A Korean Boy at a Chinese Restaurant | A Namjin Fanfiction

| Chapter 1 | House of Cards

As the hours ticked on and it slowly went from half-past three to half-past five, the number of people in the restaurant decreased until there were none left at precisely fourteen minutes to six. With an exhausted sigh, he washed yet another bowl, putting more uneaten rice and other foods into containers.

'How do people waste so much food?' The concept was rather foreign to him, as he had been brought in a household where wasting food was the greatest crime. Then, later on, before he moved in with Yoongi and Jimin, he had lived in an apartment by himself and getting food every day was often a struggle.

The bell above the door chimed delicately at exactly six o'clock, and Jimin looked up to see who had been the one to spend so much money making sure no one else was there.

His heart stopped when he saw who it was. 'Kim Namjoon...?' 

He panicked. Kim Namjoon was a popular kid at his school, East Gawcheon High School. He was rich, handsome, talented, popular...

And he was Jin's crush.

Perhaps 'crush' wasn't the right word, though. Jin had watched from a distance, his feelings growing for the last two years. He'd tried to ignore them, squash them, kill them, get rid of them, but it didn't matter how much he distracted himself or how depressed and insecure it made him feel.

He still liked Kim Namjoon a lot.

Of course, he didn't allow Kim Namjoon to permeate his entire life. Another reason he had chosen to work at the Chinese restaurant was that he knew Kim Namjoon didn't like Chinese food. He'd heard the boy mention it himself during an English class where the teacher was sick and the school had somehow forgotten to get a replacement teacher.

Of course, Namjoon had joked around with his friends and then they had somehow ended up making him teach the class because he was already fluent.

Yes, his school was a joke, but...

Kim Namjoon would be a really good English teacher.

He shook the thoughts away and frowned. He knew Namjoon didn't like Chinese and in fact detested it, saying that it made him want to puke, but then why was he here in a Chinese restaurant? Didn't this girl know he hated Chinese? Why would she make him eat something that was so disgusting to him it made him feel sick?

Nonetheless, Eun-Du had retired for the day, as she rarely had enough energy to work past about five in her old age, and Jin was the only employee.

"Good evening. Are you ready to order?" he said respectfully. The girl turned without blinking and ordered the most expensive food and drink on the menu. Both had alcohol in them.

"I'm sorry, are you of age? Both of these have alcohol in it," he answered. The girl scowled and put eighty thousand won in his hand. He stared at it with shock. 

"Just take it and give me what I ordered," she sneered at him. Jin, still in shock, regained his composure. His prideful and self-reliant nature screamed at him not to accept it. He could be arrested if he was found to accept the bribe anyway, and it would bad for Eun-Du's business.

"No, thank you." He shook his head and put the won back onto the table. "Please call me back when you have chosen what you wish to eat. We do have some Japanese options as well."

They didn't, but Namjoon looked so relieved that he knew it was worth it. He turned away to stand in the open kitchen, and as soon as he took his first step, the girl hissed across the table. "Wasn't he rude? I can't believe I was so generous to such an ungrateful person!"

Jin glanced back to see Namjoon put his hand on hers. "He's just doing his job. Don't worry about anyone except me."

She sighed. "I know. I'll let it go and tell the manager about him later."