Nocturnal Buddies ✩ Yang Jeongin

Chapter 58

Jeongin was finally drifting off to sleep after failing to get any shuteye. He has spent the whole night reflecting and trying to make sense of the mess inside his mind, unraveling emotions he had isolated and hidden from the world. Despite his best attempts, he barely scratched the surface. There was so much more he needed to work on, but he did what he could in one night.

The boy was seconds from actually falling asleep when he heard a faint knock at his door. Drowsily, he incoherently called out to the person on the other side. Jeongin was barely conscious enough to process that Minho had entered his room to check up on him.

"Did you get any sleep last night?" the older boy asked, noting how exhausted his friend looked.

"Not really..." Jeongin muttered while rubbing his face, as if he was trying to get himself to wake up.

Minho hummed in response before saying something to the younger boy. In response, Jeongin replied with a hum, despite not processing what his friend had asked. "Just get some sleep then, I'll tell Chan," was all he heard before he knocked out, immediately succumbing to his exhaustion.

.𖥔 ݁ ˖☾𖤓.𖥔 ݁ ˖

The afternoon light streamed into the café, where a few customers occupied the tables. Voices carried throughout the place as laughter filtered in every so often- conversation never seeming to grow dull. Others sat quietly in their seats as they watched people pass by the transparent wall. At the front, the employees worked hard on finishing the newly placed orders- Hyunjoo being one of them.

The girl held a light conversation with her co-worker as they worked side by side. Both of their attention flickered away from what they were doing when the bell rang. Hyunjoo greeted her friends with a smile before shifting her attention back to the drink she was making. She took brief glances at the two who sauntered in- one looked over joyed while the other appeared defeated.

A big smile was plastered on Areum's face as she made her way over to the cash register, holding a giant plush against her body. The younger girl placed her usual order before nudging Jaehyun, prompting him to list a few items off the menu. After Areum paid, the two made their way to a table near the front. Hyunjoo offered to take care of her friends' order after she finished the one she was working on, handing it off to her co-worker.

When she finished making the drinks, she made her way over to her friends. The older girl placed each one on the table, earning a 'thank you' from Areum and Jaehyun. She then left to retrieve their pastries before returning. Hyunjoo settled down in one of the seats, deciding to accompany her friends since the café was no longer busy.

"Look what Jae won for me," Areum hummed as she held up the oversized baby chick she had been dotting on. "Isn't it cute?"

An endearing smile pulled at the older girl's lips as she nodded in agreement. "It's adorable," she replied before shifting her attention over to the boy. "How long did it take you to win that?"

"We don't talk about it," Jaehyun groaned as he threw his head back- the dreadful memory already haunting him. "All my hard earned cash went down the drain in a matter of seconds. Who knew crane games could be so addicting," he grumbled before his attention moved to Areum, who was doing a little dance while enjoying her piece of cake. "She's happy though so I can't really complain."

"Awe~, look at you," Hyunjoo cooed as she leaned over to pinch the boy's cheek.

He immediately withdrew himself and gave her a weird look, eyebrows furrowing in response. The older girl couldn't help but chuckle amusingly at his reaction. It truly looked like she had offended his whole lineage with one simple action.