"Hi, uh, so." Wooyoung desperately tries to shake off the blankness that washed over him as soon as the pretty receptionist looked up from his laptop and smiled at him. "Do you have a phone?"
A moment passes. Wooyoung wants to facepalm.
~~~
Growing...
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Mingi, having taken care of various things in and around the hotel during his shift, comes to pick San up at the reception a few minutes after seven, when San can finally close up the reception for the day. "Everything alright?"
San only shrugs, feeling unreasonably tired for seven p.m.
"Here." Mingi holds his phone out for San, and San squints at the picture shown on the display. Yunho beams back at him in an exaggerated manner, in the background some blurry green outside of what appears to be his train window.
"He's probably almost back home by now." Mingi pockets his phone again.
"He texted me he misses the island," San says, letting a laugh slip. He has trouble believing that someone has had experiences so contrary to his own on the same fleck of earth. Although—he must admit that the island has become more welcoming recently for him as well.
"I will miss it, too," Mingi adds thoughtfully as they make their way to the dining hall together. "Imagine a supper without burnt mackerel! It would feel like something's missing."
San giggles. Glancing sideways, he catches the glimpse of a complacent smile on Mingi's face in response. Then he remembers something: "I've heard they've dismissed the cook though. Maybe the next one will know to take mackerels off the grill before they turn black."
Mingi hums. "Maybe the next one'll know how to set a timer."
San tries his best to not dissolve into giggles again because they're now entering the dining hall. As usual, all noise is subdued, nothing louder than the clinking of cutlery and chopsticks against the tableware, and conversations lead in low voices, accompanied with soft, unintrusive jazz music.
And Wooyoung's family is there, too, sitting at the same table as usual. San makes brief eye contact with Wooyoung who flashes him a small grin, but decides against returning anything but a nod of acknowledgement. He doesn't want to test Wooyoung's family's abilities to pick up on non-verbal communication, and turns away rather quickly. With Mingi by his side, he keeps close to the wall on their way to the employees' supper room.
"Ah, right," Mingi says as soon as he has closed the door behind them and they find that the room is void of anyone else, "I forgot to ask—how are things going with Wooyoung?"
San thinks for a moment about the answer, then simply shrugs. "I like him. He's not as arrogant as I first made him out to be. And he's cute."
Mingi hums. "Good. He seemed more interesting than those other people who tried to get your number before. Some of them even came to me beforehand to ask if you're single."
That explains a great deal of how Mingi was so aware of the number of San's flirts at the hotel. San tilts his head curiously. "What did you tell them?"
Mingi snorts, and with a groan of overplayed pain, seats himself cross-legged on a pillow on the floor. "That they should ask you that. Can you get me burnt mackerel, rice, and a sweet potato if there are any? My back hurts."
