finally jumping off the train, donghyuck excitedly pulled mark's hands with him to fasten their pace and with a little more walk, they exited the train station, now standing in front of donghyuck's desired place.
he looked at the place in awe before looking back at the superior, "we're here!" he exclaimed with a big smile.
on the other hand, mark only scans the place with confusion, "a-are you sure we're in the right place?" he asked, uneasy, while also trying to fake a smile.
"certainly." donghyuck replied quickly, observing the older's expression. oh, he's surely loving this. "this is seoul's most famous marketplace! oh, and look at those street foods!" he told pointing at the various foods in the stalls while people crowded in front of it.
"i know a famous steak house near here," mark suddenly blurts, attempting to catch donghyuck's eyes that are busy eyeing the place, "we can go there." he offered.
"that's boring!" the latter immediately declined. he just started walking which made mark do the same and they swim through the sea of people, towards the first food stall the younger saw.
"what do you want to eat first?" donghyuck asked the latter.
mark stared at the food in front of him for a long time, yet how much he looked at it, he can never pinpoint what it was. "i don't know, i'm not familiar with these." the ceo told.
"we can eat these, it's called eomuk and it's basically a fish cake," donghyuck explained, pointing at the food in amusement. he then averts his gaze at the person behind the stall before saying, "two of these, please."
after they paid for it, the younger gave mark his fish cake while he ate his. hoping that mark will enjoy his food, he only looked at his secretary who's busy noming on his food.
the younger noticed this and his brows furrowed his brows, "what? come on eat it." he said, mouth full of food.
mark started bringing the stick in front of his mouth and donghyuck can already tell that he has no plans on eating it. and that's the whole plan! he knows mark is not familiar with this place and probably doesn't even know that it existed in the first place, so seeing his uneasy look makes him feel that he's succeeding in this whole revenge situation already.
was the whole plan about making mark uncomfortable? maybe. is it working? kind of?
bringing the food down, mark asked the younger, "are you sure this is clean?"
"don't discriminate, just because it's not in a fancy place doesn't mean it's dirty." donghyuck told back, but only to start thinking again, "well, it might be, but who cares? just eat it!"
slowly but surely, mark started bringing the food in front of his mouth while donghyuck just stared at him and felt like it's been hours. taking matters into his own hands, he held mark's arms that were holding the food and forcefully made the older eat it.
mark just can't do anything but chew it and eventually swallow the food. and as he takes his time to savor it, donghyuck stared at him with anticipation, "it's good, isn't it?" he asked with a wide smile.
the older's face immediately changed. his brows arched and looked at the food in shock, "it's—it's good!" he said looking at the food in disbelief.
donghyuck snickered and nudged the older's shoulders, "i told you." the younger cockily said, "come on, you still have more food to taste here!" he told turning around and mark is just quick to hold a little fabric from his button-up.
for the whole time, mark only clung to his secretary, gripping the back of his button-up as he continue to walk through the unfamiliar place. he looks like a child that got dragged away by his parents.
as they search for more foods to eat, of course, they also ran into some stalls that sell other things apart from food.
and the reason why they're standing in front of it right now, is because donghyuck just saw a cute accessory that captured his eyes. "this is so cute!" he exclaimed, pointing at the bracelet that has a little bear charm.
mark rolls his eyes as he shook his head, "too childish." he simply replied as he averts his gaze back at his surroundings. as the time passes, he just wanted donghyuck to get whatever this is, to get over with and somehow escape this place.
donghyuck obviously disagrees as he sneakily paid for the two bracelets while the ceo was not looking.
he gave the seller a small 'thank you' and turned his full body towards the male. he immediately wore his bracelet in his arms, and when mark is still busy eyeing his surroundings, he grabbed his arm and made him wear the other bracelet.
this act finally made the older avert his gaze at his arm. he finally realized that donghyuck brought the childish bracelet and forcefully made him wear it. he was just about to take it off, not when donghyuck said, "take it off or i'll leave you here by yourself."
mark halts his movements and exhaled in frustration.
donghyuck unconsciously grabbed mark's hands as he turns around, catching the older off guard. he looked down and saw their matching bracelets which immediately put a smile on his face. he suddenly forgot why he was so annoyed to be in this place because at this very moment, he just wanted the time to stop.
maybe this place isn't so bad when you have a pretty boy holding your hand after all.
as they continue to walk, mark started encountering people that recognized him and even tried asking about him and his father. they attempt to approach the superior but, for some reason, donghyuck finds himself blocking every person that comes closer to the older. he's here to make the older uncomfortable because of the revenge that renjun told him to do. that's what he's been chanting inside himself but he just can't get this damn plan straight.
and of course, the ceo noticed this. he just felt safe around the younger.
ignoring that act he made towards mark, donghyuck mentally noted himself to just make annoying noises when he saw food stalls or point at unnecessary things that can make mark question why he even agreed to be on this secretary and ceo date with him.
just when donghyuck thought he was succeeding with this so-called plan. oh, he thought wrong because the ceo began unconsciously smiling when he see donghyuck point at things that he finds cute or hear his little screams when his eyes landed on another
this went on until the sun almost sets. mark feels like his feet are numb yet he ignored this when he heard another excited donghyuck pointing at another food place.
this time it's not just a stall, it's a food truck where they sell various foods. "oh, this one's my favorite!" donghyuck smiled, looking at the tteokboki like it's a newborn baby.
"you're still not full?" donghyuck heard the older ask, and immediately assumed that he was getting annoyed with him.
"nope!" he shoots him a big grin but as he looked back at the food, the ceo looked at his secretary, fondly.
"which one do you want again?" the older ask, trying to catch where donghyuck is looking at.
the younger points at the rice cake, "this one!"
"okay then," mark released a small chuckle, "can we please get two orders of these?" he asked the old lady that is selling the food.
donghyuck's brows furrowed, "what are you doing?" he asked observing the older that is now pulling his wallet to pay.
"you've been paying for everything for the whole time we're together," mark simply explains as he shrugs his shoulder, "let this be my treat."
"i mean yeah, because today is obviously my treat." donghyuck said.
the food quickly arrived, and she served it in front of the two. but donghyuck here just got another idea from that small act that mark did to him.
when they started noming on their food, donghyuck clutched his tummy and looked at the older with puppy eyes, "mark..." he whines making mark alerted on his seat, "my tummy wants some juice." he said. yes, yes. in this way, he'll make mark spend more money on him than he expected! he thought to himself.
"oh, s-sure!" the older immediately called for the person behind the bar and ordered for the only juice they have on their menu.
this drink also arrived very quickly which made donghyuck dance on his seat. while the younger is done sipping his drink, he got back to his food. "why does it seem like you haven't tasted these types of foods before." donghyuck started, eyes not leaving his plate.
"to be honest, yeah, i haven't," mark replied with a small nod, "because for my whole childhood i lived in canada not in korea, so... i'm not really familiar with a lot of korean foods."
donghyuck just learned something new from the ceo's son. his eyes widens, "is that why your father didn't introduce you sooner to the public because you live in canada? or no...?"
mark nodded as a reply, he intended to say that but the younger already did. "i've only been here in korea for three or four years."
mark's lips started curving up a little when he saw donghyuck almost finishing his food, "i assume this is your favorite food." he states, averting their conversation away when he saw how fast donghyuck finishes it, "you almost finished it."
"you ordered a very small portion," donghyuck immediately replied, looking at his clean plate. "can you order another one for me?" he asks, looking at the latter with big doe eyes.
what the younger didn't expect for mark is to pat his head as he let a small laugh. "for you, of course."
donghyuck froze and the last thing he heard is mark ordering another food. no, this can't be happening. why is he blushing? why did he suddenly feel things he's not supposed to be feeling?
"here." mark placed a new plate in front of the younger. "i like how they served the food very fast not like the—donghyuck?" he frowned when he saw him not moving at all.
mark started waving his hands in front of the younger's face which made him instantly snap out from reality, he shook his head, "w-what?"
"i said i like that they served their food very quickly because it's already here." mark chuckled, pointing at the plate in front of him.
the younger just nods and avoids eye contact with the ceo, afraid that he'll see the red on his cheeks, and just got back to eating his food. but as he stuffs more food in his mouth, he can feel mark constantly looking at him. so before he can even blow up beside him, he just said, "mark, more juice please."
mark immediately did as what told, finally looking away from donghyuck and the younger then took this time to pull himself together.
"um... one more juice please." he told, smiling at the old lady in front of them. while he's at it, he paid for the extra juice and another plate he just ordered.
as she pours the juice into the cup, she continued to eye the two. "are you the son of lee minhyuk?" she asked.
"ah, yes, yes i am." mark nodded shooting her a smile.
she then brought the cup in front of the older, "and is this your boyfriend? i say, he's very cute." she said, noticing how mark will literally do anything the younger said while he's still on his first plate and first cup of juice. best guess, that's what made her assume.
this statement caught both of them off guard as donghyuck choked on his food while mark only gave him a small bow.
"no!" donghyuck immediately said, shaking his hands, "w-we're not... boyfriends." he said in a small voice yet very audible for the two.
she just nodded and got back to what he was doing. "these kids." he said under her breath.
before the tension between them can be more awkward, mark just quickly finished his food before saying, "thank you for today donghyuck," donghyuck looked up confused, "i really enjoyed it today." he said with a smile while staring at the bracelet that donghyuck forcefully made him wear.
"y-you enjoyed... it?" donghyuck asked and looked at the older like he just saw a ghost.
mark smiled, "i did," he blurts, "i really thought i was going to hate it because i wasn't familiar with this place but you made it enjoyable for me."
no. what is he saying? donghyuck thought. he can clearly see how annoyed mark was when he kept screaming in excitement over little things and when he... he made him wear that bracelet! he just want to rip it off his arms because it's too childish right? why is he suddenly saying he's enjoying this?
"are you done eating?" donghyuck suddenly asked, and mark nodded as he wipes his lips with a tissue and drink until the last drop of his juice. "okay, let's go."
mark didn't question any further and just followed the younger when he saw him already leaving his seat.
maybe, just maybe, donghyuck can still annoy the older so that he can finally take his revenge on him.
"are we going home already?" the older asks, trying to catch up with the latter's pace. donghyuck nodded, while his eyes did not leave the road for even a second. "should i call one of my drivers? they can pick us up here."
the train! donghyuck knew mark hated it when they were on the train earlier. probably because of how crowded it was earlier or it was too chaotic in there... so, he'll bring him there!
"no need to," he told with a small nervous smile, "i told you this is going to be my treat for today because i was the one who asked you out right?"
mark nodded slowly and just smiled at him. "oh... y-yeah, right."
perfect. this will really push him off the edge, right? he'll finally experience the feeling whenever mark is giving him those hard times. it's just a payback.
------
they soon arrived at the train station. standing just in front of the railroad, waiting for the train to arrive.
after a while, it soon approached them and stopped to carry passengers. as expected from earlier, a lot of people entered the train, so it was hard to find seats as all of them are almost occupied.
just when donghyuck saw a vacant seat at the very end of the train for him to sit on, mark is quick to snatch it away and sat before donghyuck can even get to it, "me first." mark said in a teasing way.
"are you serious? i saw it first." donghyuck looked at him in disbelief. he looked around to find more seats, but it was just starting to get packed as ever. leaving him no choice but to stand in front of the older, as he couldn't really move anymore, and hold on to the straphangers.
the train soon took its leave and for the whole time, donghyuck kept glancing at the older to see his face, but he just saw nothing but teasing looks.
he just doesn't get it. he was well aware that mark hated being on the train and would rather be in a private car with his driver, but why is he smiling so much on his seat? just looking at it makes donghyuck's blood boil.
the younger released a small sigh to himself, "i give up." he said under his breath.
on the other hand, mark kept looking at the younger solely because he noticed a presence dangerously close to him. well sure, the train is packed so people are obviously going to stick to each other but is looking down at donghyuck's ass really necessary? just look at the smirk on his face!
all of a sudden, he grabbed the younger's hand and pulled him down so he can land on his lap.
"w-what are you doing?" donghyuck whisper to mark in panics, as he tries to free himself from the older's grip.
"just shut up, someone's trying to grind their dick on you." mark said directly to donghyuck's ear only resulting in the younger to frown.
donghyuck looked back at the person in front of them and saw how he tried to turn his body away from them, obviously noticing the two had acknowledged his presence.
for the whole ride, donghyuck can feel mark's grip on his upper body very tight. this lasted until the train arrived at their destination.
he immediately sprung himself up from mark's lap and hurriedly exited the train without waiting for mark beside him, finding the air between them a little too awkward now.
donghyuck already knew that his plan for today did not succeed at all. he failed to ruin mark's day today as well as his revenge. when the two finally left the train station, the younger can already see a small glimpse of the building of his apartment but all of a sudden, he let out a gasp as he looked up at the sky.
just when he thought this day couldn't get any worse, it just started raining.
"hey, what's wrong with that face?" mark suddenly appear beside donghyuck, with yet a big smile on his face. "i can call our driver to pick us up here." he suggested.
yet donghyuck just shook his head, "you can go home if you want, i hope you enjoyed it today, though." he said with a small voice yet mark still heard this, "i still have somewhere to go."
"but it's raining?" mark quickly adds.
"even better!" donghyuck sarcastically replied, still having no energy to make eye contact with mark.
the older looked at his secretary confused. what's with the sudden change in his mood? was it the perverted person on the train? or when he pulled him down on his lap? "that's your place right?" mark asked, pointing at the building a few blocks ahead of them, "i'll take you there, it's already pouring so hard."
"i said, that's even better, mark." donghyuck replied, "just call your driver or something to come pick you up." why is he so caring? he thought to himself but immediately shook these thoughts off when he saw the small playground that he used to hang out when he wants to get some fresh air.
donghyuck's right he could've just left a few minutes ago but he did nothing but tail behind him. he can't bear seeing the younger walk under the rain, pretending like it's a normal thing.
for the whole time, he just observes the younger's movements. he saw him walking towards the playground near his building, so he did the same. he saw him sitting on one of the benches under a tree—enough to shelter them from the rain—and he stood right in front of him.
he dropped down to match heights with him. "come on, let's go home. you're getting drenched." he told, "i'll drop you off at your apartment."
"mark, just go home." donghyuck said, standing up from the bench and was about to leave the older, when he felt a grip on his hands, pulling him until he almost tripped.
but thankfully, mark is quick enough to hold him in place. he's getting worried. did he really do something wrong that made donghyuck act like this? "donghyuck..." he started, holding him by his shoulders while the younger only is having an eye contest with his chest, "are you tired? did i do something wrong—"
"you did!" donghyuck exclaimed and finally looked up.
mark's brows furrowed up. he brought his hands close to the younger's face before rubbing his thumbs on his cheeks to wipe away the small drips of water. he smiled.
"stop smiling." donghyuck said in a small voice and averted his gaze away.
"i'm sorry." he doesn't even what he's apologizing for but, he made donghyuck upset and that's enough reason for him. "if you want to tell me why you're upset, you can, but i won't force you."
donghyuck rested his forehead on mark's chest and a heavy sigh escaped his lips, "i'm so upset."
mark nodded, patting the younger's head. "d-did i somehow ruin our secretary and ceo date?" he asked, releasing a small laugh under his breath.
"you did. you definitely did." the younger sternly said.
cute.
mark enjoying this so-called date with donghyuck ruined his whole plan and he's so upset.
"we're getting really drenched in the rain." he said as he looked around, "let's drop you off at your apartment, hm?"