Skies Of Fire : Inevitable Encounter
Junhyung cleaned his hands the apron around his waist, shuffling carefully around the endless stacks of books covering the floor of Hyunseung’s manga rental shop, while another stack of mangas were hugged in his hands as he dutifully slotted them into their rightful places on the shelves.
The rental shop was like something that came out of an otaku movie. It was a messy conventional store with dusty white shelves crowding the space and narrow aisles in between, unborrowed mangas cramped neatly inside the shelves based on series and genres, while returned mangas were scattered in mountains on the floor. Hyunseung started the business as a pastime about two years ago and had been too busy with study and other things to keep up with the shop anymore. Yoseob was a helper once too, but most of the male customers loved Yoseob too much that Hyunseung had to remove the younger man from the store to avoid any excessive drooling, shocking nose bleeding, and scary stalking. So when Yoseob suggested Doojoon to help, Hyunseung agreed without blinking an eye, not missing the opportunity to get the much needed help from someone he could trust.
And here Doojoon was, the next leader of the mighty Yoon clan, buried behind a tower of papers - receipts, bills, loans, and whatever else - with glasses perched on the bridge of his nose, eyebrows frowning in concentration, while he furiously wrote on the book in front of him. Kikwang sat beside the older man, glasses too were perched on his nose as his fingers moved nimbly over the calculator, eyes glued to the books and reports Doojoon had compiled for him, not sparing a glance to the overworked buttons he kept on pressing. Yeah, Hyunseung was even too busy to calculate his profit - or his loss, he did not even know if he was making money or losing money - and when Doojoon agreed to work for him, the man was beyond ecstatic.
Dongwoon, on the other hand, being the maknae that he was, sat in the corner busy reading a series Doojoon had recommended him to, a fantasy series about the never ending journey of a pirate captain and his nakamas - which Doojoon had thoughtfully deemed himself as the captain and the three of them as his nakamas.
“Holy shit, how can a store be this messy? I don’t think even a hurricane can cause this kind of mess. Does the guy ever try to tidy his place up?” Junhyung continued to grumble as he hit his lower back repeatedly with the back of his right hand, “My back is aching right now. I can’t take anymore bending down for those dusty mangas. And for goodness sake, why did you even work here in the first place?” Junhyung shot Doojoon a dirty stare while the older man was busy frowning and separating papers into different stacks.
A loud laughter rang in the shop but none showed any kind of reaction at the loud noise. Dongwoon was holding on his stomach, cackling on the floor (the bit of floor he could find to sit on) as Junhyung sighed and shook his head in amusement. Dongwoon was not a spoiled maknae, he was hardworking and diligent and his Hyungs loved him more than anything else. He was admitted early to the clan, as early as infancy, and his Hyungs would knew better than to rob him of these rare moments when their beloved maknae could act his own age and not shoulder the worry of the world on his shoulders.
Doojoon looked up to glance briefly at the cackling maknae before eyeing Junhyung who was as miserable as Dongwoon was happy. “I need the money.” The clan leader answered curtly.
Junhyung scoffed loudly and his face contorted in disbelief, “No, you don’t.”
Doojoon put down his pen and massaged his temples to soothe the sudden tightness in his head, “Well, Yoseob thinks I need the money. He totally beat me up for borrowing that money from my cousin - that’s you, by the way - the other day. Hyunseung needs the help and I can read all of these mangas for free.” The clan leader shrugged and stared at Junhyung, “Is this a good enough reason for you, my dear beloved friend?”
Junhyung let out a defeated sigh as he tightened the loose apron around his neck and waist and resumed his duty. There was nothing he could do when Doojoon’s mind was already set and all he could do was to remind Doojoon of their goal, nothing less and nothing more. He was in the middle of picking up scattered mangas when he spoke to Doojoon, trying to be as casual as he could, “You know, everyone in the family has been asking about you. Don’t get this wrong, but they are wondering if you could pull this off.” He looked at Doojoon with pleading eyes, “It’s been a few months, Doojoonah. It’s already winter now and everyone is worried for you, Gayoon misses you too much she becomes too moody for her own good.”
Upon hearing Gayoon’s name, both Dongwoon and Kikwang looked up from whatever they were doing and stared in disbelief at Junhyung. It was repeatedly conveyed that the clan leader was not in any relationship other than that of a deep family tie with the Yoon’s only daughter. Doojoon raised his eyebrows at Junhyung and cleared his throat, “I need to spend time with Yoseob as much as I can afford. Something happened to him and I need to know what and why.” The grim expression on Doojoon’s face immediately put an end to the conversation. Junhyung nodded briefly and turned around to continue slotting in mangas to their designated spots.
The atmosphere suddenly became tense and Kikwang quickly quipped to break the awkward situation, “Doojoonah, look at how much this place is raking in profits! For something that looks… dilapidated, this business is unbelievable.” Kikwang tsk-ed and shook his head in disbelief. Dongwoon immediately scrambled to look at his Hyung’s calculation and upon seeing the figures, his eyes widened in surprise and whistled in astonishment. “Doojoon Hyung, I volunteer myself to run a manga rental shop for the clan. Just give me Kikwang Hyung to help with the calculation, and everything will be fine.” The wide grin on Dongwoon’s face was just as sickening as the lovesick expression on Kikwang’s face, Doojoon shook his head in amusement. These two lovebrids were just too adorable, but of course not as adorable as his Yoseob.
His Yoseob, Doojoon asked himself, when did he start to affix the word his to Yoseob’s name? He frowned, but not in distaste, instead he found himself smiling silly, imagining the end of his shift at the shop and going home to Yoseob at the end of the day. For as long as he remembered, Doojoon had never looking forward to going home - there was no one home for him at the mansion - so he preferred to stay in the office instead.
“Hyung, you are smiling to yourself. You look like an idiot and it scares me and Kikwang Hyung.” Concern laced Dongwoon’s voice as he stared as his oldest Hyung. Doojoon snapped back into reality and cleared his throat, trying to hide his embarrassment of getting caught by the maknae. “I’m thinking about the both of you, sickening lovebirds. It’s disgusting but there is something adorable about you guys.”
Junhyung turned back to face Doojoon and took upon a new stack of mangas to be placed properly on the shelves, “Really? Don’t you barf and puke all the time when they acted all lovey dovey and shit?” Kikwang nodded and widened his eyes in surprise, “Yeah you always did that! What happened to you? Are you ill? You don’t feel fine?” He stood up and placed a palm on Doojoon’s forehead to check on his temperature in case a high fever was messing with his head.
Doojoon grunted in irritation and slapped Kikwang’s hand away from his face. Junhyung barked in laughter, the mangas shaking in his hold, “I love Yoseob already. He has softened you well.”
Doojoon shot a dirty glare to Junhyung, “He did not.”
“Did too.”
“Did not.”
“Did too.”
“He really did, Hyung.” Dongwoon chirped in to the argument.
“Didn’t he?” Junhyung turned to look at Dongwoon as he tried to get the maknae to back him up.
Dongwoon nodded, “He totally did, Hyung.”
“Seriously he did not. And that’s end of discussion. And you look totally ridiculous with the apron.”
Kikwang chimed in softly, “Are we debating whether or not Yoseob softened Doojoon well?" Six pairs of eyes flew towards him and while Doojoon growled in helplessness and Junhyung rolled his eyes, Dongwoon tried to explain the situation to Kikwang patiently.
“Don’t drag my apron into this argument. But he really did, Doojoonah. You have to admit that much.” Junhyung insisted, not willing to back out.
“Your apron? Hah! Look who has softened now.” Junhyung was about to attack the snickering Doojoon when a loud voice boomed over the cramped shop.
“OH MY GOD! DOOJOONAH GET AWAY FROM THEM!” Yoseob stood frozen in the doorway, his face was white as the blood drained away from his head. “DOOJOONAH, COME HERE QUICKLY!”
All four men turned their heads towards a flushed and disheveled Yoseob at the entrance. His face was contorted with fear as his eyes filled with recognition. It had been months, but the memories of the night when Doojoon was attacked in the alley suddenly surfaced from the deepest part of his brain.
Doojoon stared dumbly at the shouting Yoseob from his seat behind the cashier counter, he then looked at Junhyung whose eyebrow raised in amusement, then at Dongwoon whose mouth hung open in surprise of the intrusion, then at Kikwang who just blinked blankly as he tried to still grasp the current situation, and then back to Yoseob whose breathing was harsh and heavy, an accusing finger pointed to Junhyung… and Kikwang… and Dongwoon.
The silence was pregnant and awkward and the awkwardness was honestly killing Doojoon. He stood up and walked carefully towards Yoseob with both of his hands at mid air in an attempt to calm the younger man down. “Woah woah woah, Yoseobah calm down. What is going on? What’s with the screaming?”
Yoseob huffed and squeaked loudly, “DOOJOONAH, GET AWAY FROM THEM. THEY WILL ATTACK YOU! COME HOME NOW.” Doojoon placed his hands on Yoseob’s shoulders softly to calm the agitated man. “Calm down, take a deep breath. Everything is fine. Inhale, exhale, inhale, exhale…” Yoseob’s eyes were still nailed on the three men inside the rental shop, “NO… NO… THEY ARE -“
“They are harmless. They are not going to attack any of us - excluding the earlier intention of attack from Junhyung - they are here to help me with the shop.” Doojoon grinned as he turned around and mouthed the three men to smile and wave to Yoseob. “They are my… erm… cousins.” Dongwoon was the first one to grin and wave to Yoseob, followed by Kikwang, and then a curt nod from Junhyung.
“No they are not your cousin.” Yoseob’s eyed them suspiciously before looking back at Doojoon like the older man was an idiot. “They are not your cousins, they attacked you months ago in the alley. Remember?” Yoseob’s voice was pleading, trying to reignite Doojoons’ memory. “I still remember their names. He is Junhyung, Kikwang, and Dongwoon.” The younger man pointed at Junhyung, Kikwang and Dongwoon respectively. “Don’t you remember? Did you hurt your head? Can’t you remember anything?” There was a distinct desperation in Yoseob’s voice as he struggled to remind Doojoon of the night of the attack.
Doojoon widened his eyes, surprised at Yoseob’s excellent memory. He quickly took hold of his expression and tried to salvage the situation, a quick lie through his teeth, “They are my cousins and I have no idea of those names you are talking about. Do you think these guys will be here in apron and glasses, helping me around if they attacked me that night?” Doojoon took Yoseob’s hand gently and led him inside, “Here, I will introduce them to you.” When Yoseob was hesitant and shook his head no, Doojoon laughed instead - it was adorable the way Yoseob pouted and pulled back. The older man cooed, “Come on, it’s okay. I think you recognize the wrong guys.” Yoseob tilted his head to the side a little - adorable - and Doojoon knew he had successfully convinced the younger man, “Well, it was dark…” Doojoon nodded solemnly, “Yes, it was dark… Now come on.”
He led Yoseob inside the rental shop and pointed to Junhyung, “That is… uh… Pari. Uhh… Yong Pari.” Upon hearing the ridiculous name, both Junhyung and Yoseob turned to look at Doojoon, trying to confirm if the absurd name was real as Kikwang and Dongwoon snickered, suppressing their laughter.
There was a pause before Yoseob finally asked, “Yo - Yong Pari?”
“YONG PARI?” Junhyung shouted in incredulity while Doojoon shot him a sharp glare mouthing a few threats. “YONG PARI… Yong Pari. Yeah, Yong Pari. Nice to meet you, Yoseob-sshi.” He bowed a little as he confirmed his weird ass name. Oh, Doojoon was so going to pay for this.
“Hello, Yong Pari-sshi. It’s nice to meet you.” Yoseob beamed, and in that instant Junhyung realized the reason behind Doojoon’s strange behaviors.
“Let’s move on from the apron over there to these two idiots here.” Doojoon moved on to the two dongsaengs of his. Junhyung almost growled in annoyance but held it back instead. The clan leader pointed to Kikwang first. “That is… Kikwang… gu… Kikwanggu.”
“…Kikwanggu? Kikwang… gu.” Yoseob repeated, “Are you sure you are not that thug Kikwang? I remember clearly about the Kikwang part.” Kikwang shook his head furiously - too furiously - as he offered a nervous smile and Yoseob’s face instantly flushed, ashamed of his obstinancy. “Oh, I’m sorry,” an embarrassed smile creeping up Yoseob’s face, “Well, nice to meet you, Kikwanggu-sshi. That’s a cute name, by the way.” Kikwang beamed back, eyes creating two crescent moons, relief washing over his nervous system as he greeted back.
When they finally moved on to Dongwoon, the creative cells in Doojoon’s brain started depleting so fast he could not think of any ridiculous names anymore. “And this is erm… This is…” Dongwoon grinned and said “Son Dongni. People call me Dongni Pongni. Dongni Pongni Dongni Dongni Pongni…” Dongwoon started singing the tune from a catchy girl group idol’s song and Yoseob immediately burst out laughing at the antics. The maknae continued, “Call me anything you want, though, Yoseob-sshi. Everything’s fine by me. It’s nice to meet you.” Yoseob cackled as he bowed politely, “Dongni Pongni. That is really cute, really really cute. It’s nice meeting you too, Dongni-sshi.”
Doojoon hit the back of Dongwoon’s head, “Yah, that’s a Yoseob Hyung for you. Call him Hyung and stand up, greet him properly.”Dongwoon stood up and bowed politely, “Nice to meet you, Yoseob Hyung.” The maknae grumbled as he took his seat back.
Yoseob clasped his hands together and bowed to the three of them, “I am really sorry. I thought… I just thought that… Well it was dark…” Junhyung swatted his free hand absentmindedly, “Don’t worry about it, it was dark and I am sure it was a very traumatizing experience.” He glanced at his dongsaengs who nodded profusely in agreement and at the clan leader who was totally focused on Yoseob. Junhyung shook his head, amused because Doojoon looked like a lovestruck idiot.
“Again, I apologise. To Doojoonie too.” He tugged on Doojoon’s shirt and looked at him sheepishly. The older man gave him a reassuring smile, “It’s fine, we’re all friends now. Don’t worry about anything, okay.” Yoseob nodded eagerly and beamed at the clan leader upon hearing Doojoon declaring that they were now friends.
Suddenly Yoseob’s eyes went wide and he asked, “Oh! Which one of you lent Doojoonie the money?” Doojoon pointed at Junhyung, “Junhy - erm… Pari did.”
Yoseob turned his attention to Junhyung and walked towards him, when the younger man was near, he took both of Junhyung’s hands into his, “I am very sorry for being such a burden. Doojoon was asking for the money because of me, I will pay all of it when I have saved enough. Trust me, I will return every cent of it to you.” Junhyung stared in shock, “No - no. It’s not a big deal. It was actually just… It’s okay, don’t worry about it.” Yoseob suddenly hugged the older man in gratitude.
All of them were in shock, especially Doojoon but he recovered fast and cleared his throat before quickly separating the both of them apart. “He said it was okay. So it should be fine. You don’t need to touch him or hug him.” Yosoeb pouted at the annoyed Doojoon. He turned to face Junhyung and said, “Oh, and by the way the apron was lovely. You look absolutely dashing. Don’t listen to Doojoonie.” A huge grin decorated Yoseob’s face as an upset frown settled in between Doojoon’s eyebrows.
Junhyung smirked at the little outburst of jealousy.
It was as clear as day. His clan leader had fallen hard for Yoseob.
O~O~O~O~O~O~O
“I like them. They are nice.”
Doojoon turned to Yoseob, “Hmm?”
“I like them, all of your cousins. They are nice. You think they like me too?” Yoseob looked up at Doojoon with a hopeful expression on his face. They were walking home from Hyunseung’s rental shop after the store had closed for the day and Doojoon’s cousins had all gone back.
Doojoon smiled and nodded, “Of course they like you. Who wouldn’t?” The older man put his hand around Yoseob’s smaller shoulders casually. Yoseob shrugged and whispered in a small voice, “I dunno… Appa’s wife hates me…”
“What, Yoseobah? Sorry I didn’t catch that.”
Yoseob quickly hid his sadness and looked up at Doojoon with a bright smile, “No - nothing. Nothing at all.” Doojoon hummed and tightened his hold on Yoseob shoulders, walking leisurely home with the younger man under his arm. “Why did you come to the store so suddenly today? I thought you had classes the whole day today?” Yoseob nodded, “Uh-huh, but my professor cancelled the class at the last minute and we were all dismissed early, so I thought of accompanying you in the store instead of going home. But it was amazing I could meet your cousins, what an awesome coincidence.” Upon hearing the younger man’s excitement and felt a slight bounce of exhilaration, Doojoon had a happy grin on his face and a fluttering in his chest.
The rest of the walk was silent until the freezing winter wind blew and Yoseob shivered lightly. “Are you cold, Yoseobah?” Doojoon asked in concern. The younger man shook his head to show Doojoon that he was not cold but instead found himself covered by a layer of warm padded coat - Doojoon’s coat - and felt Doojoon zip it up so that the padded coat acted like a warm cocoon for Yoseob.
“There you go.” Doojoon smiled when he was done and Yoseob swooned when a hand wrapped around his shoulders and pulled him close to the older man’s side. “Thank you.” Yoseob blushed adorably and smiled back.
“One question though, Doojoonie.” Yoseob said.
“What’s that?”
“Do their parents hate them? What is wrong with all of their names?” Yoseob asked innocently.
They stopped walking for a while because Doojoon could do nothing but laughed out loud at the adorable question and pulled his precious Yoseob even closer to protect him from the world.