For Jion, who had been living for a while without knowing what going out meant except for the practice room, schedules, and nearby supermarkets or convenience stores, Seonwoo Jin’s proposal was quite groundbreaking. Not just going out to play, but the three of them together? Seonwoo Jin, who always wanted to go to practice with just the two of them, wanted to ride in the car side by side with just the two of them, and wanted to sleep with just the two of them…… not that kind of sleep but pure sleep with just the two of them, was actually proposing to hang out ‘the three of them.’
He’s really grown up…….
Moved by the growth of Seonwoo Jin who had been 185cm since they first met, Jion sneakily reached out his hand and stroked his forearm. Then seeing his body immediately stiffen in reaction, he went ‘oops’ and pulled his hand away, but the reaction had already infected Jion too.
“Weren’t you guys resting? With Jion’s leg being uncomfortable, is it okay to do that?”
“Huh? Oh, it’s fine, of course it’s fine, it’s good. My leg is okay now too!”
When Jion, feeling unnecessarily guilty, swung his bandaged leg around pretending to be tough, Ryu Geon finally showed a relieved expression.
“Earlier when you came out, Woojin was supporting you, so I thought it still wasn’t good.”
“……”
“……”
At Ryu Geon’s innocent observation, the two reflexively looked at each other’s faces, then turned away from each other with reddened faces. Despite the awkward atmosphere that would have made Jinyeong immediately gag if he’d seen it, Ryu Geon was utterly naive.
“Then I’ll go change into something more comfortable. I’m going to wear a tracksuit out, you guys are going to dress comfortably too, right?”
“Ah, yes. Dress comfortably, hyung.”
“You guys get ready to go out too.”
When Ryu Geon went into his room, the two were engulfed in an awkward silence. It was Seonwoo Jin who broke the atmosphere where they hesitated without either one going into their room first, watching each other. With a ‘whatever’ expression, he shamelessly wrapped his arms around Jion’s waist and lifted him up, then escorted him to the room with excessive support while advising him about his fashion in a small voice.
“……That, wear something that doesn’t show your collarbone. A turtleneck…… would be even better.”
“……Isn’t that a bit hot? Why?”
“……”
“……”
From Seonwoo Jin’s silence, Jion realized why he was being so meddlesome, and the two silently washed their faces and changed clothes, preparing to go out. The air in the room briefly became hot when Jion made a strange moan and shrank his body while putting his legs through his pants, but the atmosphere was okay overall.
* * *
“Wow, there are a lot of people.”
They had no particular schedule and no particular regular routine, so they lived without any sense of dates, but in the downtown area they came out to after a long time, there were many people even during the daytime. Only then did the three realize it was the weekend and briefly put their heads together to hold an emergency meeting about whether they should buy and wear masks.
“Should we buy masks?”
“But wouldn’t we stand out more if we wear masks?”
“Hats seem like enough……”
“It does seem like people are staring a bit……”
In the first place, handsome men of this level walking around downtown in a group was as rare in Korean society as a zebra walking through a studio apartment village, so they couldn’t help but attract people’s attention.
However, contrary to some expectations, there seemed to be almost no one who recognized them, and seeing that the occasional glances people gave only stayed on their faces before disappearing, Jion quickly completed his analysis.
“It doesn’t seem like they recognize us, it looks like they’re staring because Woojin is handsome.”
“Really? That could be it.”
“Ah, why just me again…… you’re handsome too…… really pretty…… hyung too.”
“Yeah, thanks for the kowtow.”
The three nobodies who gained sad courage began to stroll through the downtown area with comfortable minds.
However, what they overlooked was the fact that the women of this era, who were their fans and main consumer base, were very skilled at respecting their oppas’ privacy without exposing their own existence, while simultaneously secretly observing their every move.
Unaware of 80% of the gazes from muggles who didn’t know what BNCZ was but were just secretly staring in surprise at handsome men, and 20% of the cameras of girls whose minds were hazy from suddenly encountering their oppas in daily life, the three innocently enjoyed their long-awaited vacation.
“Oh, an arcade.”
Even so, beggars who had never even received a settlement once couldn’t enjoy great consumption. As they enjoyed looking around the streets swept up in the crowd, they excitedly entered when they found a consumption space where they could at least spread their shoulders.
“There’s a basketball game, basketball. Geon hyung, you’re good at basketball, aren’t you? Try it once.”
“Ah, should I?”
After inserting one precious 1,000 won bill, Ryu Geon got into position. And then crazy gameplay began that would completely deflate the spirits of all the men in the arcade. Even Seonwoo Jin, who was watching, became somewhat deflated and looked at Jion’s reaction.
Ryu Geon, with his gaze focused precisely on the basketball hoop, overwhelmed the crowd with his textbook posture and gorgeous face, succeeding at baskets one after another and finally finished the game by breaking the record.
“Wow……! Hyung, you’re really cool!”
“Aw, well. It would’ve been nice if there was a prize, but there’s nothing like that.”
“That’s too bad, right.”
“Huh? Uh……”
Seonwoo Jin, whose button was pushed by Jion clapping and being happy, gave a lukewarm response while hurriedly looking around the arcade. He hurriedly looked to see if there was a game where he could show off his cool side, but there was nothing particularly visible. Seonwoo Jin, who was shedding tears of jealousy inside, saw a claw machine full of cute dolls.
“……Want me to get you a doll?”
“Are you good at this?”
“……Yeah.”
“Then get me that one. That one, the big cute one.”
“Okay.”
Not knowing what technology claw machine games used to empty people’s pockets, Jion just picked a largish keychain doll that looked cute to him. Blinded by jealousy, Seonwoo Jin recklessly spewed out lies and bravado without looking forward or back, which soon made the beggar nobody idol pay a bitter price.
“Uh, uh! Uh! Got it! Aaaah……”
“Ah! It seemed like it would work!”
The cruel capitalist crane would coolly lift the target but then slyly release the claw as if to tease people, toying with Seonwoo Jin’s meager wallet. 5,000 won disappeared in an instant.
“Ah, that’s a waste. Should we stop? I’m fine without a doll.”
“Yeah, it must be designed not to come out.”
“……No.”
While listening to the members’ cheers and sighs, Seonwoo Jin’s petty competitive spirit ignited, and eventually Seonwoo Jin inserted two more 5,000 won bills. It would have been more rational consumption to just buy a doll with money, but the illogical pride that he couldn’t lose face in front of Jion made Seonwoo Jin’s wallet loose.
“Ah! Ah! Ah!”
“Got it, got it!”
“Waah!”
The sight of three men in their mid-twenties with an average height of 182.3cm making a fuss over one white, cute keychain in front of a colorful claw machine was truly a spectacle. Completely unaware that this scene was being captured on women’s phones and leaked in real-time, Seonwoo Jin proudly handed his spoils of war to Jion.
“Here, it’s a gift.”
“Thanks……”
It was a scene as solemn and moving as a newlywed husband from the Three Kingdoms period going off to war and pressing a hair comb into his wife’s hands. Moved by just one insignificant doll, Jion forgot about their awkward and ambiguous relationship and shot an affectionate gaze toward Seonwoo Jin. At the powerful expression of affection that forgot about Ryu Geon beside them, Seonwoo Jin also briefly forgot his surroundings and almost bowed his head to kiss Jion.
“Ah, that was fun. Should we go to the coin karaoke too? Let’s listen to Jion sing.”
“……Ah! Uh! Yeah!”
“What, why are you so startled.”
“No, no. I didn’t know there was something like that here……”
The two, who had almost fallen into their own world for a moment and shared an inconsiderate display of affection, belatedly came to their senses and followed Ryu Geon into the coin karaoke in the corner of the arcade.
Speaking of this karaoke, it was the ultimate space that one couldn’t dare enter without considerable confidence, self-consciousness, or liquid courage—confidence that they didn’t mind their singing being heard by sober people enjoying healthy entertainment at the arcade.
“Do they have our song?”
“……”
“……”
The three who searched for BNCZ with excited hearts for a moment were left speechless at the devastating search results. The atmosphere that had heated up intensely over just one keychain cooled down coldly, and the three who rapidly became calm quietly each picked their favorite song.
“……At least it’s good that it’s three songs for 1,000 won, right.”
“Right. Prices are expensive these days too.”
“Right……”
They tried to lift the mood with forced enthusiasm but that was it. When Ryu Geon’s favorite song, a sad ballad, ended, the atmosphere became uncontrollably melancholy, and Seonwoo Jin, who couldn’t possibly take the microphone in this atmosphere, passed it to Jion.
“Sing me that song.”
“What?”
“A Rainy Evening, With No One.”
At the sudden song request, Jion smiled slightly. Was it the song his mother liked? This crazy filial son……
