BONUS DEAL || Hyunlix

Chapter 27 - Business trip

Felix's POV

Hongcheon was an unknown location for me that might have caused excitement under other circumstances. But now it was a location I would prefer to avoid. The thought of a possible meeting with Hyunjin clenched my stomach and left a strange aftertaste in my mouth. It was no wonder that I slowly lost my appetite as our team building approached.

The day before leaving, my dear colleagues were running around the office, discussing the logistics of the trip. The only ones who could drive were Chris and Changbin, so the two argued over who would drive us all there.

"But my car is better, it's new!" Changbin argued.

"Maybe, but that doesn't make you a better driver!" Chris remarked. Me and Jisung watched their verbal sparring silently hoping that Chris would win since he was the more experienced driver after all. We wouldn't even dare to say it out loud, but we trusted him more in that regard.

I checked the time on my phone and whenever it showed that I had no notifications, my stomach clenched again. I was half expecting a message from Hyunjin, I thought he might mention if he was going to the team building, but nothing happened. The silence between us persisted. But I would like to know if he'll be there or not, at least I could prepare myself mentally.

The office shenanigans heated up when Changbin referred to Chris's car as an "old can" and Chris immediately hit back with that he actually bought the "old can" himself and didn't need a "rich parents' money." It looked like this fight wasn't going to end any time soon and we were way past work hours.

"How about taking Changbin's car and you two take turns driving?" Jisung suggested tiredly, leaning his head on my shoulder, and holding his packed bag in his hands.

"That's a great idea. I'm all for it." I immediately supported my colleague of the same age, hoping to outvote the two stubborn ones. The two exchanged brief glances before they also nodded at our proposal, and we could move on to agreeing when to pick up who and what we should pack.

I almost didn't close my eyes again that night. I unpacked and packed my travel bag several times and anxiously paced back and forth around the apartment before falling asleep sitting at my computer while trying to distract myself by playing Genshin Impact.

So, I don't need to explain how miserable I was the next morning as I stood outside my place waiting for the boys to pick me up.

"Get in loser, we're going shopping!" Chris rolled down the window and yelled the legendary line from Mean Girls at me, and I could tell by the way he giggled that he had been planning it all the way here. His dimpled smile was contagious, and I managed to smile back despite my tiredness. I was the last stop for the boys, so we headed directly to Hongcheon from my place.

Our two drivers sat in the front, and Jisung and I sat in the back, as if we were their children. It certainly seemed that way because the two in front kept bickering. Chris criticized Changbin's car and Changbin criticized Chris' driving. Jisung put on his headphones next to me and looked outside. I think he imagined he was in a music video. A romantic music video with Minho. I must tell him this thought of mine when we are alone. He'll love it.

This family atmosphere of ours probably managed to calm me down so much that before long I felt the weight of my own eyelids. Finally, my brain told itself to forget for a moment the worry that this team building might disrupt my process of getting over my decision to end things with Hyunjin and let me sleep.

***

When I opened my eyes, Changbin already replaced Chris behind the wheel and a peaceful landscape passed behind the window, a stark contrast to the lively atmosphere of Seoul.