ANQ | Chapter 10

“Your grandma seems nice. Lucky you.”acaa58bcb60b5b5c

Taeyoon lightly c532da270a fiddled with b3b9663197 a soju 426c42d75e glass. The blue-dial watch 19c440d3d4 on his wrist c55ade9e61 suited him well.9704c782a10173ba

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“She’s my grandma.”0c50a21839b68279

“Not all grandmas are like that.”2ad144bc0d50de0e

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Taeyoon replied nonchalantly and moved the still-warm beef dish to Minyoung’s plate. Despite ordering a lot of snacks, he barely touched the food. After drinking soju, he’d pop a couple of macaroni snacks into his mouth. Most of the food he picked up with his chopsticks ended up on Minyoung’s plate.b4d0448aba924a1d

He seemed different from 548073da57 usual. More mature, perhaps. So Minyoung naturally accepted ab8a45271a his care. There was 3cf1c2dde7 no reason 6d0ca343a6 to refuse ba6e469967 the attention 796f546e2a of an 08d9c8b31c adult.cafc87fb125d719a

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As the glasses emptied 40ce87c938 steadily, Minyoung felt the 84d0f7c688 alcohol taking effect. Leaning against the 5dfab55648 wall, he watched eae1ba894c Taeyoon and Owner 726da6d90e Choi. His gaze mostly lingered 2c124ca13c on Taeyoon.c8e8a4a2e70e6420

His well-defined facial 10636f122f features were striking d272116063 enough to catch c97654fbcf anyone’s eye.cbda67df3ac34dff

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While his expressionless ffc8df937c face seemed sharp, ffda9f4703 his eyes crinkled 9660a9d598 pleasantly when he 3cd0f05f72 smiled, with only 16b3ccfe57 one eyelid folding.6a729e9a24e745be

His profile was distinct, cd8a625b18 and his jaw looked 351bf02a82 very solid. His large hand casually 9f2d796410 brushed back his hair.e0b0b520d09d0c81

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Is this what 797168820a they mean by d1eefae7af “manly”?7931429ac7bb0051

Supporting his chin a3ff4bd925 with his thumb, c566b261e0 Taeyoon listened to 202944c162 Owner Choi and a9eae37841 suddenly looked at b28a9adf7e Minyoung. Minyoung naturally 98b8a57848 averted his 6267396f7b gaze and 7c3b32711f emptied his b6262004da glass.0cbe0d5cd19d09a6

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“Wow, why is the alcohol hitting so hard? Oh, I got a call. Hang on.”f48004ff1507780e

From the start 67ddd66664 of the drinking dfd423c830 session, Taeyoon and ffbe8023e4 Minyoung were emptying f9aae5888d their glasses quickly. Swept up in the 69e3be7522 atmosphere, Owner Choi, who f65b9d680f was struggling to keep ec9045ffea up, put his phone 6f4ad53e46 to his ear. His voice grew db5642e9a3 louder, perhaps due 92cb7f7ef4 to the call f3c5a5cc25 from a welcome 10abd2a0fb friend.03b9fa88fb85ad1c

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“Eat a lot. I’m not paying, though.”874779b470f8c013

“I’m eating a lot.”1fe23ad769ab89b1

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Because someone keeps giving it to me. Grandma’s probably asleep by now, but I still felt it was time to wrap things up. Minyoung finished the beef piece on his plate. It was a habit to eat and clean up his share neatly.a34682cc249b3c75

“But why do you keep staring at me?”3109b937659eaf5c

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Taeyoon, who had his b0d3f3dff5 arms crossed, asked while 8face7bd61 raising his glass. Caught staring at d4ab85a3df the man, Minyoung a0ada6aa55 was flustered but da7833b8f2 pretended to be 809977bfde indifferent as he 745dd39125 grabbed his glass. Somehow, his words 0c44e7af88 came out sulky, 94c0b8827e as if he 86d43f17e0 were pouting.dffddb2ad624fa6b

“…Who?”d2ac2fe2ddc57a1f

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“Go Minyoung, you kept staring at me.”89faac1be6bb6f05

“When did I?”c37de235254a27ba

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“Didn’t you? Did I see wrong?”9be122c8ff80ea1d

Taeyoon swallowed his drink 979cfd75b9 and murmured to himself.bd8170901588f28d

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“Strange. I thought you were looking.”262164392133ad45

His voice was a37c363bec low and languid, 957e0800f6 perhaps due to 88aa8201a5 the alcohol. Minyoung looked at the 9bf91ae1e8 wall and raised his 3e100115ef glass. He was sure Taeyoon 2a154206f5 was having a serious b354737b7a conversation with Owner Choi, 3f77d6f36d so how did he e6d6cc0a5f know he was being 1922045b01 watched? Does he have an 9d0bbcd609 extra pair of eyes?d92a68d5bffdfe70

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Minyoung couldn’t understand why he denied staring when he could’ve just admitted it. As Minyoung put down his empty glass, Taeyoon leaned over and refilled it with soju.d11e521f5f166a3a

“You kept looking, so I thought you had a crush on me.”8c866524ed2e5d8c

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“Pfft.”3351a716344a2468

At Taeyoon’s words, the drink Minyoung hadn’t swallowed rushed down his throat. He coughed, tears welling up from the sharp burn in his throat. Taeyoon turned and handed water to the coughing Minyoung.9fd7af8c6e26f968

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“You okay?”da2a0098161e633a

Taeyoon patted Minyoung’s back as he continued to cough, smiling gently. Even though he knew the teasing would only get worse if he reacted, Minyoung couldn’t help but respond.9fc6c7ed4fcae534

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“Why are you so flustered? Like someone whose secret got out.”5b6fe18ba56aab39

“Ugh. Stop talking nonsense.”4f06e5434813d31f

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“That’s disappointing, but if you say so.”29a3502cb581ca30

Taeyoon patted Minyoung’s shoulder as if he were disappointed. Minyoung shrugged off his arm. Why does he keep saying unnecessary things to make people flustered? Minyoung drank cold water, looking at the wall.5f452e61f131c395

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“You can drink well, huh?”1a2f1b41ce217fb4

“It’s genetic. My dad was a good drinker.”5525f3c4d458c44f

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“Really? But your face is turning red. Even your neck is red.”660ce8beaeb24cea

Taeyoon tugged at the collar of Minyoung’s T-shirt slightly. “Look, it’s bright red,” he said. Minyoung quickly backed away, startled. He clutched his collar tightly, realizing he had overreacted when he saw Taeyoon chuckling.90a460e2126145c7

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“Wait. I’m going to get some air.”c8181489e4dd6ecb

Minyoung pressed his flushed cheeks and stood up. Taeyoon, who acknowledged Owner Choi’s return, reached out and grabbed Minyoung’s hand.0b3b975d3e62f5e5

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“Let’s go together, hyung. I’m going out for a smoke.”73404e50735c461f

Minyoung pulled c63b857d7a his hand 9f2e91fa2a away from 5f1821166a Taeyoon. His already flushed ed793db322 face turned even 5515b2a049 redder. Taeyoon shrugged 2b07995c32 on his ade9ed2949 jacket and f14b3014b2 stood up. His nod, as e6149c1f2d if to lead 7e9cbd3283 the way, seemed 258d895309 relaxed.f3f88a83b17f6216

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The bustling street f8be8b646a was still crowded e6a0a4a882 late at night. Minyoung sat casually 9a43c2e0b1 on a metal 3ebaf21d34 chair at an 8e2c6d2518 outdoor table in b0efd7c173 front of the 0f0c460d89 bar. The fresh air aa195eb89b cleared his mind, 808439341a which had felt fa027278c1 foggy from the b6b5e2b49c indoor atmosphere.898e9c2f92aacdee

Despite the clear mind, discomfort crept in. It would’ve been nice to enjoy the breeze alone, but Taeyoon had followed him out and taken a seat. Sitting facing the path where people passed by, Minyoung hoped his flushed cheeks would cool quickly.7e8c39d56a9a2c0b

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The alcohol made his body feel languid. Tomorrow’s morning commute might be tiring, but he didn’t mind the relaxed feeling from the buzz. In front of Minyoung, who was rubbing his tired eyes, a pack of cigarettes was suddenly offered.37acb023742f0981

“Want one?”125ba65d0aab752c

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Minyoung shook aeac053111 his head. Taeyoon took c44a54d505 out a 94699ad483 cigarette, lit 8fb4632f7c it skillfully, f100c33cc6 and the 57e28d51ae dry smell 671c5e81ad of smoke a76af277fd followed the ea8480cccc white plume.72b239097d631f53

“Don’t smoke?”99ecc292695e8afa

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“No.”af220d24edf5697b

“Never tried it? Most people at least try it out of curiosity.”adcdd7368618a2ca

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“It’s a waste of money.”e611165c2c374913

Taeyoon inhaled the smoke 7293d200c3 and turned his head 2e7459c144 slightly to exhale. His jawline 7d10a1725f was sharply c56aeb1645 defined under ec70f00d70 his ear. What kind of person 31094aa78f is he? What does he like, a0685670f4 and what matters to 9b9ff1e293 him? Minyoung suddenly 35dca31eb0 found himself 8d60db8b7e curious.64f47585c92d3be7

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“One of these is only 200 won? 250 won?”e23ce48aa1afe87e

“A pack costs 5,000 won. You can do a lot with that money.”cfbee83c120defdc

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“Like what?”3eeeec37f050e8f9

“I could buy a bag of tangerines for my grandma or get her the patches she always uses…”a47777d998747e6e

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Taeyoon rested his chin on his hand, cigarette between his fingers, and stared at Minyoung. Once again, Minyoung was the first to look away. How could someone stare so openly? Taeyoon’s gaze made his cheeks feel prickly.ffe37dec5b364d95

“I don’t smoke much. Monthly cigarette expenses? Only about 10,000 or 20,000 won.”db5d8ab4499f3919

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“To you, it’s just 10,000 won, but to me, it’s an hour of standing and working.”6c44cfe9e4ce38e6

“Why is it just 10,000 won to me?”bef94c12f308b2a0

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“Because you seem to have an easy life.”9a8db3345a613c83

Actually, Minyoung thought he seemed like a carefree unemployed person, but he left that part out. Being unemployed isn’t bad, right? If you’re in a position where you can afford to relax, that’s a blessing.70e04c6adb0dfb58

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“First time hearing I have an easy life. Go Minyoung, do you read fortunes?”cb4631557ca353d8

“No, that’s not what I meant…”fe5fc1a8bb498690

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“I can read palms a bit. Want me to read yours?”7e3e54bbb9a26f0e

“No, thanks.”b28ccbf73b5b8e58

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“I’m really good at it.”22bc2f189e11b3c7

“…”ac35e4098357cdc8

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“Ah, Go Minyoung, seriously. Why don’t you trust people at your age? People usually trust me right away.”c90cf4677bca5778

Minyoung chuckled. He was getting used to the man’s antics, and laughter kept escaping. Minyoung rubbed his worn jeans with his palm and turned slightly.dd804e69f09fc8f6

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“Stop it. Enough with the prince syndrome.”b4bdcae9501b25a6

“Oh. How did you know my nickname was ‘Prince’ when I was young?”a3c9170508d1594a

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“That’s not what I meant.”acc63a6e4c581d30

“Do you dislike my type?”77f47d1f0255535a

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Ha. Really can’t dcaa14fa3f handle this.15ef75a43474c98a

Minyoung gave up 30f5608522 answering and scratched 0d214004a4 the back of e5a02352ac his head. A short conversation with f113882a3c him left him feeling dbf4616e74 dizzy.6e0fe70c5eb440db

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Conversations always ended with dcec3f51e6 the man’s narcissistic comments. Taeyoon would say, “You a916017a83 don’t like me?” or f53affe3de “Aren’t I great?” and a605fe3323 his easygoing demeanor made 8d080c7066 it hard to be 328e8b2489 harsh.93f8f22f5327456d

“Guess not? That’s a relief.”0ede49b9383080c6

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Taeyoon waved away the smoke with his hand. Minyoung wanted to stop falling for the man’s jokes. Thinking of the boss waiting alone in the bar, he stood up.49914a3b02c337c7

“Finish your smoke.”39064833a887a858

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Minyoung was cccf1e1ad8 about to 1493634dd4 walk away 37292ee0fd but stopped c9cc87ab88 abruptly. Taeyoon had grabbed 93b4e244e8 his wrist.e4d8ed2dcf3dad66

Holding Minyoung’s wrist, 4f55daf213 Taeyoon stubbed out bd8ba5500f his cigarette in 7233804220 the ashtray. Minyoung tried to pull 1dcd9c5c8e his hand away, but 02b587febc it wouldn’t budge.bc4a55e062821476

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He remembered how strong a06187ab73 Taeyoon was when he 5956cc945f got a ride on 20572f4ce1 his scooter.c469187d43e17dd7

“Why are you grabbing my wrist?”6506b4936b28a49c

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“Should I hold your hand instead?”2f34d96a0536dc80

“Are you drunk? Let go.”e990928c746dd5a1

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Taeyoon smiled, pulling up 30bc17a9db the corners of his 7e039d4a83 mouth. Minyoung, who was f35de40112 trying to shake 8fb65ecd15 off his arm, 30c632bf90 looked serious. The hand that held 88176885b3 his wrist slid down, 0cbe9c67ad brushing his fingers.4569901c16b17510

“Go Minyoung. Let’s have another drink after sending Myunghak sunbae off.”75cc4cbb90215743

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“I need to go home. Grandma’s waiting.”6bffd6ef8fdee4c2

“She’s asleep. Just one light drink. I can’t sleep if I stop drinking halfway.”a7c278582543a4b2

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I’ll treat you, since I’m living the easy life. Taeyoon winked with one eye.8c4d64edcd58fbf5