“I’ll show you just how good it feels to mend a broken heart,” Insu whispered before brushing his lips against Shihwan’s ear.

The gulp Shihwan released was audible.

Yet despite that, Insu knew that Shihwan would not take the bait. He wasn’t the type to have a one-night stand with a stranger. He had known it all this time, but Insu had been so irritated that before he was conscious of it, he had made a move on him.

Everything about the situation pissed him off. How could Shihwan have been so stupid to step into a gay club then, following the instructions of a man he didn’t know, to enter a pitch black room that he couldn’t find his way around in? If Insu hadn’t been the first person he had met, Shihwan would have been devoured in this den of wolves.

And then to find out that he had come to the club with Boram… That had been the last straw.

“What do you say?” Insu whispered before slowly climbing on top of Shihwan’s lap, straddling him but taking care not to directly touch him. The action made the side slit of his dress to part, exposing a slim, smooth thigh.

Shihwan froze beneath him, but by the shortness of his breath, Insu could tell that his body was getting excited.

And for some reason, that made him even more irritated.

Of all the shitty luck. He hadn’t even wanted to come to the club, forced into it by his inner demons, only to meet the one person who had driven him here in the first place.

And he had come to protect the puppy who had rejected him.

Just how much of a fucking goody-two-shoes was he?

Insu took a deep breath when he noticed his shoulders tensing up and his hands clenching into fists above Shihwan’s shoulders.

Insu knew that he shouldn’t touch him, knew that it was the exact opposite of what he should be doing. But, at the moment, he didn’t care. He planned to just rile him up and then leave him at the last moment. He wanted to teach Shihwan to never do this again, to scare him out of ever even thinking about it.

“Hmm?” Insu said, masking his voice again with a soft, breathy tone as he blew into Shihwan’s ear. 

Then he sat down, right onto Shihwan’s lap and grabbed Shihwan’s hand, placing it on his exposed thigh before pressing his chest against his. “What do you say?”

For a long moment, Shihwan did not speak or move, and Insu nearly laughed, pleased that he had shocked into silence the friend who almost always had something to say.

But when he moved to release him, Shihwan reached out and gently grabbed him by the arm and pulled him close. He buried his face into Insu’s collarbone and sniffed.

“Alright,” Shihwan said; his voice was low, soft, husky.

And Insu froze. 

“What?” Insu asked, his voice cracking in surprise. He hadn’t expected him to agree to it. He had only planned to tease him, pressure him a little until he ran out of the place, his tail tucked between his legs.

“I’d like you to show me,” Shihwan replied quietly, then gently took both of Insu’s wrists and placed his arms around Shihwan’s shoulders before grabbing him by the waist.

Insu jerked at the touch, but before he could respond, Shihwan spoke again. “But first, can you tell me if you normally do these kinds of things?”

What? “What?”

Insu blinked in surprise. “Why—What does it matter to you?”

“It’s just…” Shihwan paused, then sighed. “I’d like to know.”

“Why?” asked Insu, suddenly finding himself losing his cool, the heat of Shihwan’s hands on him making him self-conscious. “Do you find it distasteful? Do you think I’m some kind of slut?”

“No,” Shihwan replied. “It’s just… I’m a little shocked, I suppose.”

“Shocked?” Insu asked, the volume of his voice rising slightly in indignation, and he temporarily forgot that he was sitting on Shihwan’s lap. Why the hell would he be shocked? Wasn’t he the one who had come here of his own volition? Who was he to judge? “Why the hell would you be shocked?”

Shihwan sighed again, and that further fueled Insu’s anger. “It’s just… I didn’t think you did these kinds of things?”

The fuck? “What the hell… you don’t even know me.”

Shihwan shifted beneath him, and Insu froze, feeling the front of Shihwan’s pants rubbing perilously close to a sensitive spot.

“Of course I know you,” Shihwan said, his low voice gentle. “How the hell could I not know it’s you, Insu?”

Insu froze, every cell of his body suspended in time. What? He blinked in the darkness. He couldn’t see Shihwan, but he could make out his outline, and he could picture every inch of his friend’s face. Of course, he could; he had gazed at it so much throughout his life that he knew it even better than his own.

Fuck.

He stood to remove himself, but Shihwan stopped him.

Insu tried to shake him off, but his grasp remained firm.

“If you fucking knew it was me, why did you keep silent?” Insu said with a hiss, his face burning up. He wanted to run away. He was so fucking embarrassed.

“Wait!” said Shihwan. “Sorry, I only found out when you straddled me.”

Insu closed his eyes to try to block out the shame, even as his face burned even hotter. “How did you even know it was me?” he asked through gritted teeth.

“Your smell…”

My smell?

Insu again tried to shake Shihwan off, this time succeeding. But a second later, Shihwan was beside him as Insu quickly made his way to the door he knew was directly in front of him.

Insu felt Shihwan gently grab a small portion of his dress, holding onto it like a child as he followed Insu through the dark hall.

Insu grew angry at himself for not even trying to brush him off. Even in such a painfully shameful scenario, Shihwan still came first in his mind.

He pushed open the door to the back of the club that led into the staff room and made his way directly toward JoonSeo’s locker.

“Insu,” said Shihwan, who had continued to follow him.

Insu didn’t turn to him, but he could see from his peripheral vision that Shihwan was blinking rapidly against the harsh light.

“Insu,” Shihwan said again, but Insu ignored him. Instead, he threw open JoonSeo’s locker, rummaging through the mess until he found a sweater.

“Wait!” said Shihwan, grabbing Insu by the hand before he could make his way out the door.

“What?” Insu hissed, finally turning to him.

“Why are you here?” Shihwan asked, concern and a strange tightness in Shihwan’s face. “Why are you wearing a dress? Why were you in that room? Did you know it was me in there?”

“So many damn questions,” Insu said, moving his gaze away. He couldn’t bear to look him in the face, not when he looked like this, in this ridiculous getup.

“Why did you do that?” Shihwan asked.

Insu gritted his teeth, but when Shihwan refused to budge, he looked up and finally met his eyes. Shihwan was staring at him with an intense expression; something more than simple curiosity sat behind his questions. Insu just couldn’t tell what.

“Why are you here, Insu?” Shihwan asked again, softly. “This is a gay club, isn’t it?”

Insu grew quiet, allowing a tense silence to develop between them before quietly speaking, “And what of it?”

“Why… Why didn’t you tell me?”

Insu blinked, anger again threatening to rear its ugly head. He had outed himself, and he hadn’t even realized it until just then. “Should I have?”

Shihwan looked up. “What?” he asked in disbelief. “When I told you about Boram, you could have—”

“Did you think that just because you told me that I had to open up in the same way?”

Shihwan blinked. “No,” he stammered. “But I thought… we were friends.”

“And that means I need to tell you everything?”

“No, I never said—”

Insu closed his eyes as he felt his head begin to throb. He turned toward the door; he wanted to leave.

“Wait,” said Shihwan, grabbing his hand again.

“Why are you here, Insu?” he asked. “Were you in that room looking for a partner?”

Insu almost laughed. “And if I were? Does it matter to you?”

“It does,” Shihwan responded, and Insu stilled.

He then laughed, a humorless laugh. “Do you remember what you told me a few weeks ago in your apartment?”

Shihwan blinked, confusion clear on his face.

“You told me not to go smelling like other guys… But do you know what I was doing that day?”

The grip on Insu’s hand suddenly tightened. Insu stared down at it and released another soft, humorless laugh. “See?” he said. “You don’t want to know… You don’t need to know. It has nothing to do with you.”

Insu grabbed Shihwan’s hand with his free one and pried it away from him. He felt like an idiot in his black silk dress and the makeup that made him feel like an imposter, a liar. “Just go back to your puppy. Pretend all of this didn’t happen.” He took a deep breath, then added, “Please.”

“Wait,” Shihwan said, but he was too late. Insu was making his way out the door.

Shihwan began to chase after him, but just then, someone walked through the door. They bumped into each other, scattering a bottle of wine and cups to the ground with a clatter.

“Damn,” someone mumbled.

Shihwan moved quickly, reaching down to pick up the items which had thankfully not broken, hoping all the while that Insu would still be nearby when he was done.

But when he looked up, Insu was already gone.

.