#chap 3

"...And then Grim stole the entire pie!" A familiar light red haired boy cackled at his narration.

"I DID NOT STEAL IT!" Grim retaliated, crossing his tiny paws.

"From what Ace just described it seems you did" Deuce teased further.

"You're gonna need to pay for that, y'know?" Yuu chuckled, patting Grims head.

"I PREPAID THE THEFT!" The feline almost bit Yuu's hand if not his faithful-henchman

Yuu dissolved into laughter. Epel shook his head as he kept drinking his apple cider—Jack didn't even try to pretend he wasn't amused, letting out a huff that sounded like laughter.

Across the courtyard, Sebek stopped mid-step.

Who...was making Yuu laugh?

He looked over.

Ace.

Deuce.

Epel.

Grim.

Yuu was doubled over, holding their stomach, tears in the corners of their eyes from laughing so hard.

Sebek frowned. His chest tightened strangely. "This again...?" He placed his hand over his chest as if trying to stop the ache and slow down how fast his heart was going.

---

Later

Silver noticed that Sebek had unusually been stirring his tea for likely 6 minutes now, without talking to anybody in the table. "You've been quiet."

"Hm..." Sebek simply muttered and sighed, laying his chin on his knuckles.

"What are you moping about now?" Silver added, raising an eyebrow

"I am simply...contemplating." Sebek responded before a quiet second of silence fell.

"About?" Silver tilted his head sleepily, placing his cheek onto the warmth of his palm.

"...Ace Trappola." Sebek sat up straighter at the name that left his mouth as he closed his eyes in dissatisfaction.

Silver blinked, taken aback. He, too sat up straighter. Now awfully alert at what Sebek was going to say next.

"He is..." Sebek searched for the right word. He opened his mouth—then closed it. Before whispering—"...excessively amusing. And Yuu appears to appreciate this."

"Yes?" Silver responded, not quite getting the point of what Sebek had just told him.

"I fail to see why." Sebek huffed, furrowing his eyebrows in contempt. Silver looked at him for a long moment. "Ah, You're jealous."

Sebek whipped his head to look at Silver. A blush now spreading on his face as his eyes widened at what his upperclassman said. "I most certainly am not!"

"You sound jealous." Silver looked away, resting his cheek back against his palm as he took the handle of his coffee.

"I simply fail to understand why his jokes produce such dramatic results." Sebek leaned towards Silver, crossing his arms. Shaking his head as he slumped in his seat.

---

The next day. Sebek arrived at Ramshackle with rose tea, Yuus favourite.

Yuu smiled immediately upon opening the door and was met with Sebek, poised and holding a bag of rose tea and a cup of it already set in his other hand.

"Oh! Thank you, Sebek." Yuu opened the door wider, taking the bag and the cup from Sebeks hands.

That warm feeling again.

Good.

Then Ace appeared beside Sebek and squeezed past him, showing something to Yuu. "Yuu! Look what I found!"

"A frog?" They tilyed their head at the tiny green amphibian.

"It wears a tiny leaf like a hat!

Yuu gasped. "It does! Oh my gosh, that's adorable!"

Sebek looked at the frog.

Looked at Ace.

Looked back at the frog.

And immediately thought :

"...I could locate a larger frog."

---

That afternoon—

Sebek caught himself doing something horrifying.

Competing.

Ace handed Yuu an apple.

Sebek brought an entire basket.

Deuce helped carry one box.

Sebek carried six.

Epel complimented Yuu's outfit.

Sebek spent twenty minutes trying to think of one.

"...Your...buttons are...securely attached." He nodded.

Yuu smiled anyway. "Thanks, Sebek."

Ace wheezed.

---

Lilia found this incredibly entertaining.

"My, my."

Sebek frowned.

"What."

"You've entered the 'trying far too hard' stage." Lilia crossed his arms, sly and smiling at green-haired boy.

"I have no idea what you're referring to." Zebek furrowed his eyebrows.

"You tried to outdo a frog."

"..."

"...It was a very small frog." Zebek closed his eyes, shaking his head.

---

The breaking point came a week later.

Yuu was sitting beneath a tree.

A second-year from another dorm sat beside them.

They were talking.

Laughing.

The student gently brushed a leaf out of Yuu's hair.

Sebek stopped walking.

"..."

"..."

His stomach dropped.

Something unpleasant settled in his chest.

He didn't like it.

Not one bit.

Before he even realized it—

"YUU."

Both of them looked over.

"Oh, hey Sebek!"

The second-year smiled politely.

"Oh, Zigvolt."

Sebek stared.

The student smiled again.

"..."

"Good afternoon."

"Good afternoon?"

Silence.

Very awkward silence.

Yuu looked between them.

"Everything okay?"

Sebek answered immediately.

"Yes."

The second-year nodded.

"Yes..."

Neither moved.

---

After what felt like an eternity, the other student stood.

"I should get going." The second-year rubbed the back of then head awkwardly. "See you later, Yuu."

"Bye!"

They waved.

Yuu waved back.

Sebek watched them leave.

His shoulders finally relaxed.

Yuu noticed.

"Sebek?"

"Yes?"

"Were you...Jealous?"

His eyes widened.

"What?"

"You looked...kind of upset."

"I was not upset."

"Mhm."

"I was merely..."

He paused.

"...concerned."

"About what?"

"...Their proximity."

Yuu blinked.

"Their...proximity?"

"Yes..."

"...Why?"

Sebek looked away.

“Because they had touched your hair.”

“Because they made you smile.”

“Because you looked comfortable beside someone else.”

Because—

"..."

He couldn't say it.

---

Yuu stood.

Walked over.

Until they were right in front of him.

"...Sebek."

"..."

"You know..."

They smiled softly.

"you can just ask to spend time with me? I like hanging out with you."

"...You do?"

"Mhm."

"You don't have to compete with Ace."

".I was not competing."

"You brought me fourteen oranges."

"You said you liked fruit."

"I said I wanted one orange."

"The others were...precautionary."

Yuu laughed.

Not because of Ace.

Not because of anyone else.

Because of him.

That warm, familiar laugh.

Sebek felt his shoulders finally loosen.

Yuu reached out.

Very gently.

They straightened the slightly crooked collar of his uniform.

"There."

Sebek forgot how to breathe.

"Your collar was crooked."

"I..." Sebek stuttered, red starting in their face.

"You look nice."

Sebek's face immediately turned fully scarlet.

"I...!"

He opened his mouth.

Closed it.

Opened it again.

Nothing came out.

Yuu smiled.

"Cute."

Sebek made a noise somewhere between a gasp and a system error.

Then, with every ounce of dignity he could salvage, he turned on his heel and marched away as fast as he could without technically running.

Yuu watched him go, laughing quietly.

From a nearby window, Lilia grinned.

"I give him...three more months before he accidentally proposes."

Silver glanced toward the rapidly retreating Sebek.

"...You're being generous."

In the distance, Ace could be heard shouting, "DID HE BLUE SCREEN AGAIN?!"

You notch an eyebrow, giving your full attention as you swirl your dessert wine in your glass.

This man feels nothing like an escort in your eyes. When you first saw him, his image practically screamed at you to fall to your knees and listen to every little instruction he gives you but in actuality Jeongguk is the opposite.

He listens, he pays undivided attention to you and his body moves naturally like all he wants to do is soak up time in your presence.

As someone who has now spent years just observing people instead of getting involved and interacting with them, you've learned a lot about this man in such a short amount of time.

He doesn't care about money, not really anyway. When he first stepped foot into the sterile mansion, he was dumbfounded but then as time went on it didn't seem to faze him at all.

Guk cares about the person in front of him, he listens avidly to everything that they say like they're the only person in the universe that exists.

You haven't felt this comfortable in a long time, not that you've laughed and carried on long-winded conversations so far but you still feel relaxed in his presence.

"Research date?" you muse, lifting your glass to your lips.

He nods then, the subtle glow of the moon highlighting his silver eyebrow piercing. "Yeah. I know some things about you now but it's good to see clients in a social setting as well."

The thought of being around a lot of people makes your skin itch and you involuntarily scratch at the back of your neck awkwardly.

Guk sets down his wine, observing you in a matter of seconds.

He should suggest something that wouldn't make you anxious so he offers the only thing he knows you like. "We can go to the zoo."

You haven't been to the zoo in years. The memory of your father flits around your mind immediately and that's enough for you to nod. "Can I buy it out for the day?"

Guk gives you an incredulous smirk, folding his arms. The way his biceps ripple beneath his work shirt makes you distracted for a moment before he's pulling your attention back to his face. "You buying out a zoo is not going to make it a social setting."

"Can I buy the exclusive VIP tour then?" you inquire.

"Will that make you feel more comfortable?" he replies, picking up his glass of wine.

"Yes," you answer honestly.

"Then yes, let's be VIPs for the day."

Your smile then is genuine, crinkling the corners of your eyes sweetly. You smile at how considerate he is, you smile at the fact that you have someone to go somewhere with, and you smile because you're comfortable.

And Jeongguk's promise to his best friends that he wouldn't look at a client the same way as he looked at Chloe slowly feels like it's breaking already.

What you do know to be true about Jeongguk so far is that he is gentlemanly, polite and understanding.

But you still have this underlying sense of distrust that your therapist has told you equates to just how vile Jasper was to you when he cheated. It created this huge turmoil deep inside of you almost like mildew on walls -- it grows and grows until it's taken care of.

You've never truly taken care of it. You just push it to the back of your brain and lock it away hoping that it'll somehow disappear for good.

The opera has always done a great job with drowning out the hopeless thoughts you have but when Jeongguk left that night after dessert, you didn't play any music.

You let the night sink in and you experienced something in its entirety for the first time in years.

As you laid in bed, you let thoughts of the escort consume you. You told him things that night, simple things but it's more than Namjoon probably even knows.

Jeongguk knows your favorite color, your happiest memory, your need for revenge against the two happy life ruiners, he knows how your booming business is just a distraction so that your brain can't process anything from years ago.

And yet, you know very little about Guk.

You could see how it turned out to be that way as the night ticked on in your gigantic, expensive bed.

But it made you curious about the escort. It made you want the same exact answers from him.

So now as you sit outside At Your Service with your Gucci sunglasses on and your long black leather gloves that reach your elbows, you vow to yourself to get those answers.

You're excited for the zoo, if you're being honest with yourself. While it is incredibly early to even be outside, you like knowing you'll have hours to see every animal within the large conservation park.

As for Jeongguk, he can't even step out of his office to meet you at your car because he's being bombarded with questions by his two best friends.

"Can you both move?" he scoffs, sliding on his leather jacket.

Jimin and Taehyung slide closer to one another, folding their arms in tandem with wicked smiles.

"Answer the questions, Guk," Jimin orders, shutting the office door with the heel of his foot.

The sound of the glass door rattling the glass walls around them practically makes the younger escorts teeth rattle.

He doesn't want to even deal with this right now but if he doesn't then he's never going to be able to leave. And he would rather not disappoint you, you've had enough disappointment in your life so far, or so he thinks.

"Holy shit," he breathes, rolling his eyes, "I'm going to the fucking zoo-"

"Going on a date to the zoo," Taehyung interrupts.

"I'm going on a research date to the zoo with my client Y/N so I can see how she interacts in a social setting. I want to make sure that when I take her to the wedding she'll be able to be comfortable-"

"May I just fucking interject that the last time Jeongguk had a client, he didn't give a shit if she was on her hands and knees vomitting into a toilet from food poisoning but now his new client gets two meetings before this wedding that's three whole months away," Taehyung heaves.

"Good point," Jimin chirps, high-fiving the man beside him.

"Oh my God," Guk mumbles, combing his hands through his hair. "You're both so immature."

"Listen, if you're gonna fuck then fuck. But as your life partners and best friends, we just wanna know what's going on," the oldest breathes.

"I'm not fucking her! I'm going to the zoo! Jesus Christ!" your date scoffs, pushing his friends out of the way.

"You're gonna break your promise," Tae sings, steadying himself against the leather couch.

Guk stops in his tracks, thinking back to the dinner date you had not even four days ago before clearing his throat.

He did feel himself losing all semblance of that promise that evening.

"She is my client," he exasperates.

"So was Chloe," Jimin states.

With the roll of his eyes once more, he steps out into the carpeted hallway. "They're different."

It didn't take him long to get to the front door of the agency. The escort thinks to himself how he's going to apologize and make sure you understand that he was held up against his will but the thought flies right out of his head when he sees you.

Your McLaren sits perfectly shiny under the early morning sun and it's so striking that it makes the escort blink. You're not in the driver's seat, nor on top of the hood daintily waiting like Chloe used to.

Instead you're handing a man in tattered looking clothes some money and trying to be as secretive as possible about it, not for yourself of course but to make the man not feel like a burden upon society.

Jeongguk looks on with fascination, simply floored with how thoughtful you are.

You give the homeless man a smile -- a genuine one.

"My God," the escort chirps.

When you turn around to head back to your car, he catches your ensemble. You're decked out in black from head to toe looking as if you're going to someone's funeral. But it would be a fashionable funeral no doubt.

You wear the Gucci and the Balenciaga almost as if you're astonished you even have it and Jeongguk loves that about you.

It's one of the many things he can remember about your meeting vividly.

Your head bow to him is what makes him break out of his short lived reverie.

"Good morning," he announces, walking down the steps of the business.

"It is a good morning," you decide, opening up your door.

Guk decides not to comment on your car, he doesn't think you'd like being complimented on how much money you have. It seems obvious after dinner the other day.

You reach to turn off the opera music but Guk's hand wraps around yours before you can get there.

"I like The Magic Flute," he breathes, giving you a smile.

You want to assume he did his research to seem more knowledgeable on the subject and that he doesn't actually like it but you'll give him the benefit of the doubt.

The car ride is silent for a while but you're alright with it, the air isn't taut with uncomfortableness nor anxiousness and you like that.

You wonder when it's the right time to ask him things. You haven't spoken to anyone but Namjoon in ages and he initiates conversation first.

So you bite the bullet.

And apparently so does he.

"Whats yo-"

"How have-"

Guk chuckles deeply, the sound like harpsichords and the chilly morning breeze.

"I'm sorry, you go first," he offers politely, tilting his head to look at you.

"Oh, no, you first," you breathe.

He notices how you grip the steering wheel tighter and he concedes quickly to spare you the pain of awkwardness.

"How was the past few days? Miss me?" he jeers, lowering his window.

He doesn't miss the gentile smirk you give through the side mirror and his heart wants to melt to fucking goo inside of himself.

Not a good sign.

"I'm a businesswoman, I remain professional at all times," you reply.

Was that banter? Are you joking around with him?

He wants more.

"Nah. I think you missed me," he quips, putting on his sunglasses.

You pick up your coffee and take a sip, getting ready for the long drive to the zoo.

"What's your favorite color?" you inquire softly.

Guk puts his hands behind his head and you do the both of you the favor of opening up the roof to a convertible.

"My favorite color is sage green."

"That's specific," you reply.

Guk chuckles, shrugging his shoulders and running his fingers through his hair. "I've always been a specific type of person."

"I got you coffee earlier… What's your favorite memory?"

The escort looks down at the cup holder and there's a warmth that spreads through him knowing you were thoughtful.

"Favorite memory? Holy shit… I haven't thought about that in a while. Lemme think," Jeongguk breathes, picking up his coffee.

The car is silent for a few moments and you can practically see the cogs turning in his head out of the corner of your eye.

Finally he clears his throat awkwardly and you slow the car down to hear him above the engine.

"My happiest moment is probably when I got accepted into Stanford."

"You went to Stanford University?! What did you study?!" you inquire.

You didn't expect this, not because he's an escort but because you went as well.

"Theoretical physics."

Your eyes widen and you turn your head to him for merely a moment to show him your shock.

To be accepted into Stanford for such a deep thinking major is phenomenal, he must be one of the brightest minds of the century.

It intrigues you. It pulls you in.

"I went to Stanford too," you add with a small smile.

"You graduated," he breathes, lifting his coffee cup to his lips.

You can hear the pain in his voice, you can hear the disappointment and it reels you back in.

"Wh-What happened?"

Guk shrugs his shoulders stiffly, staring ahead at the asphalt road that disappears beneath the car. "It's a long story. Maybe I'll tell you one day."

You might like that.