Stressed, Hoseok had been holding his hooded red-head since the morning. His elbow on the table, his head facing down, his eyes were closed. Everyone thought he was sleeping. But when Yoongi went to his office to send some paperwork, Hoseok's voice broke through the silence, requesting a cup of coffee, still in that position.
The sudden request caught Yoongi off guard. Still, he went to the pantry to make the boss a cup of coffee.
Everyone was aware Hoseok's ideal cup of coffee was two. But he had taken more than two in a day. Yoongi, the one who had been making him coffee, had grown concerned.
Hoseok heard Yoongi talking to Amber in the next room. He uttered, "you should talk to him or he will rot his kidneys."
The clicks on the keyboard grew faster and louder. Amber exhaled quickly in the midst of the noise and said, "he won't listen. I'm not the boss anyway."
"Noona," Yoongi groaned.
"You talk to him and see if he'll listen," Amber said sarcastically.
Sighing, Yoongi pushed the door of Amber's office and walked to the office next to hers. Under Hoseok's office doorframe, he announced emotionlessly, "your human coffee machine is out of service."
"Hyung," Hoseok called, halting Yoongi from walking away. The squeak between the corridor's tiled floor and Yoongi's sneakers signifying that he had turned to face him. "What does this boutique's name mean?" Hoseok asked.
"The boutique's name meaning?" Yoongi asked, scratching his head. "Don't know. I only joined the boutique a few months after it opened."
Both of Hoseok's fists curled on his clothed head slowly.
An index finger was still busy clicking the mouse, Amber butted in from the next room, "to live with purpose. To be true."
Hoseok lifted his head to look at Amber. His dark circles and stubbles on his philtrum became prominent under the bright, white light. His lips cracked, begging for moisturization.
Amber turned her head to look at him. She said, "do you get it?"
"No," Hoseok spoke softly.
Finally, Amber turned her chair to have her body facing him. She uttered, "your sister lives up to her name. Your parents used to tell her, Jiwoo in her name means 'to live with purpose.' She added more meaning for herself and the boutique, and that's 'to be true.'"
"I don't understand how this can relate to fashion," Hoseok said.
"Your designs are all with sparkly beads and cotton and chiffon and nothing else. Is it just dresses you can think about? Just because it has Jiwoo's name?" Amber asked, mockingly. She scoffed. "There, you got a hint. Think of a design with the message 'to be true.' Be creative, be daring, will you?"
Yoongi sighed in the background. He said, "you're being hard on him, noona."
As Amber's feet went under the table, she pulled herself nearer, glaring at Hoseok. "He has always been hard on himself. He better figure it out," she said, her eyes returning to the desktop screen.
Hoseok could not hold back anymore. With eyebrows creased, he snapped, "what's with the people here and punishing? Lee Jiah will never do this to me!"
Amber snorted, "You thinking of her now?" One of her eyebrows raised, one corner of her lips tucked up. "Jung Hoseok," she uttered, shaking her head and snorting again, "huh!"
"Noona," Yoongi groaned again.
"You, shut up! You sound like a stressed grandpa," Amber retorted.
Sighing, Yoongi gave Hoseok a final glance. As he walked along the corridor, he muttered, "I'm missing Seokjin hyung now."
On the other hand, Hoseok thumped his forehead on the table, letting out a long whine.
**********
"What?" Seokjin exclaimed, echoing across the Han River, eyebrows raised. His hand held a malt alcoholic beer. Across from him, Yoongi was binge-eating corndogs.
"You heard me right!" Yoongi said with his mouth full. He swallowed and added, "Amber noona has been unhelpful. I'm stressed."
"Amber never punishes Hoseok before," Seokjin spoke in an undertone.
Grabbing an opened tin of beer, Yoongi said, "I think she's still sulking. Hoseok said something that hurt her."
"Right, he did. I never thought Amber would end up sulking this long."
After taking a sip of beer, Yoongi asked, "how about you? Are you still angry with Hoseok?"
"Nah... After talking with Jiah, I think it's useless to be angry with him that long. Jiah is too kind," Seokjin said, his plump lips then flattened into a tight smile.
Yoongi's eyebrows raised. "What do you mean?"
"We were hanging out last time. We talked about Bejiwoo. She said that she understood him. She knew he decided a thing on impulse."
Yoongi rolled his tongue across his upper front teeth before asking, "did you tell her how Hoseok feels about her, though?"
"Nah," Seokjin droned, waving a hand. "I don't bother. Besides, it's not my job to tell."
As the older man took a few gulps of his beer, Yoongi stared at him for a few moments. His dominant hand stayed still on his thigh with a half-eaten corndog. He asked, "do you still have feelings for Jiah?"
Seokjin glanced at the younger ones, wiped his lips with the back of his hand, and then rested the hand that held the tin on his knee. He swallowed the beer and took a short pause before saying, "you know, Yoongi." He sighed. "You can't get over a feeling for someone in an hour, a day, a month, or even a year. It's a matter of time. It may be harder if the person is still around you."
"Then, why are you still seeing her?" Yoongi asked.
Seokjin gave Yoongi another brief look before throwing his view to the river. Then, silence fell.
In the central sky, a brisk cold wind ushered charcoal-hued clouds across the heavens, gradually releasing the navy blue sky's grip on the radiant sun. City buildings gleamed against the dynamic backdrop, casting a luminous aura along the tranquil Han River. Lampposts scattered throughout the urban landscape added a sense of unyielding light to the expanse of concrete.
Inhaling a deep breath, Seokjin looked back at him and uttered, "I don't want her to feel bad that she rejected me. I love us, you know? So, I'm putting on a thick skin."
"That hurts," Yoongi muttered.
"Yeah, of course. Someone like Jiah. She's perfect. She's likeable. Anyone wants to be with her. She makes people feel like they're home. I still want her, but Jiah doesn't feel the same. I have to respect her feelings."
Taking a bite of the corndog, he rolled it to the inner cheeks before asking, "is that all?"
Seokjin raised both of his eyebrows. "Hm?"
Yoongi chewed and swallowed. He asked, "is that all the reason? You aren't doing it because of Hoseok, are you? If I were you, I'd continue to fight for her."
Seokjin gave out a brief laugh. Then, he said, "I would love to do that, seeing Hoseok behaving like that one stupid male lead from a drama." Yoongi snorted, grinning at the comment. Seokjin added, "but I would also love to give him a chance and see how far he can force himself to change."
Nodding his head, Yoongi pulled out the last corndog from the stick. He said, "great!"
"Besides, Jiah and I are leaving soon," Seokjin uttered.
Yoongi stopped chewing. "Where are you going?" he asked, one of his cheeks forming a round with mushed food inside.
Seokjin's grip on the can halted in the air as he looked at him through the corner of his eyes. He asked, "has Amber told you?"
Yoongi shook his head from side to side.
"Ahh..." Seokjin groaned. He put down the can and said, "we're going to the States next Wednesday."
Yoongi's eyebrows creased. "What are you going to do there?" he asked.
"To bring Soohyuk and Mr. Kang to justice. Amber and Maru will go with us. Since all the victims were Koreans, we're planning to make it happen in the local court."
"Hang on, who? Maru? The In-Kang's Kang Maru?" Yoongi asked, his eyebrows scrunched up this time. Seokjin bobbed his head up and down. Yoongi added, "and you guys trust him?"
Seokjin droned, "I don't know. I just follow Jiah. Wendy will take part in this too. And I don't know if Wendy working with us can convince me yet. She told us she'll use her influence for the justice of Jiwoo and Jiah's mother." With Yoongi looking confused at him, he chuckled. "It's surprising for you too, yeah? Kang Maru, the In-Kang's inheritor, wants the company down."
"Kang... Kang Maru wants the company down?" Yoongi exclaimed. His shoulders became tense.
Nodding his head slowly with lips curved downwards, Seokjin said, "he had been suspecting something was wrong. And then, he investigated and found out. He doesn't want dirty money. Failing to take the company down will bring misery to his life. At least, that's what he said."
"I –"
Seokjin interjected, "Since I barely trust Maru, I'll make sure to send you a message every day."
Yoongi blinked his eyes and asked, "what for?"
"To let you know we're safe. What else?" Seokjin said.
Yoongi's shoulders relaxed. "Are you serious about going?" he asked.
Inhaling a deep breath, Seokjin then uttered, "yes. Maru laid out the evidence he found. Don't ask me how he got them, but... they were convincing. Jiwoo and Jiah's mother's name was somewhere in a booklet he found." He paused, lightly smiling at Yoongi. "That's all I can tell you."
"How about Hoseok?" Yoongi asked.
"What about him?" Seokjin repeated, raising an eyebrow.
"You said you want to give him a chance."
Seokjin chuckled and sipped the beer. Then, he said, "you're right. I hope he comes before we fly to the US. Or else, there won't be any more chances for him."