After the incident, with everyday passed, Mark's visits to the studio became more frequent.
Jinyoung knew those were not just friendly, honest visits; he might not know the real reason but one thing he was certain was that it was not of a good intention. Yet Jinyoung was in no power to stop those visits, and he had to convince Wonpil.
"Your friend is coming too often. Always staying long even when he knows that we are busy. To be honest, I find it annoying. You always have to give him your time whenever he comes."
His real reason to dislike those visits might be something more personal to him. But he'd better not let a word, even a hint, out of him to Wonpil.
"I think he may feel sometimes a bit lonely. It's not too much time I'm giving him, Jinyoung ah. And when we're busy, he just sits on one of the sofas alone. I can't say to him outright that we don't want him here. Besides, he rarely disturbs us when we are busy, I reckon," Wonpil tried to coax Jinyoung.
"You alwalys defend him. And why is he coming to you too often these days? You said he rarely visited you before, say, even once in a year?"
Wonpil couldn't find an answer. What confused him even more, was why Jinyoung couldn't get along with Mark. Most of his friends, after he had introduced them to Jinyoung and after they had met Jinyoung a couple of times, they got all friendly with Jinyoung and almost became friends. But what was wrong this time, Wonpil couldn't make out.
"Okay, whatever," Jinyoung just dropped his question as Wonpil was taking too long to answer, "But even if you can't say to him outright, give him some hints or something like that, so he'll stop himself."
"But it'll be weird a friend giving such hints to his friend. I'll try it, if you want me to, but I can't do it so obviously, Jinyoung ah."
Was it just himself so emotionless and heartless, or were those around him too soft-hearted? Jinyoung thought. First Youngjae, and now Wonpil.
But come to think of it, Jinyoung assured himself, why should he be genteel towards a person that was not worth - at least in Jinyoung's eyes - a spark of compassion? Jinyoung was certain, as long as he lived, he was going to contradict Mark Tuan, and so was that man as long as he lived, and whenever they saw each other.
Wonpil was blinded by friendship, Youngjae was too positive in everything; and Mark Tuan could play or manipulate them if he wanted. But he would never let himself be, Jinyoung thought.
Thinking of Youngjae, Jinyoung noticed that the younger could not come to the studio as often as he used to. He was preparing for the exam. That was better; if he came often and met Mark Tuan, Jinyoung could not imagine what a distressing thing would happen.
"You really waste too much of your time just to annoy someone," Jinyoung said to Mark at one time, when Wonpil was in the studio room, busy.
"Huh, what do you mean?"
"You know what I mean."
"I know what you mean? What are you saying?" Mark's neutral, unaffected face provoked Jinyoung's anger.
"You come here too often because you know that I don't want you here."
"Who says I come here because of you? You're just assuming things as you want them to be."
"What do I want things to be? Stop your aimless visits and your thinking that things are always in your way. Because they aren't. You are wrong if you think that you can just come and leave, this place, anytime you like."
"I don't see why I should listen to you though. Wonpil is my host, and so long as he is fine with my visits, then why should it be a problem at all?"
Mark said with a tone of frimness and certainty; and Jinyoung bit his lower lip hard out of fury.
"I'm sure Wonpil is also getting tired of you. You don't know when to come and when to not. Nobody is idling around like you. Seriously, have you got nothing to do at all?"
"First of all, Wonpil and I have been friends for years, long before you met him. And to answer your question, no, I have got nothing to do, so I come here often. So what do you want to say now?"
"So you come here to disturb us almost everyday."
"I reckon, I'm not obliged to explain everything I do, to you."
"No need of your explanation. For whatever reason you come, that surely must not be of a good one."
Jinyoung stood up off the sofa, as soon as he finished those words, to cut off the argument and not to let Mark win with words if they continued.
"You always see negativity in a person, huh?"
Mark said, still sitting on the sofa and not looking up at Jinyoung, who was about to go away but stopped at those words.
"That depends on who that person is."
With that, Jinyoung left the sofa and went to open the window to beathe in the fresh air.
"A party!" Wonpil exclaimed. "Mark, you rarely throw parties, not to say, it to be at your mansion. You hate people coming and going at your place."
Disbelief was all written on Wonpil's face. Jinyoung was sitting beside him but he was reading the lyrics and thinking of any changes that would better them.
"Yeah, but I think I should give it a try. I have not many people to invite actually. You'll come surely? And bring him along if you want to."
Jinyoung paid only half attention to their conversation because he had already decided that very minute not to go to. If Wonpil wanted to go, he could do; but Jinyoung was determined not to tag along.
"Jinyoung, shall we go together?" Wonpil was not that excited because he was never a party person.
"You can go but I don't want to come along," said Jinyoung, without lifting his head and with his eyes still on the lyrics paper.
"Whether he comes with you or not, you must come, Wonpil. I'm making it a grand and large one. But still listing who I should invite."
"When is it?"
"Coming Sunday. In the evening. Till night. Food, drinks, music, dance, and everything. You're on the priority list."
Wonpil's nervousness was starting to show but he did not want to deny the invitation.
"O-okay, I'll make sure to come then."
"Jinyoung ah, we should go together. I'll be lost if I have to be there alone," said Wonpil as soon as Mark left.
"I don't want to. I'm not also a party-person."
"But at least, I'll not be alone. On Sunday, we can close the studio in the evening, and it's also your day off."
Jinyoung knew how Wonpil was so unused to such kind of informal parties, and while Wonpil needed him, he shouldn't be too stubborn with his pride.
Although his unwillingness to go there was too strong because of the very host, he gave in finally just for the sake of Wonpil.
"When it is, did he say?"
Wonpil flashed with relief, at the sign of Jinyoung agreeing to go with him.
"Coming Sunday. We'll go together? We can leave it early if we don't like it," said Wonpil, in enthusiasm.
"Yeah, we'll go together. And I'm sure we'll not like it at all, and perhaps, we'll leave it real early."
Jinyoung said; blaming on these circumstances.
