vision blurry due to him skipping both breakfast and lunch that day and the strong neon lights everywhere in the shop. They were set up on the ceiling, the walls and on top of some shelves.
It made Kai wondered who the designer was and how much crack they smoked for turning that specific type of shop into the perfect mix of an underground techno club and his dad’s garage.
His manager leaving and disappearing behind the staff room door to grab some of the ugliest orange t-shirts for a customer let Kai have a bit of time to sneak behind the till and sip some water. Jesus, a hard candy or a chocolate bar would have been way better to help him not feeling dizzy anymore - that’s what he thought.
He was placing his water bottle down when a random guy entered the shop, eyes looking around but not in a way that would make you think he has never been there. He clearly was looking for someone.
The urgency made him stop walking to scrutinise every single person who was currently in the shop, his hands resting on his hips. Kai couldn’t not notice his outfit. The guy was fully dressed in black, some silver details here and there, from the key chain attached to his belt to his earrings. Black hoodie. Black jeans. His hair was pink though, long bangs and shiny under the neon lights and - good lord - this guy was looking so damn good in a mullet. How was it possibile? Ridiculous.
The guy, still standing there in the middle of the shop entrance, sobbed and rolled his eyes then walked straight towards the tills where he dropped his black - of course - backpack on the floor and his right elbow on the counter, his chin resting on his hand. This close, Kai could notice his eyeliner all smudged, dark circles under his eyes, his lips a cute dark peach pink shade and all chapped but still a soft looking shape, like a doll’s lips. His cupid’s bow and corners of his mouth very defined and, well, tempting.
«Er, sorry what?» Kai double blinked, confused «I didn’t catch that».
The guy spoke to him again in a low breathy tone, his voice deep but not as deep as Kai’s own.
He sounded more like a fifty years old waitress with sauce and cigarette stains on her waist apron. Funny. He also looked like a Tim Burton character or that annoying kid from Shining talking with a raspy voice. This was stupid.
«I’m looking for Siyeon» he asked.
Was he a friend of his manager? Her boyfriend? Why would he call her by her name just like that? He didn’t really look like someone who would step into this kind of clothing shop and that was a compliment. Actually, even Kai wasn’t the type to shop there and he so wanted to tell him but that just wasn’t the right moment for it so he told him, stuttering, that Siyeon was taking a wee.
«Okay, good» the guy said, lowering his tone a bit more. You could totally expect some water-vapour coming out of his mouth like that, you know that smoke you see when it’s cold outside.
He lifted his hand and straightened his back while doing so, standing still. He was wearing a cute bracelet made of glass pearls beaded, the majority of them missing, probably an old cheap piece of trinkets from a flea market.
«I found it on the pavement on my way to the shop half an hour ago» - the pink haired guy said, bringing Kai back to reality from his train of thoughts and pointed at his bracelet with a minimal movement of his chin.
«So here I’m getting this one» and placed a similar bracelet on the till under Kai’s nose - «and this thingy here, it’s cute, right?» - it was a black rose brooch adorned with sparkling crystals. He took a wad of cash out of his pocket and handed a bill to Kai.
«Is it a thousand won, right? Ninety nine cents?» he asked and Kai nodded without saying a word. It wasn’t a thousand won. Was he trying to bargain?
Siyeon came back from the washroom and as soon as she noticed the thief at the till her face turned into her I’m-the-manager face again but with a smile she called «Yeonjun!».
She wasn’t pretending like she often does when greeting customers with a bright smile on her face, that fake smile Miss Beauty of the World does. She didn’t really like people in general but that was her job and she had to force herself to appear so damn joyful all the time, looking like someone who never has to deal with a shitty day, you know.
Kai looked at Siyeon, then the guy named Yeonjun. Yeah, Yeonjun.
«Hyuka babe, don’t worry, let’s do this together, okay?» Siyeon said going behind the till.
It made Kai feel really stupid but he couldn’t care less, at that point. He was tired and hungry. If Siyeon wanted to complete the transaction, she totally could. At least, Yeonjun the thief had to pay, he couldn’t get away with murder anymore even if that could’ve been all Kai’s fault for letting him do it.
«Cmon, Kai, press that button. That one that says “Sale”» - Siyeon said. She pointed at the big orange button on the cash register. 99 cents, appeared on it. Then Siyeon proceed to explain how to complete the transaction without, thank god, touching or patting Kai on the shoulder as if to say he was being a good boy and a fast learner.
«Sorry, Kai is new here» - she told Yeonjun - «it’s his first day today. He’ll stay until Hajoon is back. Ah, Hajoon, I miss him, you know, I hope he’s okay and… God…» then she changed the topic all of a sudden. This bitch was maniacally delivering a long winded speech of nothingness again.
Yeonjun lifted an eyebrow, looking amused, for some unknown reason, and said «What a pity!» but looked at Kai instead of directing his gaze towards Siyeon. It took Kai a minute to realise what they were talking about.
Back at his I-don’t-give-a-fuck facial expression Yeonjun thanked Siyeon before turning to look back at Kai.
«Come find me when you’re on your break!» Yeonjun said.
— ˗ˋ🍬ˊ˗ —
There’s a food court at the mall. Kai thought it’d be a good idea to go grab a snack there and actually forget about the weirdest encounter of his life whilst chomping down onto a cereal bar.
Kai took his badge off and clocked off, walked in the backhouse and there he fucking is, the subject of his newly formed nightmare… or dreams?
Yeonjun sat on a stool next to a rack of shirts, watching some tiktok or whatever, looking just the right amount entertained.
The shirts were buttoned up and silky, a pale grey and so look Yeonjun’s skin. He looked like a mannequin. Polished plastic and fiberglass or whatever they were made of and badly ironed clothes on.
Without even lifting his head up Yeonjun went «Do you smoke Kai? I need a fag first. Let’s go outside»
And only after that he finally paid attention to Kai and slipped off the stool plopping himself down on his feet.
Yeonjun’s eyes were dark, shiny, adorned by dark eyeshadow and dark circles. He looked like he hasn’t slept in five days or so.
«I-I don’t smoke.» is what Kai managed to say, stuttering like a little kid meeting Santa for the first time, brain malfunctioning from his first four hours at his new workplace and all the neon lights being too aggressive.
Kai didn’t really believe in astrology but as a Leo he was supposed to be the bold one, right?! Something about it was definitely going wrong because this guy’s aura was casting a shadow over him, making him feel particularly small, weird and vulnerable. It was captivating yet so scary. He didn’t know which part of him made him want to find out what this Yeonjun wanted from him now.
I guess that’s my side project… being stupidly curious. Kai thought.
«Cute.» Yeonjun said, what seemed like a genuine smile plastered on his face.
When he moved to grab his backpack his scent reached Kai’s nose. He smelled like some cheap man’s cologne and cigarettes.
Pushing the emergency door open in the backroom, Yeonjun headed outside and held it like a true gentleman for Kai.
The sunlight felt like a true godsent. The weather was nice, the chicadas singing a summer song out loud.
«Where are you from?» Kai found himself eager to ask.
Yeonjun turned back around and gave him a side smile. He looked like the Cheshire’s cat for a split second.
«I was born in the Seoul area. I met Siyeon in a club here. She’s not the way she looks to you, you know… and uhm» he continued while suddenly moving to search for something in his backpockets «Here! I work at iSoi».
Yeonjun took a pack of cigarettes out of his backpocket and placed one between his pouty lips, then flickered a lighter to light it up. The small flame brought to the tip of it looked like a red and blue gem.
The cigarette finally ignited when Yeonjun inhaled, making it glow.
He took a few drags then extended his arm, reaching Kai’s face and offered him the cigarette.
It took Kai a second to understand, too lost in cloud of smoke that formed in front and all around Yeonjun now.
He reached out for it, hand trembling. Of course, the moment he drew in shallow breath he started coughing. What a shameful scenario.
«Gentle. Inhale, pretend to swallow it, then push it all out» he didn’t know what Yeonjun was talking about nor he could wrap his head around the fact he was having a fag for the first time with a hot stranger but for some reason he wanted to try and he wanted to impress him.
The smoke burned his throat and when he felt like he was about to choke he tried to do just what Yeonjun said and puffed the smoke out. Eureka!
He tried again. He took a small drag, the harsh sensation at the back of his throat back, but this time it came out easier. Then again, finally lifting his eyes up from the tip of the cigarette to look straight into Yeonjun’s eyes, perhaps looking for some approval.
Yeonjun made a weird sound like he just snorted and said «Oh, don’t do that» but Kai was now busy suppressing the slight dizziness to even ask what he did wrong and why Yeonjun’s smile disappeared from his face all of a sudden.
«I fucking hate the mall.» Yeonjun complained and said nothing more.
Kai could agree yet the statement made him sad for some reason. He handed the cigarette back to him who took a long drag and moved away to go sit on a bench next to the dumpsters where employees would go to toss the trash after their closing shifts.
Kai followed him like a puppy and sat next to him, knees drawn up to his chin. Yeonjun turned to the side, sitting more comfortable with his legs crossed and just stared.
«Don’t you agree? Don’t you hate customers?» what kind of conversation was that? Kai only found himself to nod.
They stayed there, Kai and this stranger named Yeonjun who was friend with Siyeon-who-was-not-who-he-thought-she-was and enjoyed eachother’s presence and the afternoon sun.
The silence and the natural night still felt nice and Kai thought it was just the right way to take a break from the mall despite standing right outside of it, technically still in the premises, and home. It felt oddly nice to be with someone he didn’t know anything about, just their name and face and scent.
Yeonjun took a final drag of the now nearly finished cigarette, exhaling the nth cloud of smoke before flicking the butt. It landed to the ground in front of them with a faint sizzle, still glowing red at the tip.
Without wasting another second of their fourty-five minutes long break he reached into his pocket again and pulled out a fresh cigarette from his now crampled pack.
He stayed there, cigarette between his fingers, looking out at the horizon, the sun slowing setting, then moved to place it in between Kai’s lips.
Kai thought he should really have some food by now but oh well.
Both held the fag in place, staring at it, then Yeonjun flicked his plastic lighter and fired it up. When Kai inhaled, the burning sensation returned and so Yeonjun’s cologne, him leaning on so close next to Kai.
God, he felt weird and contaminated now.
— ˗ˋ🍬ˊ˗ —
Back to work the rest of his shift, Kai felt like he had a fever dream.
It might have been the fact he hadn’t snacked on anything or the cigarettes which Siyeon said she could smell on him or Yeonjun’s presence. There was a lot going on there. Maybe coming back from outside to the store illuminated by all those artificial lights made him even more dizzy.
«You seem like a really nice guy, Hyuka baby. Bummer you won’t be here for so long but let me tell you something… Yeonjun might not be a good company» Siyeon came out with all of a sudden, whilst folding some t-shirts on top of the till counter.
What could he say or do if not staring absentmindedly at the polished marble floor. Yeonjun looked exactly like someone who shouldn’t really hang out with. He told Kai a bit about his life before getting back inside and heading to iSoi to go work his closing shift. He was born in the Seoul area, spent his school days in Seongnam City and even moved abroad, in California when he was like nine.
He had a dream, he wanted to rap and dance but he said he couldn’t make it.
Kai wished he could have sung something for him but that would have been too awkward to ask and he surely didn’t want to trigger some inner broken part of him either. Or himself.
He said he loved something else other than smoking cigarettes but didn’t add any details except for «I need a constant distraction. My family have been trying to kill me. The mall fucking sucks. I’d set this place on fire and punch customers in the face if only i could» which left Kai wondered how bad he was having it.
Time was running out so that’s all he managed to tell Kai about himself. He asked to meet up there again at 10 o’clock but now he’s not sure he wants to do that anymore or ignore what Siyeon-who-is-not-who-he-thought-she-was is ranting about.
Realistically, Kai felt like an outsider for so many years too, except he had a lovely family and other ways to cope with hardships.
Changing the topic, Siyeon went on with her monologue about Wantt’s code and bla bla bla bla. Now, that was making Kai completely zone out, probably developing a neurological disorder. Well, fuck Siyeon actually.
— ˗ˋ🍬ˊ˗ —
Some rude customers later and Siyeon cursing at till number three’s monitor going blank for no apparent reason, the closing shift went by pretty smoothly actually.
«Kai dear, there’s a chocolate bar in my bag, go grab it. See you tomorrow» she said from the office without even turning her back to look Kai’s way.
He thanked her but decided to ignore her mother mode and just went to grab his stuff instead.
It was nearly ten and he didn’t know what the fuck he wanted to do with his life. He was officially off but not free of intrusive thoughts.
He felt haywire, close to having a panic attack. What was even the reason behind all this? Could he say he was having a nicotine withdrawal already? He should have eaten that fucking chocolate bar.
Trying to suppress this state of sudden heightened anxiety, Kai rushed to the bathroom at the back of the mall.
The bathroom smelled like cigarettes. Damn, he could suddenly see the appeal of smoking. The only thing he thought he’d hate about it was probably going to be getting yellow fingers.
He started crying, eyes burning from the smokes still lingering in the air of that skanky place. Kai fought hard to stop the tears and telling at his miserable reflection that nothing was wrong might have sounded like a lie now.
Kai moved to South Korea from Hawaii to try to pursue the same dream his sisters had but failed to no surprise to his very anxious and scaredy cat ass. He would still play a bunch of instruments including the piano, the drums, the bass but here he was, stuck in a Wantt. That he could relate to Yeonjun with and fucking Yeonjun didn’t have the chance to know he accidentally pulled the trigger.
He needed a fag so bad now, having learned the value of it. Maybe a beer too.
Siyeon found other words to say he came across as someone good at heart but a vulnerable, easily manipulated fucking loser at the same time and that he had to stick to the brand and her rules and routine to come out of it. Perhaps she achieved that in life, just by managing Wantt or god knows.
Philosophizing about all this gave Kai a headache. It was ten already. Kai stood straight, looked at his miserable self in the mirror. He looked horrible. So fucking ugly it made him stop cry suddenly. He went to push the door open and bumped into him. Yeonjun.
— ˗ˋ🍬ˊ˗ —