i was sober [ dowoo ]

one:

chapter one:
would you like me to accompany you tonight?

─┄ㅤ☆ㅤ┄─

two fortnights whisked away, along with september leaves long due before autumn, before the stars miraculously-finally-filled the evening sky. it was a full moon that night, whispy clouds looked like blankets hoping to cover it; but its light still shone through. all this seemed mesmerizing to the human eye. one just cannot miss a sight such as this, it would be too gruesome-and the heart might flood with unease and regret.

you can only sigh.

below, the lights were brighter-busier. everywhere in the seoul metropolis seemed to be breathtakingly luxurious, full of splendor and life. at day, the city's tallest buildings reflected a heaven-like array of lights, as sunlight bounced off from one window to another; at night-time, oh... you must be lying to yourself if you say that it can't make you sigh or marvel at it in awe.

my, kim dongyoung could ramble all about it for hours. his tall, statuesque silhouette stood relaxed upon his penthouse balcony, staring down at the bustling streets of gangnam district. it was only nine o'clock in the evening, considered to be early, and the lights of seoul are awake still; as well as the busy chatter of streetgoers hopping left and right (hoping to have at least one of everything on every food stall). it amused him so. just thinking of tteokboki gave his stomach quite the rumble that it made him giggle. if only he could have at least one bite; just one rice cake, his night would be immediately made. but alas, one cannot have anything he wants. it's an upsetting thought, isn't it? he looked up at the sky, then back down to the streets, thinking about how lucky those people were, how grateful they should be for being able to have whatever they want without fear of repercussions.

he ignored that thought the next few seconds later.

vape in one hand, his chest heaved heavily as he breathed in an inconsiderable amount of it, the mint flavour he could immediately feel rushing through his veins. doyoung coughed (an unpleasant one, no doubt), his face visibly drawn with distate as he threw the tube down the trash bin accompanied with a disgruntled moan of exasperation. his daft uncle thought it was a good idea to give away tubes of vape to the family like candy on halloween. even though he politely tried to decline, it was a 1,000,000 won offer that bribed doyoung to accept it.

he'd never heard of an idea so evidently half-witted, and there he thought he heard worse. but hey, at least he'll get some cash out of this preposterousness. getting free money can't just happen, it's practically a blessing. there were more zeroes in his bank account than his immediate family-more zeroes to come when he gets his parents' pending inheritance, sure, but getting free things is a hundred times more delightful. maybe even more than a hundred times.

1,000,000 won is a good deal for a ridiculous bribe.

profanities spilled out of his mouth while he fished his pockets for his phone. he was going to call his uncle, say he liked it, and withdraw the money he'll receive after. choosing to lie was the safest option so he wouldn't grow out of his uncles growing good favors as he, unfortunately, was his least favorite nephew. anything for money, right? i don't think samchon will notice, he thought.

a loud bang from his front door caused doyoung to jump, followed by a high pitched voice hurriedly saying, "hyung! i'm so sorry i'm late but the freshmans needed help with the prop chandeliers for the play, and there was traffic, and the taxi driver drove so slow–"

"hey, calm down! it's fine, you sound like you're about to faint anytime soon."

kim jungwoo smiled, relieved that his hyung wasn't angry or pissed, and an even wider, lopsided grin sprawled across his face when doyoung's eyes (clearly saying he was going to laugh) caught his. whoever said that smiling is your biggest accessory must've known kim jungwoo. it could light up an entire room on its own. doyoung couldn't really describe things well but to him, it reminded him of a fruit garden in summer, or like the sun that brightly shines down on you on a pleasant day. it could give you a toothache (metaphorically, of course). sweet. innocent. how many freshman must have fallen head-over-heels for him because of that alone?

the younger boy barged in so suddenly that doyoung didn't notice the overwhelming amount of boxes he carried. he glanced down at them, checking. hm, pie boxes?

"i'll help you with that," offered doyoung upon noticing jungwoo barely managing to balance them all. "why did you buy so many? you don't even eat pies." he took off his jacket, rolled his sleeves up, and-despite a protesting kim jungwoo (who kept on insisting that he'll handle it himself)-relieved his friend from the heavy weight. he could swear he heard him sigh in relief. how many minutes did he carry these?

jungwoo, with one hand wrapped around his petite waist and the other vigorously ruffling his scattered tendrils back into shape, chuckled nervously. "i knoooow but they're your favorite, hyung. i thought you'd be mad at me so-"

"when would i ever be angry at you?"

"i don't know! maybe you would 'cause i'm so late so i thought that buying your favorite will help calm you down or something!" a sigh, a weary one, followed after jungwoo's sudden outburst. he rubbed his temples. he was clearly stressed. his passion for what he does is certainly so great that he couldn't see that he was overworking himself so. well, graduation season is near and for him, it only meant more work.

work. work. work.

doyoung wished he didn't work so often.

perhaps he just wanted to spend more time with him.

"i'll take care of the boxes, you should sit down," the older boy gestured to his couch with his head. making sure his friend couldn't hear him, he sighed. jungwoo is a kind boy- too kind, sometimes. he even spent money on almost 10 pastries. heck, thinking about it just made doyoung laugh, and he coughed afterwards so jungwoo wouldn't hear him and become curious. curious cat.

struggling with his leg and a little bit of elbow grease, doyoung barely managed to open the refrigerator until he heard footsteps coming over to the kitchen.

"are you just going to stand there and enjoy my struggle or are you going to lend your hyung a hand?"

light chortles of laughter, with a fist in his mouth, kept jungwoo from responding to his plea. doyoung playfully scowled at him while nodding his head to the fridge a couple of times, until he eventually obliged. "let's eat this one tonight, hyung," jungwoo announced, taking the third box. "you haven't eaten yet, have you?"

and on cue, as if his internal organs were listening to him, doyoung's stomach let out a ravenous grumble. ah, this is embarassing, he thought, upon hearing jungwoo's wholehearted laughter.