golden boy

chapter 19

"do you want coffee? it's turkish coffee though, we don't have a machine," jisung asked when they entered the small apartment.

"sure," minho replied, getting curious about how that would be prepared, and followed after his host excitedly.

jisung nodded and pulled out a copper coffee maker and some coffee, then put it on the stove. minho's eyes widened and he was about to observe the process closely when jisung started asking questions.

"so do you need help with just the interpretation of inferno or with like, the facts and history and all?," jisung asked as he prepared two boring white and red coffee cups.

"oh no, i'm fine with the other things. divine comedy is in three parts, hell, purgatory and heaven or paradise, it was written in 1320 by dante alighieri and it served as a basis for the standardization of today's italian," minho spilled out, still watching the coffee pot curiously.

"wow, really? 20 or 21?," jisung pouted and reflected. literary theory wasn't his strongest suit.

"20. he died in 1321," minho insisted and watched the coffee start boiling. jisung nodded and pushed a button to lower the heat.

"what language was it again?," the host asked as he took the coffee maker off the stove for a couple of seconds. the preparation process was weird, "that became modern italian i mean."

"tuscan. even though it was only florentine high class that spoke that one," minho diligently responded.

"oh, okay. thanks. as always rich people decide for everyone," jisung huffed and finally turned off the stove.

"yeah, some things never change," the taller agreed mechanically and watched the liquid get poured into the two ugly cups.

"here you are," jisung took the cup by the rim because it was hot and signaled to the other to do the same. minho took the steaming cup and smelled it. it was strong. jisung took his own coffee and they moved over to the couch.

"don't start drinking right away," jisung instructed and put a hand over minho's that was reaching for the cup, "it's hot still. and also, wait for the sludge to fall down and then you can start."

minho nodded comprehensively, "do you smoke in the house?," he asked, seeing an ashtray on the table.

"no, on the windowsill or the balcony. we should do some work first though. we can't get distracted like last time," jisung giggled and crossed his legs.

"yes. okay," minho nodded and slowly started looking for his notes. he wanted to prepare for the exam but he would much rather just stay with jisung and talk, look at utensils, manga, read his poetry or whatever.

when he was finally ready, jisung started his lesson from where he had stopped. it took significantly less time to go through everything and once he said 'that's it' minho immediately got up to stretch.

"was it that boring?," jisung giggled as he stood up to take his snuffbox from his bag.

"no, and your coffee really made it seem like we were just having a chat," minho smiled and cracked his fingers, "but dante is definitely not my thing."

jisung giggled, "should we do a quiz then? i'll explain everything you get wrong again," he proposed and started rolling a cigarette.

"um, can we smoke first? it's not going to take long..," minho pleaded. he really wanted to engage in something else.

"no, we need to get this done. i'm making this but i'll smoke it later," jisung asserted and clicked his tongue, "if you want to hang out that bad we can go somewhere on the weekend," he lowered his voice to make the risky suggestion seem more casual.

"i'd love to but i can't hang out," the taller returned simply.

'i knew it. why would he go out to some cheap coffee shop or something with me? ugh, you're an idiot, jisung,' the boy scolded himself and started rolling another cigarette.

"my parents don't let me hang out after school, except for if i'm studying. they think it's distracting," minho explained and rolled his eyes.

"wait, so you don't go out?," jisung lifted his wide eyes.

"i do, but only on semi-formal and official occasions. basically, school events, formal dinners with family, visits to family and family friends, formal social gatherings of the circle, and sometimes, if i'm lucky and hyunjin's father is willing to ask, i get to go out with hyunjin."

"wow," jisung almost choked on his air, "so you practically only go out to be obliged to smile and eat very expensive food slowly, while talking to rich assholes about their puppies?"

"um, you're mistaken if you think anybody eats at those parties," minho giggled, "there are a ton of different hors d'œuvres, drinks and stuff, but you should avoid drinking because intoxication is a weakness and you can't really eat because, if someone talks to you, you can't respond while chewing.."

"woah, those rules are harsh," the shorter commented, stunned by the laws of the elite, "so you just waste so much food for nothing?"

"yes. i assure you, no one dares to even look at it," minho retorted.

"damn, i can't believe you're actually burdened with following all that."

"it's not too hard when everyone else does it too," minho reassured and smiled. jisung nodded.

"you know what, let's smoke. but we'll review everything after," the shorter went to the window and opened it. it was small and the two would struggle to both smoke on it, but it was raining outside and the balcony had become unpleasant.

"okay," minho chimed and took out his magic box. his fingers unlocked it without even looking and he took out one joint, then walked to the open window, where the other was holding out his lighter.

"i can't believe you use matches," jisung mocked as he watched his guest relax after the first few tugs, "isn't that hard?," he slowly asked, observing as minho's slow eyes met his.

"no. it smells nice," the taller admitted with a small smile, "it smells like wood as it burns. i like smelling that before i smell the burnt cannabis," he let out a tiny chuckle when his last words were out and he realised how ridiculous it sounded.

jisung laughed, "maybe it does. i'm not the matches kind of guy and i don't care about things smelling a certain way if we're honest," he giggled.

"you always smell like tobacco," minho reflected aloud. jisung didn't know if that was a reproachful or a neutral comment.

"um.. should i take gum or something?," he asked to get some clarification.

"no," the taller slowly returned, "i hate tobacco but on you it's the sexy bad boy image," he explained and then corrected himself, "i mean it fits.. you."

"um? uh.. thanks?"

"you're welcome," minho smiled and passed him the joint. jisung fell into a silence, waiting for the marijuana to hit him.