* / OUT OF BODY.

It didn’t happen usually, but there were instances in which sometimes a man would feel their masculinity was threatened by her buying them a drink, and they’d get a bit feisty. She could fairly easily tell that the man before her wasn’t itching for a fight, yet, at the very least, but she always liked to apologize in advance to save herself from having to break a glass over someone’s head. 

he watches her closely from beneath his lashes and above the rim of his glass, gaze searching for any ulterior motives written on the stranger’s face, but found none. at least, not any that particularly pique his interest. seunghan, admittedly, has little time for friendly drinks, or for friends at all. but he’s also not a whole lot interested in drinks with romantic intent either. he goes out at night with only one thing on his mind         and it’s obvious he’s not going to get it here. 

but there’s something interesting enough about her to hold him here regardless, at least for the time being. maybe it’s her voice, maybe it’s her face, or the drink, or the fact that his night has been relatively dry so far. he should try going to different bars more often, he thinks. he’s been through most of the regulars that haunt this place, and back again too for that matter. 

depressing? maybe.

it’s true. his wallet was a gift, so he chased after the sentimental value. but money stays tucked within an inner pocket of his jacket, sits close to his breast. anyone trying to take that would end up with a twisted arm — and maybe a slap across the face for attempted sexual harassment. straightening up, jaesun keeps it gripped tightly in one hand, the other settling on his hip as he stares the other down. “you alright, man? like, do you need money? i can pay for a taxi, or whatever. damn, sometimes you just need to ask, you know? it’s not that big of a deal. don’t just go snatching things. that’s weird.”

his initial response is just a shrug, non-committal and cocky, like he knows he wasn’t going to get anything out of it, and like he doesn’t care. he watches the guy pick up his wallet with narrowed eyes, lips pursed, head still tilted to one side.  “      most people do keep their money in their wallet, y’know. isn’t it kind of obvious what i thought i was going to get out of this? ”  he looks at him with raised eyebrows and a disbelieving grin, as if he’s the one with the upper hand here, as if he’s not the one who’s been cornered after attempting to steal a wallet.

seunghan tries to make sense of this guy but really? he can’t. if their positions were swapped, and if seunghan was the type to fight, he’d have knocked himself out by now. but instead, he’s being offered a taxi home         a paid taxi home, at that. the self-assured expression on his face softens, for a moment, only to be replaced by something a tad more cynical. he looks himself up and down. does he look poor or something? 

answer: no. his clothes are expensive, but in the dim light of the night, he supposes that might not be immediately apparent. he looks tipsy, with his glassy eyes and lightly flushed cheek. he looks like he’s been busy all night, hair mussed and a bruise forming on his neck.

he could, theoretically, use this to his advantage, and get a free ride home. or, he could try and defend his pride. 

“ is it really that weird though? ”  he suggests, gently. he’s one second away from asking if he’s being kinkshamed, but stuffs that particular question way down deep inside, and turns it back around to the unnaturally kind stranger.  “ you know . . . you’re being awfully nice to a guy who just tried to steal your wallet. how do you know i’m not about to pull something else, huh? ”  

At Seunghan’s next comment, he nearly snorted, glancing down at his friend’s form. “You look like actual shit and you’re worried about bagel crumbs right now?” Still, he took one last bite before shoving the rest of his bagel into the paper bag it came in and setting it off to the side of the desk. Not without wiping a single crumb from the corner of his mouth and placing it obnoxiously beside Seunghan’s keyboard. Nope, he was far too immature to avoid annoying gestures of defiance. “What the hell were you doing last night anyway, did you even get any sleep?” Not that Chaemin was exactly tucked into bed at a respectable time either.

with a wrinkle of his nose and a furrow of his brows, a deep sigh pushes past his lips.  “ i don’t know why i bothered calling you. all you do is tell me what i already know. ”  also known as: what he doesn’t want to hear. he drums his fingers on his desk and roughly shoves his keyboard back towards the monitor before turning his head to look at chaemin. he’s still sitting in his chair, so for once he’s looking up instead of down.  “ but yeah, yeah. you’re right. ”  a brief pause. his eyes search his friend’s face for an inkling of how he’s feeling.  “ and since you said it before i did, and since you turned up here at seven in the morning, you’re coming in on this. ”

he gives chaemin a cocky grin, as if he’s achieved something, as if chaemin had much of a choice in whether he’s going to help get the information back or not.

She sipped her amaretto stone sour, savoring the sweet citrus and nutty flavors, as her eyes scanned the bar, watching the patrons mill about. Some were in conversations, perhaps with friends, or perhaps on a date? Who knew. Some were playing the usual bar games, and some, like herself, were simply enjoying a drink on their own. Her eyes locked on to a pair across the way, and Minji offered a soft smile. As brutal of a killer she may be, she was still polite and personable, after all. She made no move to approach them, but she did flag the bartender down to order herself another drink. Her eyes glanced back to the stranger, and before the bartender could walk away, she called him back, “Them, over there. Their next drink is on me, ok? Make it in front of them so it doesn’t look weird,” she knew the fear of accepting drinks from strangers, and like hell she was going to potentially scare someone like that. She was just feelin’ good and wanted to buy someone a drink. 

seunghan’s nightly routine was simple, it ran like clockwork. do his work         which, to be honest, was just as much fun as play. screwing people over just sets something off in him, gets his blood pumping         and then go out. he doesn’t pay for his own drinks very often, people flock to him, and one way or another, he gets something from each of them. a free drink, a credit card, a secret, a fuck, something. 

what do they get in return? not much, usually. his back as he picks up the drink they bought him and walks away with it, a charming smile and a kiss as they wait for a favour to be returned, not realising that he’s gotten what he wanted and that was that. he’s not the giving kind.

(  goddamn spoiled brat. just thinks he can take whatever he wants.  ) 

he’s sitting at the bar, waiting for his night to really begin, head still relatively clear as he surveys the others in the space one by one, wondering who it will be. someone’s going to buy him a drink, someone always does . . . maybe her? she’s the first person whose eyes he’s met, and when she gives him a smile he throws one back. it’s not as gentle as hers, but it’s there nonetheless. he doesn’t think much of it. she’s older than him, he thinks, and the women who approach him usually tend to be about his age, maybe a year or two younger. but then his next drink arrives, seemingly on cue as he throws back the last drop of his rum and coke. his gaze drifts down the bar to find hers again, briefly making eye contact before he hops off his stool and strolls over.

“The fuck you want? It’s early as shit,” Chaemin asked through a yawn as he approached the station he’d been navigating towards. The words were harsh, but his tone held no actual contempt, merely friendly banter. Seunghan must have learned not to take Chaemin’s insults to heart at this point, as Chaemin had learned to do for the former. To be entirely honest, Seunghan was one of very few people that the djinn genuinely didn’t mind rushing to assist, even if the call he’d gotten had come at ass o’clock in the morning. Grateful that his friend was sitting down, if only because he was actually taller than him for even just a moment, Chaemin made his way behind the desk, only half paying attention to the computer screen over Seunghan’s shoulder, instead absentmindedly munching on his bagel.

half five in the morning. it was half five in the fucking morning when he got the call to come in and fix something, a piece of information that stumbled into the wrong hands and that needed to be eradicated. less than impressed, and coming down from earlier in the night, he dragged his feet over. two hours later, he’s hit a road block, and there’s only one person he can stand enough to compromise his pride in front of.