With U // YunGi

Unexpected Help

Jongho bit into his cold sandwich. He had just finished his Saturday morning jog and was taking a rest on a bench inside a park. Unlike any other day, he had chosen a running track not too far from With U, because later Wooyoung would "invite him in for a cup of coffee". It was all part of his plan.

Having angered his father at the hospital on Friday, Jongho was given a temporary sinecure position - his father's own way of mocking him - which meant he had less meetings and opportunities to bring Yunho along, leaving Yunho stuck at home or his room in With U with not much to do.

For the past three days Yunho had mostly locked himself in his room, doing whatever he didn't want Jongho or anyone else to know about. And it really tugged at Jongho's heart to see him in such a dismal mood. So when Wooyoung texted him Friday evening that Mingi was going to visit With U the next day to pay his last month of rent in advance, Jongho vowed to himself that he would look for the man, talk to him, and get it straight with him for the sake of Yunho. Whether he was serious with Yunho, or just stringing him along?

It was early, around eight in the morning. Wooyoung wasn't specific enough about the time when Mingi would arrive, so the safest way was to be there the moment With U opens for business that day and wait.

Jongho threw the packaging away, jumped up from the bench and stretched. There was still at least half an hour before Seonghwa or Hongjoong would let him in, so Jongho decided to walk around the unfamiliar neighborhood to keep his mind busy and away from Yunho.

Most shops were closed, safe for a few diners or fast food restaurants here and there. There was a high-rise building at the far end of the street Jongho was sauntering on, and he could spot some businessmen and -women walking in.

With nothing much to see, Jongho was about to turn around to his car - parked on the side of the road a few blocks away - and head to With U when something caught his attention at the corner of his eye.

Across the road, there was a bookstore café. These stores were becoming ubiquitous, and it wasn't the design or the decorations or the sign that piqued Jongho's interest. It was the commotion he could see through the big glass window on the facade.

Jongho descried a young man with an apron holding his hands out to a middle-aged lady in a pacifying gesture. It was too far to hear anything, but it was clear to Jongho that the customer, who had a book in her hands, was shouting at the poor worker.

Of course, none of that conflict would concern an outsider like Jongho, and he would've moved on, except for how familiar the worker looked.

Jongho could only see a fraction of his face because he was standing with his back towards the window, but the wavy mocha-brown hair and body figure resembled someone he saw before, and before he knew it his legs were already crossing the road for him.

A bell rang when he pushed the door open, and he had to pass the café before entering the bookstore part of the store. Jongho's heart was in his mouth when he got a better look of the worker.

He knew Yeosang was a part-timer in a bookstore, but he never expected to see Yeosang here.

Jongho stood a few feet away, behind a long table of "NEW ARRIVAL" books, but neither the worker or the customer spotted him. They were too focused on each other, and it seemed no one heard the bell either. A quick scan of the area told Jongho that Yeosang was the only one working the morning shift.

"Where's your manager? I want to talk to him!" The lady screamed into Yeosang's face, the book in her hand flapping in the air.

"I told you, ma'am, if you don't have the receipt, we can't give you a refund..." Yeosang braced himself for another round of scolding. "Especially when you already unwrapped the book."