Hearts Don't Lie | Hyunsung

Ch.01: Aye, Domino!

Among all the crazy ideas which Hyunjin had indulged himself in, he thought this was the craziest yet. You can name it anything you want; a desperate call, a wild gamble or a sheer madness. Even Hyunjin didn't know what to say about this situation but he knew he fucked up somewhere to end up where he was. Maybe there's a need to revisit a week ago when his college life was still peaceful.

Seven days ago, all he worried about was how he would ace his quiz while also binge watching K-dramas the entire week. His recent obsession was Lovely Runner and the week before that it was The Queen of Tears. It was irresponsible for him but he just couldn't give up on his personal time and believe it or not, he always ended up with a more than alright mark. It wouldn't be much of a big deal to lose some sleep revising one night before the quiz rather than biting his nails to know whether the female lead finally saved the male lead or not for an entire week. Life was predictable and calm despite his unhealthy time management, just the way he liked it.

That was until he met with the annoying face of the satan spawn, Han Jisung, who unexpectedly became his saving grace. Actually, this wasn't the right place to start either. To retell the whole thing, this needed to be done chronologically. Everything went down one by one naturally just like a domino. It was almost like the universe was hinting something to him and he was just an idiot who didn't know better. The first nudge started when Hyunjin and Seungmin were heading back from the cafeteria about a month ago. At that time, Hyunjin had an urge to get something cold and sweet while Seungmin was craving for a donkatsu after doing his assignment non-stop since the day started. "I told you it's unhealthy to do your work without eating." Hyunjin had told him, while the latter made a face at the nagging. "You out of all people shouldn't be telling me that. At least, I started doing my work. Have you?"

Hyunjin laughed aloud, slapping Seungmin on his back, "You know me." Even if Hyunjin didn't say it, Seungmin knew he had a major procrastination issue. They were both unhealthy in their own ways and maybe that's why they were best friends. Then they spoke no more, settling into a comfortable silence that was cultivated from years of friendship. As they trudged back to their dorm, Seungmin's phone buzzed. He glanced at the screen and frowned before handing the phone to Hyunjin. "Hey, check this out. It's an ad for a 'Rent Boyfriend' on campus."

Hyunjin took the phone and read the message aloud: ""Need a boyfriend for a day? Perfect for events, family gatherings, or just to have someone to hang out with on Pepero Day. No strings attached, and it's all for fun! Contact us at RentABF.com." Hyunjin raised an eyebrow, then grimaced. "A boyfriend rent service? Who even needs this? That's... kind of desperate and Pepero day is like a month away." Seungmin chuckled, shaking his head. "Yeah, I thought the same thing. But look at the URL—'RentABF.com'. Someone really went out of their way to set this up."

"Maybe it's a scam. You know how they send those phishing messages nowadays. Just block the number." When the elevator reached their floor, the both of them walked out still laughing about the spam message. It wasn't an important subject and soon after they talked about something else, forgetting the unmemorable topic.

The second domino piece toppled over a few days later when Hyunjin was reading the campus announcement board. Among the myriad of flyers for study groups, club meetings, and pizza nights, one colourful poster caught his eye. It was emblazoned with hearts and sparkles, and boldly declared: "Free candlelight dinner for couples in conjunction with Pepero Day". It was definitely flashy but he was only interested in K-drama couples and the pizza nights poster piqued his interest more. Despite his nonchalance, there was a nagging voice at the back of his head how it was unfair that couples get these fancy offers whether it was the romantic season or not. The singles were always singled out. He quickly texted Seungmin a: "What do you think of eating pizza as our dinner for the entire week?"