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Jackson almost spat out the drink when he heard the shocking news. "Suji is pregnant?" He blurted, eyes practically free from their sockets.
Mark patted his shoulder, easing his energy. "Are you sure that's what Seulgi said? Maybe you heard wrong?"
"No, I heard what I heard," muttered Jaebum against the mouth of his beer. The taste couldn't drown out the bitterness covering his tongue. "They have an appointment tomorrow morning."
"Damn," Jackson gritted. "Can I call this a shotgun wedding or what?"
The strobelights barely managed to mask the disappointment and frustration blossoming in Jaebum's face. His eyes were hard and narrow, almost lifeless. The discolouration on the surrounding skin only intensified since he spoke to Seulgi. He regretted going down to the cafe, but he needed to speak to his best friend.
Reading his friend well, Mark threw Jackson a discerning glare. "Please, don't. Jaebum has enough on his plate as it is."
"Sorry," the blonde murmured. "Another beer here, Seola!" He exclaimed for the bartender.
"So, what are you going to do?" Mark directed his attention to Jaebum, his eyes clad with worry.
Jaebum snorted. "Nothing. What can I do? I'm not invited to the wedding. And it's far too late to try to win her back."
"She should be doing that, not you," grumbled Jackson, surreptitiously against the idea of his good friend grovelling on his knees for the woman who broke him.
The older two pinned him with daggers, until Mark sighed. "He's right, though."
Yes, Jaebum knew that, but he couldn't verbally agree. It wasn't too long ago when Suji meant the world to him, but she traded that in for a chance to marry wealthy. Growing up, they didn't have much. When the opportunity to live a well-off life presented itself to her, she selfishly took it, abandoning him in the mix.
He didn't know how to get over her, so he threw himself into wild parties and random strangers to forget—even just for a single night.
"I just wish her a happy life, and I hope everything she did to me is worth it." There was no denying the malice that spiraled around each and every word, cursing the sentence.
"Meet anyone yet?" Suji made conversation when the waiting room was too quiet for her liking. If she heard the clock tick one more time, she would go crazy and probably get herself confided to a bed in a mental hospital.
Seulgi flipped through a fashion magazine, snorting. "Nope. I'm too busy taking myself on dates to actually bother with anyone."
"How about Jinyoung-ssi? He seems nice."
"And gay," stressed Seulgi, refusing to lift her eyes from the glossy pages. "He's dating one of Jaebum's friends. Mark, the American one."
Seulgi wasn't sure what she was more uncomfortable with: her ex-boyriend mentioned so freely or a homosexual relationship being announced in a very conversative setting. Other patients tossed the two disapproving looks. Seulgi didn't care.
"Don't say that out loud," hushed Suji, leaning her head closer to her best friend's. She didn't like drawing attention. Her eyes swept their nearby surroundings.
"Love is love," insisted Seulgi, speaking louder than Suji would have liked her to.
Suji grabbed her arm, forcing her to meet gazes. "I know, okay. But not here. You know how it is."
"Right."
"Change of topic." She shook her head, letting go of her anxiety. "How's work?"
"The usual," Seulgi lethargically answered, tired of the mundane conversation. Since when did best friends communicate so... stiffly. It was suffocating. "You suck at breaking the ice, which you don't even need to do since we're friends. How's the wedding preparations?" She set the magazine on top of a pile of others.
Finally, a subject she could actually talk about without fear of their heads being chopped off. "Stressful. I mean, I'm happy the wedding hall is literally taking care of everything, but I want to order cake from the bakery we're going to later. They won't allow it. It's my wedding, I should do whatever I want, right?" Suji's tone escalated.
Seulgi looked around, noticing the stares they were consistently subjected to.
She turned her friend aorund, whispering faintly. "You should. Have you asked Yonghyun to speak to them? Maybe he can convince them... with money." She brushed the pad of her thumb against her fingers.
Insulted and stunned, Suji slapped Seulgi's arm. "You can't buy everything with money!"
"He bought you-" Accidentally, Seulgi let that slip, but she didn't bother to cover it up.
Accustomed to her friend's sharp tongue, Suji generously let that one go. "You know. Maybe I'll try that. I don't see what's so wrong about bringing my own cake. They'll have more money to pay their employees that way."
"How many people are you inviting again? The hall you booked is the largest one in Gangnam."
When it came to extravagance, Suji went all out.
"A hundred. It's not a lot when you compare it to Western weddings," she sulked.
To Seulgi, that was plenty. She didn't think she knew one hundred people. When she would be married, she could imagine twenty people showing up... maybe. It would depend if her husband was a hermit too.
"No room in there to squeeze in another person?" Seulgi wiggled a single finger, smiling hopefully.
Suji tipped her head with inquiry. "Who?"
"Jaebum."
"Are you kidding me?! No way!" Suji shrieked, borderline ballistic.
Seulgi clasped a hand over her friend's trap, apologizing to the other patients in the waiting room. They would surely get kicked out for one more outburst.
"Are you kidding me?" When her mouth was uncovered, Suji whispered angrily. "I can't invited him. You know that."
"He's your childhood friend. You invited everyone else but him. That's a jerk move!" Seulgi argued, brows knitting tight.
Suji huffed, cheeks inflated with hot air. "You know why I can't invite him. We're no longer friends, anyway." Then, she looked away. Her words came out choppy and rough. "It's better this way."
"For whom, exactly?" Seulgi emphasized, narrowing her sights as she scrutinized her friend. "You're not giving Jaebum a chance to–"
"Jaebum, Jaebum, Jaebum!" Suji hissed, snapping her head around. "I thought I'm your best friend, not him."
"You are–"
"Then stop talking about him!" Nursing a hand over the faint bump on her stomach, Suji attempted to calm down for the sake of the baby.
Realizing how silly and unnecessary their argument was, Seulgi tucked in her lips. There was a time and place for everything. Right now, there was no room for any mention of Jaebum. But she wondered how he was coping... Maybe she would stop by his busking session afterwards. Something told her Suji wouldn't be in the mood to extend their little date any longer.
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sorry if this is moving slowly. 😪 it'll pick up. but i might be slower in updates to provide a better storyline. please, be patient with my slow ass.
do check out her voice written by @preynogrey. it's a jaegi au. and really good!
