(his pink hair and large flip-flops) draw you in
Title: (his pink hair and large flip-flops) draw you in
Rating: g
Pairing: chanyeol/luhan
Summary: chanyeol meets luhan, a pirated DVD seller at a night market in beijing. and minseok loves exotic foods.
A/N: for chanloos, who will be having her trials soon! ヾ(´･ω･｀)
(read in russian here!)
Chanyeol shuffles around at his spot, panic beginning to consume his system as he cranes his neck to look for Minseok. He sighs, knowing that he should have clung onto the elder's arms when the latter decided to bring him to this crowded night market. Minseok didn't even let him change! He's still in his dress shirt and pressed black pants, a briefcase tucked under his left arm. He's sweating profusely, murmuring apologies in thickly-accented Mandarin when people bump into him -- the only living statue standing in the crowd of a night market in Beijing.
Park Chanyeol is totally, truly lost.
Chanyeol was excited when his company sent him for a two-week business trip in Beijing. Really, he was excited. He's always an eager worker and he's willing to learn more if that's what it takes to be successful in the field. He even took Mandarin classes in order to impress his boss. The company he works for is a China-based company, after all. He thinks everything paid off when he was chosen to go to the company's main office in Beijing. If everything went well, Chanyeol might even get a raise and a promotion.
However, judging from the situation now, Chanyeol doubts if anything is going well at all. He's only been in Beijing for a few hours and he's already lost and helpless, thanks to a certain childhood friend who goes by the name Kim Minseok.
Chanyeol prays the angels are by his sides as he gives up on Minseok and begins to wander off by himself.
Clutching his briefcase close to his chest, Chanyeol walks aimlessly as he follows the bustling people upstream. He feels smaller than ever, cringing and flushing with shame when some stranger yells profanity at him after he accidentally stepped on their foot. His eyes go wide as he blinks at the yellow bulbs hanging under the vendors' huge umbrellas, whose light seem to be shooting invisible minuscule arrows into his irises. He reaches the food section and stares at each stall as he tries to make out various delicacies that the stalls have to offer. Wait, are those fried scorpions? Chanyeol gulps.
He quickly maneuvers himself out of the excited people lining up to buy the amazing array of exotic foods. He thinks those are out of his league. Suddenly, he feels like he's drawn to a loud and clear voice calling to the passers-by. Not far from the food stalls, Chanyeol sees a bright stall lit up by a fluorescent lamp, clearly to show off whatever goods they're selling.
Chanyeol is not really interested about the pirated DVDs and bootleg CDs splayed across the thin plywood at the stall. His eyes are trained on the man that's trying to draw in some customers to take a look at their pirated copies of the latest movies showing in cinemas. His hair catches Chanyeol's attention first; it's pushed up his forehead and dyed bubblegum pink, a color so rare in Chanyeol's prim and proper world. The man is wearing nothing more than a black wifebeater that shows his modest biceps and a knee-length shorts, with a pair of flip-flops that's a size too large for his feet. Chanyeol faintly notes a burning cigarette tucked at the crook of the man's left ear.
He finds himself walking towards the stall, noticing that there are two more guys there; one with a hideous mustard-colored hair who's busy arranging the DVDs on the plywood and the other one is doing absolutely nothing as he sits on a plastic chair and taps at his phone. He looks rather intimidating with his dark hair and multiple ear piercings adorning his ears.
When Pink Guy notices Chanyeol walking towards their stall, Chanyeol swears he sees the guy's eyes twinkling brighter than the stars above him. Pink Guy immediately waves him over and starts speaking even before Chanyeol reaches the stall.
"We have new movies here, mister," he says as he starts to point at some DVDs. "What kind of movies would you like? We have lots of action movies--" He takes one. "This one just came out but the quality is undeniably good--" Then, he grabs another Hollywood action flick nearest to him. "Or what about this one? I guarantee this will suit your taste."
Chanyeol stares as Pink Guy chatters on and on and there's more DVDs in his hands than his fingers can count. Chanyeol doesn't quite understand what he's babbling about but his voice sounds really nice and Chanyeol wants to hear it over and over again. Noticing Pink Guy's gaze on him, Chanyeol clears his throat and figures he should just pick a random movie from the other's hands.
"Luhan, I think you're starting to bore this guy to death," a voice interrupts and Chanyeol looks at Mustard Guy. Oh, so his name is Luhan, Chanyeol thinks. Thanks, Mustard Guy.
Luhan makes a dissatisfied clucking noise. "I'm the only one who's drawing in customers here, Yixing. Just do your own work."
"I'm surprised that this guy hasn't walked away yet," the quiet Fierce Guy suddenly interferes, a small smirk tugging at his lips. Chanyeol blushes, feeling heat warming up his face. He shifts at his spot, wanting to bury himself in a hole somewhere but Luhan immediately catches his wrist. Chanyeol blinks in surprise.
"Ah, I'm sorry," Luhan murmurs, letting go of Chanyeol's wrist. "I hope I didn't bore you. Please ignore Zitao, he's always like that."
"No, it's okay," Chanyeol says, giving him a small smile.
"You're not a local, are you? You sound different," Luhan says, fingers fiddling with the plastic covers of the DVDs in his hands.
"I'm actually Korean. My name is Chanyeol, by the way," Chanyeol replies and points his finger at one of the items in Luhan's hands. "I'm quite interested in that movie."
"This? I'm sorry, it's actually an old movie."
"I like it. What's the title?"
"A Better Tomorrow. It's really good. One of my favorites."
"I'll have it, then."
"Wait a moment, please. I'll get another copy for you," Luhan says, beaming as he crouches near Zitao to get a new copy and Chanyeol waits as he wraps it in a plastic bag. "You can return it if the movie is faulty."
"Thanks. Um, will you still be here next week?"
Luhan shrugs, taking the cigarette tucked at his ear. He stares at it for a while before flicking it onto the ground and steps on the half-smoked piece. "I can't say, Chanyeol. We move a lot."
Chanyeol hums, feeling a bit disappointed but the lilt of his name hanging at the tip of Luhan's tongue shoots a strange kind of warmth that spreads to every vein in his body.
Chanyeol holds the small plastic bag containing a pirated copy of a Chinese movie between his fingers, clutching at it a little tighter than he thought he should.
"Chanyeol! There you are!"
Minseok's relieved voice greets him and he sees the elder hastily approaching him. "Where have you been? You scared me. I can't even reach your phone."
"Sorry, hyung," Chanyeol apologizes sheepishly. "Hey, Minseok-hyung, can we come here again?"
Minseok eyes the other man carefully before a smile stretches on his face. "Sure," he says and Chanyeol tries to ignore the warm, tingly feeling creeping up his skin.
"What's that you're eating?" Chanyeol asks, pointing at the dark lumps on a wooden stick that Minseok has been holding.
"Deep fried crickets," Minseok replies, taking a crunchy bite before shoving the stick at Chanyeol's face. "Wanna try some? They're so good."
Chanyeol holds up his hands defensively. "No, thanks, I'm fine with either meatballs or crab sticks."
Minseok rolls his eyes. "Boring," he says as he munches on the last cricket skewered through the thin stick.
Chanyeol comes back to the night market after a few days. He drags Minseok along with him, promising that he'll treat him to roasted grasshoppers later on. Minseok beams at this, bouncing excitedly when they near the food stalls. While Minseok quietly enjoys his treat, Chanyeol is unhappy as he stares at the empty lot that used to house Luhan's stall.
A week later, Chanyeol returns to the night market. It's drizzling a little and he's glad that he decided to put on his favorite snapback before going out. This time, he comes by himself, holding the same plastic bag containing the Chinese movie. Chanyeol didn't even get to watch it; the disc is scratched so badly that the player could barely play past the opening credits.
Chanyeol's heart skips a few beats when he spots a familiar pink head shouting something to the fluttering crowd passing by the small stall. Luhan is still wearing the same black wifebeater and the same pair of flip-flops that are not of his size. Chanyeol's lips automatically form a smile when he notices a red plastic bag covering Luhan's head, like a makeshift hat to protect him from the subsiding rain.
To Chanyeol's amazement, a small group of people begin to huddle in front of Luhan's stall despite the slight drizzle. He joins them, squeezing himself in to get a better view. He sees a portable karaoke set sitting on a plastic chair that used to be Zitao's throne. There's a burst of static when Luhan grabs at the mic and before Chanyeol knows it, Luhan begins to sing.
Chanyeol has lost count on how many times his heart defied the law of physics by doing various somersaults and unpredictable ricochets since the day he first met Luhan. Just by thinking of the man had Chanyeol reeling with excitement because he actually missed him. Now, standing here in the crowd as he watches Luhan sing, his heart makes double flips that cause a rush of heat to flow all over his body; who could possibly think that behind his loud and obnoxious voice, Luhan is actually a damn good singer.
Luhan's voice melts in Chanyeol's ears like vanilla ice-cream on a hot summer day; mellow, a little too sweet but still gentle and calming. when the song comes to an end, his small audience clap for him and he thanks them for listening. Now it's Yixing's and Zitao's turn to get busy as they entertain their customers. Luhan finally spots Chanyeol in the crowd and beckons him to come over. Chanyeol thinks he must be imagining things because Luhan's face becomes a shade redder and his eyes shine brighter than ever.
"Hello," Luhan greets, grinning widely at him.
"Hi," Chanyeol says, his face flushing in thrill. "That was so good. I didn't know you sing."
"Thanks. We do that sometimes, to draw in the crowd. I'd sing, Yixing would dance and Zitao would just kinda stand there half-naked. It's effective, though," Luhan replies, laughing when Zitao yelps in embarrassment. "So... how was the movie?"
"Well, actually," Chanyeol holds out the plastic bag in his hand. "I couldn't watch it because the disc is scratched."
There's a beautiful tint of pink blooming on Luhan's cheeks and Chanyeol can't help but stare at the shorter man. "I'm sorry, Chanyeol. Actually, I..." Luhan's voice trails off. He removes the wet plastic bag from his head and rakes his fingers through his hair. "I purposely gave you a scratched DVD so that you'll come back again."
Oh. Chanyeol blinks.
"I don't know, Chanyeol," Luhan mutters and crouches down. Chanyeol follows suit, watching as Luhan taps his feet on the wet asphalt and tries not to notice the smooth expanse of the other's exposed chest. Luhan continues, "To be honest, this confuses me a lot. It sounds really weird but I guess I just wanted to see you again, that's all."
Luhan tentatively peeks at Chanyeol under his eyelashes. Chanyeol is smiling a bashful smile and Luhan has a sudden urge to kiss it off his face.
"It's the same for me too," Chanyeol whispers, hand reaching out to tug at Luhan's fingers playfully. "Luhan, I'm going back to Seoul in a few days."
Luhan looks up, mouth forming a small 'oh' and Chanyeol notices the disappointed look on the other's face. He takes Luhan's hand and gives him the spoiled DVD. Luhan stares at the numbers scribbled on the shimmery side of the disc before looking at Chanyeol again.
"I'm planning to come back here," Chanyeol says. "The people at the main office offered me a place so there's a high possibility that I'll be transferred to Beijing permanently. And in case you're wondering, that's my phone number."
Luhan smiles, teeth and gums showing and Chanyeol doesn't want to come down to earth.
"I'll wait for you, then, Chanyeol."
fin.
- some parts are loosely inspired by certain scenes from a 2004 malaysian movie called "Sepet", which i very much adore ;;u;;
- prompted by ayesha, who tweeted that luhan with this hairstyle looks like a typical chinese guy you can meet at a pirated CD shop ʘ‿ʘ
- all the best for your trial exams, ayesha! 화이팅!! (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧
Rating: g
Pairing: chanyeol/luhan
Summary: chanyeol meets luhan, a pirated DVD seller at a night market in beijing. and minseok loves exotic foods.
A/N: for chanloos, who will be having her trials soon! ヾ(´･ω･｀)
(read in russian here!)
Chanyeol shuffles around at his spot, panic beginning to consume his system as he cranes his neck to look for Minseok. He sighs, knowing that he should have clung onto the elder's arms when the latter decided to bring him to this crowded night market. Minseok didn't even let him change! He's still in his dress shirt and pressed black pants, a briefcase tucked under his left arm. He's sweating profusely, murmuring apologies in thickly-accented Mandarin when people bump into him -- the only living statue standing in the crowd of a night market in Beijing.
Park Chanyeol is totally, truly lost.
Chanyeol was excited when his company sent him for a two-week business trip in Beijing. Really, he was excited. He's always an eager worker and he's willing to learn more if that's what it takes to be successful in the field. He even took Mandarin classes in order to impress his boss. The company he works for is a China-based company, after all. He thinks everything paid off when he was chosen to go to the company's main office in Beijing. If everything went well, Chanyeol might even get a raise and a promotion.
However, judging from the situation now, Chanyeol doubts if anything is going well at all. He's only been in Beijing for a few hours and he's already lost and helpless, thanks to a certain childhood friend who goes by the name Kim Minseok.
Chanyeol prays the angels are by his sides as he gives up on Minseok and begins to wander off by himself.
Clutching his briefcase close to his chest, Chanyeol walks aimlessly as he follows the bustling people upstream. He feels smaller than ever, cringing and flushing with shame when some stranger yells profanity at him after he accidentally stepped on their foot. His eyes go wide as he blinks at the yellow bulbs hanging under the vendors' huge umbrellas, whose light seem to be shooting invisible minuscule arrows into his irises. He reaches the food section and stares at each stall as he tries to make out various delicacies that the stalls have to offer. Wait, are those fried scorpions? Chanyeol gulps.
He quickly maneuvers himself out of the excited people lining up to buy the amazing array of exotic foods. He thinks those are out of his league. Suddenly, he feels like he's drawn to a loud and clear voice calling to the passers-by. Not far from the food stalls, Chanyeol sees a bright stall lit up by a fluorescent lamp, clearly to show off whatever goods they're selling.
Chanyeol is not really interested about the pirated DVDs and bootleg CDs splayed across the thin plywood at the stall. His eyes are trained on the man that's trying to draw in some customers to take a look at their pirated copies of the latest movies showing in cinemas. His hair catches Chanyeol's attention first; it's pushed up his forehead and dyed bubblegum pink, a color so rare in Chanyeol's prim and proper world. The man is wearing nothing more than a black wifebeater that shows his modest biceps and a knee-length shorts, with a pair of flip-flops that's a size too large for his feet. Chanyeol faintly notes a burning cigarette tucked at the crook of the man's left ear.
He finds himself walking towards the stall, noticing that there are two more guys there; one with a hideous mustard-colored hair who's busy arranging the DVDs on the plywood and the other one is doing absolutely nothing as he sits on a plastic chair and taps at his phone. He looks rather intimidating with his dark hair and multiple ear piercings adorning his ears.
When Pink Guy notices Chanyeol walking towards their stall, Chanyeol swears he sees the guy's eyes twinkling brighter than the stars above him. Pink Guy immediately waves him over and starts speaking even before Chanyeol reaches the stall.
"We have new movies here, mister," he says as he starts to point at some DVDs. "What kind of movies would you like? We have lots of action movies--" He takes one. "This one just came out but the quality is undeniably good--" Then, he grabs another Hollywood action flick nearest to him. "Or what about this one? I guarantee this will suit your taste."
Chanyeol stares as Pink Guy chatters on and on and there's more DVDs in his hands than his fingers can count. Chanyeol doesn't quite understand what he's babbling about but his voice sounds really nice and Chanyeol wants to hear it over and over again. Noticing Pink Guy's gaze on him, Chanyeol clears his throat and figures he should just pick a random movie from the other's hands.
"Luhan, I think you're starting to bore this guy to death," a voice interrupts and Chanyeol looks at Mustard Guy. Oh, so his name is Luhan, Chanyeol thinks. Thanks, Mustard Guy.
Luhan makes a dissatisfied clucking noise. "I'm the only one who's drawing in customers here, Yixing. Just do your own work."
"I'm surprised that this guy hasn't walked away yet," the quiet Fierce Guy suddenly interferes, a small smirk tugging at his lips. Chanyeol blushes, feeling heat warming up his face. He shifts at his spot, wanting to bury himself in a hole somewhere but Luhan immediately catches his wrist. Chanyeol blinks in surprise.
"Ah, I'm sorry," Luhan murmurs, letting go of Chanyeol's wrist. "I hope I didn't bore you. Please ignore Zitao, he's always like that."
"No, it's okay," Chanyeol says, giving him a small smile.
"You're not a local, are you? You sound different," Luhan says, fingers fiddling with the plastic covers of the DVDs in his hands.
"I'm actually Korean. My name is Chanyeol, by the way," Chanyeol replies and points his finger at one of the items in Luhan's hands. "I'm quite interested in that movie."
"This? I'm sorry, it's actually an old movie."
"I like it. What's the title?"
"A Better Tomorrow. It's really good. One of my favorites."
"I'll have it, then."
"Wait a moment, please. I'll get another copy for you," Luhan says, beaming as he crouches near Zitao to get a new copy and Chanyeol waits as he wraps it in a plastic bag. "You can return it if the movie is faulty."
"Thanks. Um, will you still be here next week?"
Luhan shrugs, taking the cigarette tucked at his ear. He stares at it for a while before flicking it onto the ground and steps on the half-smoked piece. "I can't say, Chanyeol. We move a lot."
Chanyeol hums, feeling a bit disappointed but the lilt of his name hanging at the tip of Luhan's tongue shoots a strange kind of warmth that spreads to every vein in his body.
Chanyeol holds the small plastic bag containing a pirated copy of a Chinese movie between his fingers, clutching at it a little tighter than he thought he should.
"Chanyeol! There you are!"
Minseok's relieved voice greets him and he sees the elder hastily approaching him. "Where have you been? You scared me. I can't even reach your phone."
"Sorry, hyung," Chanyeol apologizes sheepishly. "Hey, Minseok-hyung, can we come here again?"
Minseok eyes the other man carefully before a smile stretches on his face. "Sure," he says and Chanyeol tries to ignore the warm, tingly feeling creeping up his skin.
"What's that you're eating?" Chanyeol asks, pointing at the dark lumps on a wooden stick that Minseok has been holding.
"Deep fried crickets," Minseok replies, taking a crunchy bite before shoving the stick at Chanyeol's face. "Wanna try some? They're so good."
Chanyeol holds up his hands defensively. "No, thanks, I'm fine with either meatballs or crab sticks."
Minseok rolls his eyes. "Boring," he says as he munches on the last cricket skewered through the thin stick.
Chanyeol comes back to the night market after a few days. He drags Minseok along with him, promising that he'll treat him to roasted grasshoppers later on. Minseok beams at this, bouncing excitedly when they near the food stalls. While Minseok quietly enjoys his treat, Chanyeol is unhappy as he stares at the empty lot that used to house Luhan's stall.
A week later, Chanyeol returns to the night market. It's drizzling a little and he's glad that he decided to put on his favorite snapback before going out. This time, he comes by himself, holding the same plastic bag containing the Chinese movie. Chanyeol didn't even get to watch it; the disc is scratched so badly that the player could barely play past the opening credits.
Chanyeol's heart skips a few beats when he spots a familiar pink head shouting something to the fluttering crowd passing by the small stall. Luhan is still wearing the same black wifebeater and the same pair of flip-flops that are not of his size. Chanyeol's lips automatically form a smile when he notices a red plastic bag covering Luhan's head, like a makeshift hat to protect him from the subsiding rain.
To Chanyeol's amazement, a small group of people begin to huddle in front of Luhan's stall despite the slight drizzle. He joins them, squeezing himself in to get a better view. He sees a portable karaoke set sitting on a plastic chair that used to be Zitao's throne. There's a burst of static when Luhan grabs at the mic and before Chanyeol knows it, Luhan begins to sing.
Chanyeol has lost count on how many times his heart defied the law of physics by doing various somersaults and unpredictable ricochets since the day he first met Luhan. Just by thinking of the man had Chanyeol reeling with excitement because he actually missed him. Now, standing here in the crowd as he watches Luhan sing, his heart makes double flips that cause a rush of heat to flow all over his body; who could possibly think that behind his loud and obnoxious voice, Luhan is actually a damn good singer.
Luhan's voice melts in Chanyeol's ears like vanilla ice-cream on a hot summer day; mellow, a little too sweet but still gentle and calming. when the song comes to an end, his small audience clap for him and he thanks them for listening. Now it's Yixing's and Zitao's turn to get busy as they entertain their customers. Luhan finally spots Chanyeol in the crowd and beckons him to come over. Chanyeol thinks he must be imagining things because Luhan's face becomes a shade redder and his eyes shine brighter than ever.
"Hello," Luhan greets, grinning widely at him.
"Hi," Chanyeol says, his face flushing in thrill. "That was so good. I didn't know you sing."
"Thanks. We do that sometimes, to draw in the crowd. I'd sing, Yixing would dance and Zitao would just kinda stand there half-naked. It's effective, though," Luhan replies, laughing when Zitao yelps in embarrassment. "So... how was the movie?"
"Well, actually," Chanyeol holds out the plastic bag in his hand. "I couldn't watch it because the disc is scratched."
There's a beautiful tint of pink blooming on Luhan's cheeks and Chanyeol can't help but stare at the shorter man. "I'm sorry, Chanyeol. Actually, I..." Luhan's voice trails off. He removes the wet plastic bag from his head and rakes his fingers through his hair. "I purposely gave you a scratched DVD so that you'll come back again."
Oh. Chanyeol blinks.
"I don't know, Chanyeol," Luhan mutters and crouches down. Chanyeol follows suit, watching as Luhan taps his feet on the wet asphalt and tries not to notice the smooth expanse of the other's exposed chest. Luhan continues, "To be honest, this confuses me a lot. It sounds really weird but I guess I just wanted to see you again, that's all."
Luhan tentatively peeks at Chanyeol under his eyelashes. Chanyeol is smiling a bashful smile and Luhan has a sudden urge to kiss it off his face.
"It's the same for me too," Chanyeol whispers, hand reaching out to tug at Luhan's fingers playfully. "Luhan, I'm going back to Seoul in a few days."
Luhan looks up, mouth forming a small 'oh' and Chanyeol notices the disappointed look on the other's face. He takes Luhan's hand and gives him the spoiled DVD. Luhan stares at the numbers scribbled on the shimmery side of the disc before looking at Chanyeol again.
"I'm planning to come back here," Chanyeol says. "The people at the main office offered me a place so there's a high possibility that I'll be transferred to Beijing permanently. And in case you're wondering, that's my phone number."
Luhan smiles, teeth and gums showing and Chanyeol doesn't want to come down to earth.
"I'll wait for you, then, Chanyeol."
fin.
- some parts are loosely inspired by certain scenes from a 2004 malaysian movie called "Sepet", which i very much adore ;;u;;
- prompted by ayesha, who tweeted that luhan with this hairstyle looks like a typical chinese guy you can meet at a pirated CD shop ʘ‿ʘ
- all the best for your trial exams, ayesha! 화이팅!! (ﾉ´ヮ´)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧