The Boy From The Bridge - Jakehoon

Chapter 18: I wish you were sober 6/7

"Hoooo weee!" Jake wailed as the he tasted the vodka lemonade mix he had made. 'Way too much spirit, not enough mixer' he concluded. He didn't want to be seen wasting the drink he poured for himself so instead he tried pouring it back into the bottle of lemonade he was using. Suddenly he realised that the lemonade could't be used by anyone else as it had been tampered with it, "Well, I guess this is mine now" he said to no one, as he was alone in the kitchen. He looked at the bottle, raised it to his lips and took a sip.

Every drink; beer or spirit he had tried so far had ranged from unpleasant to disgusting - this however was nice, it was sweet. Jake took another slip so as to make sure he wasn't fooling himself - it was really was nice. He poured a little more vodka into the 2L bottle and the taste didn't noticeably change. He was about to pour his mixture into the cups he had arranged when Sunghoon came into the kitchen. Sunghoon seemed flustered and in a panic, "Jaeyun, we need to go!"

Jake looked at him confused, "but I was just about to pour you a drink" - Sunghoon's expression didn't change and Jake realised his friend was serious, "Okay, but I'm taking our drink" he declared and let Sunghoon lead him out of the house.

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They had made it half way down the street when Sunghoon noticed the large bottle in his friend's arms. "We can't go on the bus with that" he pointed out.

"Why not?" Jake protested, "Everyone will think it's just a bottle of lemonade"

"No they won't, we're walking" It was the first time Sunghoon had asserted himself over 'Jaeyun'. Jake diligently followed the instruction and followed Sunghoon down a new street eastward.

"So are you going to tell me what happened?" Jake asked. They had been walking for four minutes and hadn't said a word to each other as Sunghoon lead them through the quiet, night time streets.

"Uh... I just messed things up with Yun" Sunghoon admitted.

"Messed up? How?"

"I did something stupid..."

"Stupid? Like what?" Jake forced concern into his voice, "Hoonie you can tell me"

"Stupid like..." Sunghoon heard the end of 'Jaeyun's' sentence, "Hey, why do you keep calling me Hoonie?"

"You like it when I call you Hoonie"

Sunghoon's mood softened at the answer and he allowed himself to smile. "I messed up because I tried to kiss her and she... well, she wasn't expecting it or didn't want to receive it"

"Sounds like you could use a drink" Jake suggested smiling, he had been sipping from the bottle as they walked and took a swig from it before offering it to Sunghoon.

Sunghoon was reluctant to accept the offer. Everything he had tried so far had been rancid but 'Jaeyun' was seemingly enjoying it and adults in his situation would probably want a drink, thus Sunghoon accepted the bottle and took a sip. His reaction was one of surprise, it tasted just like lemonade. "Thanks"

"No problem. So about Yun - do you want to talk about it?" Jake asked.

"Hmm" Sunghoon pondered, passing the bottle back, "I don't think I want to but I probably should. I just feel so awkward. I like her and I thought she liked me and that she was making hints but I obviously didn't read the situation. It's not like I've ever kissed someone before and so maybe I..." Sunghoon realised he was being too honest - he had tried to hide realities about himself from his friends and here he was just telling 'Jaeyun' like it was nothing, like there was something inside of him wanting to share truth he wished to keep secret.