1+1=3? {Meanie}

thirteen

"Jeon Wonwoo."

That was the first thing Wonwoo heard after the jingle of the bell on the door alerted him of an arrival. He momentarily froze as he saw Yoon Jeonghan walking toward him, looking more than a little peeved. He softly swore to himself, remembering that he forgot to tell either Sungcheol or Jeonghan he was slipping out of the party early. Although, with as nosy as Soonyoung was, he had been sure the other would have had no trouble telling them. He was wrong and Soonyoung had betrayed him once again. He tried to crouch under the counter where he first hid when Mingyu came to the shop, but Jeonghan had already seen him and he was doomed from the start. He slammed his hands against the counter and leaned over to glare at him.

"Where the hell did you disappear off to last night? Sungcheol and I searched for you for nearly an hour until Soonyoung told us he saw you leaving."

Oh, so Soonyoung had told them but purposefully held back information. He would have to kill him later. Right now, he had to focus on making sure Jeonghan didn't kill him. Sheepishly, he tried to laugh it off while standing back upright.

"I had something important to do last night."

Jeonghan's eyes narrowed. "More important than your best friends' engagement party?"

Wonwoo winced. Poor choice of words. He already dug himself this far, may as well continue. Before he could, Jeonghan spoke once more.

"Don't tell me you got drunk and went home with some random guy again." He accused as if it was something Wonwoo did all the time. "Because, if that's the case, I'll call Galaxy Entertainment myself and tell your handsome man just what you were up to."

Wonwoo crossed his arms. "Are you slandering me a whore?"

"Did you act like one?"

"No! I went to see Mingyu."

Jeonghan's hostility subsided a bit. "Okay, I apologize then, but why did you have to see him so late?" He gasped. "Don't tell me you ditched my party for a booty call!"

Wonwoo rolled his eyes. "Again, slander. You've been spending too much time with Soonyoung."

The other simply shrugged while Wonwoo smiled remembering the night before. "No, I didn't go for a booty call. I went to tell him how I felt. I felt inspired by you and Sungcheol." He admitted.

Jeonghan's eyes widened and he fully leaned over the counter, just inches away from Wonwoo's face. Wonwoo could smell the other's floral cologne. He backed away a bit, not caring for the sudden proximity.

"What happened?" Jeonghan inquired.

"Yeah, what happened?" Chimed another voice.

Both Jeonghan and Wonwoo turned to see Soonyoung standing next to the older as if he had been there the whole time. He looked eager to hear what Wonwoo was going to say next, but when he saw two sets of eyes gaping at him, his eyes darted back and forth.

"What? Do I have something on my face?"

"Where did you come from?" Jeonghan asked incredulously. "You weren't here a minute ago."

"The front door. I saw you two in here gossiping and I didn't want to be left out." He explained.

Wonwoo was surprised. It was a typical Soonyoung move. He lived a few blocks away from the store and often glanced in the window to see what Wonwoo was doing. It was as if he had antennae attached to his head, allowing him to detect drama and gossip a mile away.

"So, what happened?" Jeonghan prompted, Soonyoung nodding along.

"Nothing. We just confessed our feelings and talked for a few hours."

Soonyoung was disappointed by the lack of juicy gossip. "Oh, so boring stuff."

"Are you guys official then?" Jeonghan asked, ignoring Soonyoung's complaints.

"No, we haven't gotten that far yet."

Soonyoung scoffed. "Are you kidding me? You've slept together. How are you not that far yet?"

Wonwoo sighed at his blunt and obnoxious friend who clearly had a one-track mind.

"That's the whole point. We've rushed into things and that's what made our beginning so rocky in the first place. We need time to learn about each other before we rush things again and wind up in a worse situation." He tried to explain.

Soonyoung seemed unimpressed. "That's lame."

Before Wonwoo could defend himself, Jeonghan did it for him. "No, it's not lame. I get it. You don't want to rush into another relationship and be worse for it. I can respect that."

Wonwoo grinned at his friend before glaring at his coworker. "Thank you! At least someone gets it. I just want us to start from the beginning, like a normal couple."

"The sex was that bad, huh?" Soonyoung concluded, sounding bored by that point.

Having enough of his friend's ignorance and outburst, he leaned across the counter, close enough to whisper in his ear.

"You know, that's big talk coming from a virgin." He taunted.

He leaned back upright to get a good look at Soonyoung's blushing face. He smirked, feeling satisfied. Maybe now, he would be quiet and let Wonwoo explain himself. He turned his attention back to Jeonghan.

"As I was saying," He continued, "I don't want our relationship to depend solely on sex or the physical aspect. We have to know each other and be able to connect on a deeper level to make it work. We started a bit backward, but I want to try to right that wrong. He has a child and his life is way different than mine. I have to be careful." He explained.

Jeonghan nodded, seeming to fully understand, and even Soonyoung looked as if he was starting to get it as well. After Jisoo, Wonwoo swore he would never be in another relationship again. The mere thought of it frightened him. The idea of having to be vulnerable all over again made him sick to his stomach, but the more Mingyu stuck by him, the more he started to want to trust him. He wanted to be vulnerable with him, but the skepticism remained in the back of his mind. He still needed time to ease his mind and build trust again.

"Well, I respect your decision. I just want you to be happy." Jeonghan concluded.

"I am," Wonwoo replied, and he meant it. It was the happiest he'd been in years.

"Maybe one day, you and Mingyu will be like Sungcheol and me. Which reminds me." He reached into his and pulled out two papers, handing each of them one.

"Sungcheol and I have set a date. This tells you the schedule of events leading up to it. I hope you two can be a part of it. It would mean a lot to me."

Both of them grabbed the older's hands and reassured him they would be there to support him and his fiance in any way they could. However, in classic Soonyoung style, he had to ruin a nice moment.

"Can I be a bridesmaid?" He joked.

"That's for women in American weddings you dumb bastard!" Jeonghan yelled as he hit him.

As they ran around the store, Wonwoo thought of how lucky he was to be at this point in his life. He had amazing friends, albeit a bit annoying. He had a promising relationship with Mingyu and he was slowly coming out of the shell he had hidden so long in. Mingyu had said that he seemed cold and needed someone to melt him. Now that Wonwoo thought about it, Mingyu was right. What would have happened if they never had met? Would Wonwoo still be living a quiet and lonely life? Would he still be bitter and sad? He hated to think he ever lived that way and was glad Mingyu brought a new light to his life when it was darkest. He hoped that light never burned out.