Golden Days | Markhyuck

3 | Denial

"Had a rough night?" Renjun asks.

Donghyuck is knocking back his third cup of coffee that day, nodding affirmatively. Bless having free drinks as an employee, and bless Saturdays for being relatively easy days, because he has no idea how he would have survived a weekday morning shift.

"Care to tell me?"

Not really, Donghyuck thinks. He'd gone to bed pretty much the moment he got home, but his sleep was restless as he kept remembering everything that happened in the last several years: the time he spent with Mark, the day he left, the letter he received after graduation sitting in a drawer at his parents' house. In the end all he managed to get was a couple of hours of sleep, a massive headache and a stinging pain in his heart.

"Fine, suit yourself. At the very least drink some water," Renjun says sharply, snatching the paper cup away. Donghyuck looks at him with discontent, but Renjun's not fazed at all.

The shop's wind chime rings as a customer walks in. Donghyuck almost gets excited for the distraction, but, of course, since the world seems to absolutely adore him, it's Mark, strolling in casually. There's a small glint of surprise in his eyes once he spots Donghyuck.

The idea to move far, far away and never come back here pops up in Donghyuck's mind once again.

"Hey!" he greets Donghyuck, leaning against the counter a bit. "You work here?"

"Yeah," he says dryly. There's a cutting remark sitting on the tip of his tongue, but he's got to stay somewhat professional.

Mark orders himself a latte, and Donghyuck punches it in. While he has the chance, and because it seems to be Donghyuck's thing to make stupid decisions, he checks out Mark for a second. He's in an oversized gray hoodie and black sweatpants, a far cry from the conscientious teacher's pet Donghyuck's used to seeing. He looks pretty good, though, relaxed and kind of adorable and cuddly in a way.

A moment later, after realizing exactly what he's thinking, Donghyuck feels like shooting himself.

"So what made you come back here?" he questions in an attempt to distract himself. "Couldn't you have gone to some elite university abroad?" It's a little more hostile than he intended, but he doesn't really care.

Mark doesn't seem to have heard his tone, either, as his demeanor doesn't change. "This place is pretty good, too. Besides, I kinda wanted to return for nostalgia. I love this city. It feels like home."

Donghyuck wants to ask, then why did you leave in the first place? The question almost leaves his lips, but he doesn't end up following through. Instead, he settles for a quick glare that can hopefully be interpreted as resentful.

"Fair enough," he says quietly.

"So... maybe you want to meet up some time and hang out like we used to?"

Donghyuck does a double take to make sure he actually heard what he thinks he did. He's staring at Mark, trying to figure out if he's actually serious, but his smile is unwavering, confident, almost mocking. It forces a small, twisted grin out of Donghyuck, too.

"Maybe. I'll message you if I find the time." He has no intention of ever doing it.

Thankfully, Renjun arrives to save the day, placing Mark's coffee on the counter. He takes it with a quick 'thanks,' settling at one of the tables and pulling out his laptop.

Donghyuck steps back, sighing, as he feels Renjun throw an arm around his shoulders.

"Yikes."

"I told you it was bad."

Renjun pulls back, throwing him a half questioning, half judgmental look. "You do realize I meant that more so for you than for him, right?"

Donghyuck's brows furrow in confusion.

"Huh?"

"Look, I don't know how you're seeing this whole thing right now, but he's acting really nice towards you, and it seems like you're kinda being a bitch for no reason."

"I have a reason, Jun," Donghyuck says defensively, looking away.

"Donghyuck." Renjun's voice is razor-sharp and low, enough to grab his attention instantly. "I know the whole thing hurt you." He pauses for a second, considering his next words, then continues. "I just think you shouldn't be so quick to blame him for everything."

Donghyuck shakes his head slightly. It's way too early for this. "What's that supposed to-"

The shop's chime rings again, and in walks a guy with fiery orange hair and designer coat. Chenle Zhong, the object of envy for broke college students everywhere.

To be fair, that's a bit of a mean way of putting it, because he's actually a really nice guy, with an iconic, borderline annoying but still cute dolphin laugh, but Donghyuck can't really help it.

Renjun's face lights up. "Alright, we can chat about this another time. For now, I'll take this one." He pushes past Donghyuck to get to Chenle, and he rolls his eyes in response, preparing a portion of coffee grounds.

The two engage in their usual friendly chatter, Renjun only breaking it off for a quick order of "the usual, Hyuck", as expected.

Donghyuck hears a few words of their conversation as he makes the order, but it's nothing noteworthy. Mostly just Chenle being his usual friendly self, and Renjun being his unusual friendly self. If he's being honest, it's really weird to see Renjun being this soft.

It's not all that bad, though. At least he's happy, and that's what matters, right?

Once the coffee's done, he sets it in front of Chenle. "Thanks," he says, wrapping his fingers around the cup. He takes a sip and smiles fondly. "By the way, what do you guys say about a party, like... a few weeks from now? November, maybe?"

"I hope you're not planning something without me, Lele," Jaemin says, one hand propping himself up against the counter, the other in Jeno's, and- wait, when did they get here? Christ, Donghyuck's really got to focus. It's been a weird day; the last thing he needs is to be told off by Renjun yet again.

Chenle laughs in his dolphin-like way, which makes Donghyuck concerned for the other customers for a second. "It's supposed to be more of an upperclassman thing, but they asked me to host, so why not invite more people?"

Upperclassman parties. Donghyuck's been to exactly one, when he was a freshman in high school, before all the cool seniors graduated.

He made a bunch of friends, but it's all kind of blurry. Okay, it's all really blurry. The next morning he woke up feeling like months-old roadkill, wearing someone else's hoodie, and with small, red marks trailing along his neckline.

And that was a high school party. He can only imagine the stuff that takes place at college parties.

"Sounds like a great idea," Renjun says with a touch of sarcasm.

"It is, Renjun. Don't be a killjoy. Anyway, I'm in," Jaemin says, "and you're coming with me, babe." He hugs Jeno tightly, and while Jeno responds with a pointed look, he's clearly far from unhappy.

It's another one of those moments when Donghyuck feels kind of envious, wishing he could have someone so close. The fact that Mark's sitting just a few feet away is only pouring more salt into the wound, and all he wants is for it to stop hurting. For a second, he wonders why it does, but he shoots the thought down before it can become dangerous.

"Alright, alright. Hyuck, I'm dragging you too, and don't even try to get out of it." Renjun nudges Donghyuck with his elbow, knocking him out of the daze.

"Y-yeah, sure," he stammers out. To be fair, he's heard far worse ideas. Besides, perhaps a party is just what he needs to take his mind off of everything, question mark?

Because that idea has always gone well.