Straightening his bomber jacket, Woo-jae sighed as he stared at himself in the mirror. Did he have to attend this dinner? All the 21-year-old wanted was to sleep the night away– not attend a get-together with his fellow co-stars to celebrate their upcoming drama! Especially if he had to be in the same room as Kang Soo-hyuk, another rising actor in the industry.

“Woo-jae? Are you ready to go?” 

Glancing at his manager through the mirror, Woo-jae slowly nodded. Ugh, if only he could take Da-bin along…! 

“I guess. Hyung, do you think I could leave early…? I don’t know if I’ll be able to survive with that insufferable jerk there.”

“I know you don’t like him, but Woo-jae, be careful with your words. You’re both in the same company and attending the same university. It wouldn’t look good if people found out you’re on bad terms with him.”

“... Yeah, because he’s our CEO’s nephew,” Woo-jae replied dryly as he rolled his eyes. 

“Exactly. Just… try to ignore him as best as you can.”

“We’ll see. I’ll just try to sit with Jae-in noona*.” Hyun grumbled as he willingly let his manager, hyung drag him out of the hotel room.

“Sounds like a plan. Now, let’s go, or we’ll be late!” 

~~~

~~Meanwhile…~~

“Yo, Hyun! Wanna go get McBonald’s? My parents said they won’t be back until later!” 

Expectedly staring up the stairs, Yoo-jin waited for Hyun’s hurried footsteps, yet, the entire house was completely silent. Frowning, the teen bounded up the stairs, looking for his oddly quiet friend. 

“Hyun? You awake, buddy–”

Yoo-jin opened the bedroom door and paused, laying his eyes on Hyun, who was passed out on the carpeted floor. Why was this idiot sleeping on the floor when they had a huge bed? Rolling his eyes, Jin nudged his friend, stirring the jet-lagged teen awake. Biting his lip, Jin suppressed a chuckle at Hyun’s chaotic bed hair. 

“Dude, it’s been three days since you arrived. Do you still feel jet-lagged?”

“... What do you want?” Hyun asked, his voice gravelly with sleep.

“Damn, you sound like a smoker. Just kidding!!! Anyways. Wanna get McBonald’s?” Jin averted his gaze as he felt Hyun’s death stare pierce through him. Ugh, he forgot that this kid couldn’t take a joke.

“Why?”

“My parents won’t be back until early in the morning. So, you want some or not?”

“... I want Out-N-In. I don’t like American McBonald’s. Too greasy.”

“And Out-N-In isn’t? They’re freaking burgers and fries; of course, they’ll be greasy! We’re getting McBonald’s. Come on, let’s go–”

“But I want Out-N-In!!! Do you have ANY idea how much I’ve been craving those burgers and shakes for the past TWO YEARS?! So we’re getting Out-N-In!!!!”

The two friends glared at each other in a staring contest before Yoo-jin sighed. Great, he was back at babysitting again. But, seriously, why was Hyun so freaking stubborn?!

“I ain’t making two trips. Get Out-N-In on your own then.”

“FINE! Wait, can you lend me some money? I forgot to exchange my cash… again.” Hyun squeaked out the last part as a light blush colored his cheeks. Dammit. Why was he always so forgetful?!

“... You owe me $373.54.”

“What? Why?!” 

“I had to pay for all that cake you ate, you cake monster! Do you know how embarrassed I felt when everyone stared at the three trays of cake you struggling to carry?! Even my mom yelled at me for wasting that much money– which I DIDN’T EVEN USE!”

“...”

“Why do you always go crazy over cake and handsome guys?! Like, seriously!”

“... I’ll tell my brother to pay you back. Can I have some money now to get Out-N-In?” Hyun huffed in annoyance, embarrassed that he was called out for his guilty pleasures. Who could resist such delectable pastries? Also, was it his fault for being attracted to pretty people? Who knew if one of them was Song Yoo?!

“... You freaking spoiled brat. Ha… Let’s go get Out-N-In….”

“YAY~! OUT-N-IN! OUT-N-IN! OUT-N—”

“SHUT UP!”

~~~

Skipping out of the fast-food restaurant with a strawberry milkshake in hand, Hyun happily hummed to himself as his best friend pretended not to know the “crazy lunatic.” Yoo-jin watched Hyun plop onto one of the outside tables as his disheveled hair bobbed in the dry summer wind. Despite being friends with Heeyoon/ Hyun for nearly 100 years (counting their past life), Jin couldn’t comprehend what was going on in that idiot’s head. 

“Maybe I should have let him date around… Then, we probably would already be back in Heaven. Dangit…!"

“Jin! Hurry up; I’m hungry!”

“...Coming!” 

Jin rolled his eyes as he checked his phone while walking toward the excited teen. Staring at his screen, Yoo-jin stopped as he saw another picture of Hyun’s “egghead” drawing. It was still going around social media?! Well, all hopes of his best friend getting into art school were gone, now.

“Dang, this poor kid. Then again, I probably shouldn’t have encouraged him–”

“Hyun…? It is you!!! Hyunnn~!"

Glancing up from his phone, Jin raised an eyebrow as a tall man with platinum blond hair and rosy pink eyes happily back-hugged the startled teen. What the–?! Yoo-jin was about to run up to his friend and protect him from the stranger when Hyun gaped at the man in recognition. 

“What is going on here…? Who is that?” Jin muttered, watching as the pair exchanged pleasantries. Huh, was it someone that Hyun knew? Stepping closer to the pair, the teen hesitantly called out to his best friend, 

“Um, Hyun?”

“Oh, Jin! I just ran into my brother’s friend– Woah!”

Pulling Hyun closer, the stranger warily glanced at the confused teen. Then, with a slight pout, the blonde man studied Jin with his piercing pink eyes. How annoying; all he wanted was to be alone with Hyun. 

I guess Joon’s not the only one who’s so protective of this cutie… Ugh. Soo-hyuk scowled as he glared at Jin, who was gawking at something behind the haughty actor. Raising an eyebrow, Soo-hyuk was about to turn around when Hyun pulled on his arms. 

“Er, Hyung? Can you let go of me–” 

“KANG SOO-HYUK! What the hell are you doing?! First, you freaking asked me to pick you up, and now you’re flirting with someone at a fast-food restaurant?!”

Rolling his eyes, Soo-hyuk groaned as he reluctantly let go of Hyun and turned to look at his fuming labelmate. Damn, why was that dude always acting like there was a stick up his arse?! Who cared about some staff dinner? What were they going to do, kick them out of production when they had already finished filming 90% of the drama? 

“Tsk, so annoying. What a tryhard.” Soo-hyuk muttered as he dotingly ruffled Hyun’s fluffy hair to control his irritation. Why couldn’t they just relax and take the summer easy before school started again?

“Sorry, Hyun. Guess we’ll have to catch up later. I’ll message you?”

"Uh… sure…?"

Ignoring the two actors, Hyun awkwardly continued drinking his strawberry milkshake, already exhausted from this encounter. Couldn’t he just dig into his delicious meal without witnessing a dramatic feud between these two? Geez, this really was a fictional world. Preoccupied with trying to grab the to-go bag from Jin’s hands, Hyun didn’t notice Soo-hyuk’s labelmate inching towards the trio.

His handsome face scrunched up in an irritated frown, Woo-jae strolled up to the nonchalant actor. Who was Soo-hyuk talking to that he was so happy to see? This a-hole rarely smiled unless a camera was rolling around. Sliding his blue eyes over to the person that Soo-hyuk was flirting with, Woo-jae froze.

“...Egghead…?”

SIDE NOTE:

*Noona: Korean word for “older sister” (masculine ver; the feminine version would be “unni/ eonni.” Can we be used platonically/ romantically!) :)

**NOTE: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, locales, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.**