Play Dates

Fourteen

Geonhak stares at his phone dumbly, his left leg shaking uncontrollably. He quickly glances at himself in the nearby mirror; he is wearing a white shirt and a black tie, and he already feels too tight in these unsual clothes for him. He pushes his glasses back up his nose and sighs. He does not know if he is more afraid of spending an evening alone with Seoho or picking up that phone and giving a call to his ex-partner.

But does he really have a choice? The blonde desperately clicks on Dongju's number and waits with his eyes closed. He hates asking for favours. Particularly to him.

"You did remember to pick him at school today, right?"

Geonhak sighs. "It's 6:00PM, of course he's with me. Who do you think I am?"

"Sometimes, I wonder." Dongju remains silent for a moment. "I'm doing fantastic, don't bother asking."

"Sorry, uh, glad you're doing good. Can you do something for me?"

"Right," Dongju answers dryly, and Geonhak can almost picture him rolling his eyes, "so you're calling to ask me a favour?"

"What else would I call you for?" Geonhak frowns. "It's not like I'm going to invite you for dinner."

"Quit the sass, Kim Geonhak. It doesn't suit you." The blonde hears the other man sigh lightly. In the background, someone says something to Dongju—probably Keonhee—and Geonhak can hear him clear his throat. "What do you want?"

"Okay. So, I wanted to call Youngjo instead, but it turns out he's not in town, he's left for the weekend. And I, hum, would need you to take Sunnie? Just for tonight? Please?"

Dongju does not speak for a moment. "I'm sorry, but I don't understand. You appear to have... a life?"

"Come on," Geonhak mutters harshly, already annoyed, "if you don't want to, just say no, and I'll cancel my plans."

"Is this because of work?" the other man asks, ignoring his bitter remark. "You know, you should really rest and—"

"No," Geonhak interrupts, "not work. It's... private."

He hears his ex hold his breath and then laugh lightly. "Oh my, Kim Geonhak is having a date." The blonde detects Keonhee's chuckle in the background.

"It's not a date. Not really. Well, I'm spending the evening with someone, if you truly need to know. Anyways, I'd like to drop Sunnie at your place in about half an hour, if that suits you and Keonhee-ssi. It's just for a couple of hours, I can even pick him up afterwards."

Something rufles over Dongju's phone and Geonhak assumes he is muting his conversation with his boyfriend. Dongju finally answers, "Yeah, we'll take him. You can leave him for the night. Hyung will bring him to school tomorrow on his way to work."

"What, really?" Geonhak was not expecting this to be so easy. "I, hum, well— Thanks."

"Yeah, it's about time you found someone. And please get laid, you obviously need it." Geonhak chokes on his own saliva and mumbles something confusedly, trying to hide his uneasiness. "Is he cute?"

The blonde scratches his head, unsure whether he is ready to have this conversation with his ex-partner. More than anything, he was not ready to see him so surprisingly supportive and kind — in his own way. Geonhak is not sure why, but he actually opens up.

"Yeah," he whispers in a low voice, unable to stop a prim grin to form on his lips, "he's really cute. But I'm not— I mean, I'm not expecting anything. He's straight and all. I just want to spend a nice evening for once."

"Careful, okay?" Dongju says softly. "And where did you even meet him? Work?"

"School. He's the father of one of Sunnie's friends. We got quite close."

"Oh, that one! Seoho-ssi, is it?"  The other man chuckles. "Sunnie can't stop talking about him, Seoho-ssi this, Seoho-ssi that. I think he loves him very much. I'm glad he does. I'm glad you do." Dongju sounds embarrassed for a moment and finally adds sarcastically, "That way, you won't be stuck on me forever!"

Geonhak laughs too. He knows Dongju is only trying to protect his overly dramatic persona and not show his true colours. But he can see the man is genuinely happy for him.

"I'm not picky, just looking for someone who won't change the bedroom curtains every week," Geonhak jokes. He eventually adds, "Thanks again for your help. I'm leaving in five minutes, will that be alright with you?"

"Wait. What are you wearing?"

"Uh... Clothes?"

"I know you, and I know you're not doing this right. Show me. Switch the call to video mode."

Geonhak closes his eyes for a moment, internally pleading for mercy, but finally obeys. Dongju's face appears on his screen and he feels his heart race faster — both because of aversion and because of a new indeterminate feeling. Friendliness?

Dongju inspects him and narrows his small brown eyes, scracthing his long blond hair, tied into a ponytail that day. "That won't do, hyung. You need to change."

Geonhak looks down at his shirt and smiles awkwardly. "What's wrong with this? That's the nicest clothes I have."

"It's not like you. Not anymore." Geonhak silently contemplates his ex as he thinks intensely and finally suggests, "Okay, why not that yellow sweatshirt? It suits you well."

Geonhak frowns a little, trying to remember. Dongju rolls his eyes. "You wore it to the parents' meeting with that teacher, a few weeks ago?"

"Oh, right. But... really? Isn't that too casual?"

"Trust me. You'll look irresistible. Like a blazing sun. Or a cute chick."

Geonhak nods, already up and searching in his cupboard for said jacket. "I'm leaving as soon as I'm changed. And, Dongju-yah? Thanks. A lot."

The younger man shrugs with a smile. "See you in a minute, lover boy."