Something Stolen || Hoonki

Unlock the truth

Sunghoon stayed grim for the rest of the evening, but Riki was too tipsy to care.

"I guess It's not fun to realize someone hates you," he just thought, before pouring himself another glass.

For a whole month after that, Riki didn't see Sunghoon at any gathering. Jake evoked that Sunghoon simply didn't feel like coming, but Riki knew the reason, and he felt bad about it.

He should have kept his mouth shut. This whole stolen girlfriend thing was so old and irrelevant now that they were adults, he could have kept it to himself indefinitely. Now he seemed like a child with a childish grudge.

He carried this guilt one more week, until once again, Sunghoon appeared.

It felt like deja-vu. Riki was the first to arrive at the group's meetup, and Sunghoon came second. For some reason, Sunghoon sat right next to Riki again, but he only uttered a simple greeting this time, nothing more.

"Hey," said Riki after a while, breaking the silence. "About what I said last time, I'm very sorry. It was mean."

"Was it a lie?" cut Sunghoon without looking at Riki.

"Well...not exactly."

"Then it wasn't mean, it was just honest."

Riki was so taken aback he took a moment to reply.

"Yes, but-"

"I mean-" exclaimed Sunghoon. "I can't believe you'd still be hung up on something so stupid! We were kids!"

Immediately, Riki's guilt vanished. This man was so damn exasperating!

"Stupid!? You talked about me behind my back to someone I cared about! Don't you agree that says a lot about a person!?"

"I made a mistake, but we're grown now!For how long have we known each other!?"

"Too long!"

Sunghoon seemed outraged.

Riki wanted to continue arguing, it was so satisfying, but other guests arrived, so they had to calm it down.

Sunghoon seemed exceeded. He quickly ordered a drink that he emptied on the spot. When the rest of the group arrived and asked for drinks, Sunghoon followed and finished his glass as quickly as the first time.

"Wow! Do you have something to forget tonight, Hoon?" asked Jake.

"As a matter of fact, I do," he answered without hesitation, throwing a glance at Riki, who avoided his gaze immediately.

"Tell me more, is it a heartbreak?" joked Jake. "I'd know if it was a work thing."

"I'm not you," replied Sunghoon, rolling his eyes. He ordered another drink.

The third drink was enough to exterminate Sunghoon. He spent the rest of the evening half-dead, and by the end, he was sleeping, spread over the table.

Riki tried to act unbothered, but when they left the bar, he declared he would take care of Sunghoon.

Before they reached Sunghoon's place, Riki had the occasion to regret his decision five times.

Sunghoon was a very annoying drunk, so getting his address out of him was a challenge, getting him in the taxi too, and no need to talk about obtaining his keys. A whole circus.

Riki threw Sunghoon across his bed, and went to fetch some water.

When Sunghoon started sipping on the water, Riki considered leaving, as he seemed in good enough shape to take care of himself.

But before he could walk away, Sunghoon exclaimed,

"You're so ridiculous..." He laughed. "for real, it was aaaaaaall the way back in high school!"

Riki was immediately picked.

"Well, you'll always be this guy from high school to me," he replied, trying to contain himself.

Sunghoon sighed. His smile disappeared, and with a surprisingly serious tone, he asked,

"Is there any way to make up for it?"

Riki hesitated to give him some cynical answer, but he decided to match the serious tone of the question,

"You could start by apologizing."

Sunghoon looked at him, and laughed again. He felt back on the bed, rolled to face Riki, and declared,

"I won't apologize. I did do it on purpose after all."