"No thanks,"

The words left his mouth a little too quick.

I'm not going anywhere further with you.

This thought mainly dictating his position on the small bench they shared, now scooched all the way to the end.

He really didn't like the idea of having to wait till he got back to get something to eat, but his intuition was telling him he'd like sharing a meal with this stranger even less, so he forced himself to refuse. Besides, he didn't like imposing on others this much.

Cocking a brow the stranger let out a bored sigh.

"I just said I wouldn't take no for an answer though? I'm also really hungry since I haven't eaten anything all day. Let's go."

He allowed silence to take over as he just paused and stared at the stranger. For some reason, unlike usual he couldn't tell what to do.

He usually found it easier to turn people down. Offers for meals, favors, or even just talking. He was used to having to say no to things other people would agree to, so why was he now having a hard time? What was it about this stranger that made him feel like he was being swallowed by an ocean where he had no say in where the current took him?

"Are you just going to let the person you saved starve to death?" The stranger spoke, noticing his hesitance.

He pressed his lips together as he furrowed his brows, before finally letting out a sigh in submission.

"Most of the restaurants around here are closed, so we'll have to get something from the convenience store. Is that alright with you?"

The strangers lips curled into a smile, satisfied with his surrender.

"That's fine."

The walk to the convenience store was silent, and so was the process of picking out what they each wanted and paying for it. It wasn't until they walked up to the counter facing the window as they prepared their instant meals that the silence between them broke.

"Are you satisfied with just those?" The stranger asked, looking at the two triangular gimbaps and bread that sat on his side of the counter.

"I could say the same to you?" He replied, in turn glancing at the single gimbap and soda on the other side.

"I usually don't eat much, but you seem like you eat a lot,"

The statement by the stranger caused him to glance at him with a raised brow. Not because it was completely out of pocket, but because it was spot on.

He'd only chosen to eat that light because he didn't like eating much that late at night, but still, how could he tell? Was it something about him that made it obvious?

Watching his deeply pondering expression, the stranger stifled a chuckle.

Cute.

More than gazing at his sculpted face, he seemed to enjoy messing with him more.

"How old are you?" The stranger asked, looking him over intently. His face and body were exactly his type, but he needed to know how to address him since he was getting bored of talking so formally- not that he'd been taking it seriously. "Oh, but before that... what's your name?"

"Ah," He voiced, realizing he had forgotten to even ask for the stranger's name. Everything about him was so harrowing that he didn't even have the time to think about it. 

Turning to the stranger he spoke.

"Min Baek-Hyeon."

"And age?"

The stranger asked.

With knotted brows, Min Baek-Hyeon answered anyway.

"Twenty-four."

"Oh, so he's only two years younger than me?" The stranger thought, scanning his face intently. "He looks younger than he is."

"I see..." He muttered aloud, trailing off as he turned to his single gimbap on the counter, tearing it open and biting into it. He even liked his name. Just where did such a man fall from?

"And you?" Min Baek-Hyeon spoke, his eyebrow raised in question.

"Hm?"

"Are you not going to tell me your name?"

Halting his biting motion, the stranger pursed his lips, turning to gaze at Baek-Hyeon in a ponder.

Should he tell him? Would he have to say it out loud? He detested his name. Not because he didn't particularly like what it meant or the way it sounded, he just didn't like the fact it was given to him by a man who all but stated he hated his very existence.

He hated it, but why were his lips still parting with the words hanging on his tongue? What was he doing?

"Ryeo Hae-Won,"

The words left him, shock lingering in his expression as he stared in disbelief. Quickly recollecting himself he continued.

"Just call me hyung."

Min Baek-Hyeon stared at Ryeo Hae-Won with an expression that explicitly said 'I'm never calling you that' before he responded.

"Ryeo Hae-Won-ssi, I think you should eat a bit more if you are going to drive that many hours back to Seoul."

"He's putting up a wall again," Hae-Won sighed internally, biting into his meal, before speaking aloud. "It's fine. I told you already, this is as much as I usually eat. Besides, if I get tired, you can just take over."

The last statement was meant to re-infer that Baek-Hyeon would be following him back to Seoul- an implication that did not go unnoticed by him, but he just let out another sigh in surrender. He had quickly grown accustomed to losing arguments against Hae-Won.

He'd pondered on whether he should just borrow the van he rented once more, but that would be inconsiderate to his father's friend who needed it more, so he decided he'd rather impose on a high maintenance stranger than someone he actually liked.

"Since you don't live here," Hae-Won started, a spark of curiosity lighting in his eyes as he called Baek-Hyeon's attention. "What family matter dragged you all the way to the countryside?"

Min Baek-Hyeon's eyebrows's creased as he wondered what kind of person would ask a complete stranger such personal matters.

"I don't think it's..."

"Ah, I was only curious, so you don't really have to answer if you don't want to."

Hae-Won spoke lightly, hiding a laugh as he read the look in his eyes, cutting off Baek-Hyeon from completing his statement.

Baek-Hyeon's expression twisted into a slight frown as he wondered if he was still being messed with. Sighing, he asked.

"In that case, I am also curious. Since you live in Seoul, what were you doing just gazing out at the sea. It seemed like you had been there for hours."

Hae-Won paused, pursing his lips as he gazed down at the counter for a few seconds.

"Hm... I don't know,"

"Huh?"

Baek-Hyeon hummed, confused at Hae-Won's response.

"I mean, I didn't really set out with the sea in mind. I just started driving without a destination and somehow ended up here. I thought the sea was especially beautiful at sunset so I stopped to get a better look, and before I knew it, it was already late in the night."

How deep in thought would you have to be to not realize that much time flying by?

Though that wasn't what shocked him the most. He wasn't sure to be honest. Was he more shocked at the fact that he was someone who would just drive without a destination in mind, or more shocked that he actually answered. He was so sure he would ignore him or change the topic.

His tone was light-hearted, but the dim expression on his face stated that the situation was anything but that. 

Could it be that the wealthy looking man named Ryeo Hae-Won also had his set of problems he was blatantly running from?

"Did you not fear you might have ended up lost?"

Min Baek-Hyeon muttered faintly, not wanting to seem like he cared too much about this stranger.

"Would that have been the worst thing?"

Hae-Won replied with a light chuckle, again his expression dim.

Yes, he definitely had something that troubled him.