Rental Boyfriend ; Meanie

Chapter 6

Not long after Mingyu drops Wonwoo off at his apartment late in the afternoon, Wonwoo receives an email notification, like clockwork. Another money transfer to his PayPal account, $500 this time. For a few moments, Wonwoo just stares at the staggering sum in disbelief. He was enjoying Mingyu’s company too much to even think about the details of their arrangement. To Wonwoo, it just felt like a stupid date.

There’s no message attached to the payment this time, causing Wonwoo’s paranoia to spike. What if Mingyu didn’t enjoy their time together as much as Wonwoo did? What if Mingyu has regrets about spending so much time and money on Wonwoo? What if Wonwoo is the only one getting anything out of their arrangement?

An acrid taste rises in Wonwoo’s throat when he wonders if Mingyu is only paying for his company out of a sense of pity, or charity. Wonwoo still can’t fathom why Mingyu would want to invest so much time and money on him when he could be with anybody else he wanted. With nothing to offer Mingyu except love, the only thing Wonwoo can do is to enjoy their arrangement while it lasts.

October turns into November, and for the first time since Wonwoo can remember, he’s no longer anxious about making ends meet this month. Now that he has a considerable amount of extra spending money, Wonwoo decides to splurge on a nice birthday present for Minghao. Junhui has invited Wonwoo to Minghao’s birthday party for the past couple of years, and this year is no different.

Wonwoo wanders the colorful aisles of a nearby toy store, looking for something that Minghao might like. He finds a beautifully carved wooden slingshot that he knows would delight the boy, but he suspects that Junhui wouldn’t be as thrilled. He settles instead on a deluxe set of Nerf guns that includes several different types of blasters and ammunition. Since Minghao is an only child, he often plays with neighborhood kids, so Wonwoo imagines that Minghao would love a gift he can share with his friends.

That Friday evening, Wonwoo has just finished wrapping up his present and is about to head to Junhui’s house when he hears a quiet knock on the door. Wonwoo’s heart does a little somersault in happiness at the unexpected sight of Mingyu waiting outside.

“Hey,” Mingyu says with a wide grin that reveals his sharp canines.

He’s standing on Wonwoo’s doormat with his hands stuffed in his pockets and a garment bag slung over his shoulder, looking just like a boyfriend picking up his date. Wonwoo wishes he could take a photo of him to capture this moment forever.

“Hi,” Wonwoo says uncertainly, torn between confusion and overjoy.

Mingyu frowns when he notices that Wonwoo’s coat is on and his shoes are laced. “Sorry, did I catch you at a bad time? Were you just about to go somewhere?” he asks.

“I’m going to Junhui’s house, but there’s no rush,” Wonwoo says. “Would you like to come inside?”

“No, I don’t want to interrupt your plans,” Mingyu says, a strange sense of dread twisting in his gut at the mention of Junhui. “I just came here to drop something off.”

He hands Wonwoo the garment bag containing his tuxedo and turns around to leave.