And so the lunch date was set - well, set after Hoseok made sure that Namjoon would be working on that particular day, because if he weren't, then going to the cafe would be a total waste. For him, that is. Not Seokjin. Seokjin was happy enough getting treated to a meal; however he couldn't deny a small part of him might have been looking forward to seeing Namjoon in person. Just a small part. Just a little. But he wouldn't admit that. Not to himself, nor to Hoseok, seeing as Seokjin possessed this peculiar pride that resulted in him (attempting to) camouflage any and all traces of non-perfectness.
Well, that might not have been entirely true. But he liked to think it was.
The cafe, according to Hoseok, was simply called "Hyunseong's Cafe", and from the outside Seokjin couldn't deny it looked awfully cute and charming. The large window to the right of the door granted a clear view of the seating areas inside-quaint, pastel red booths and several small tables scattered here and there, a three-step staircase leading to a second seating area, shelves against a brick wall whereon sat numerous potted plants which Seokjin found oddly adorable. The second the two of them entered the cafe, they were immediately greeted by the sweet aroma of cooking meats and various dishes that drifted temptingly from the kitchen. Seokjin's stomach growled furiously at him.
"Dude."
"What? I didn't eat breakfast, okay?"
Hoseok tilted his head back, squinting in genuine confusion at his friend. "You? Not eating breakfast?"
"I ran out of ingredients at my dorm. Haven't gone shopping yet."
"Huh." He gave a brief nod of understanding, then proceeded to hum a tune as he scanned the cafe in search of something - or someone, rather. And he found who he had been looking for in a matter of seconds, as this person happened to be walking in their direction with the sole intention of seating the restaurant's new customers. The man must not have recognized them at first glance, Hoseok gathered. Meanwhile Seokjin's attention had been diverted by the screen of another customer's phone, which at the current moment was displaying an episode of his favorite show, so he failed to notice the familiar-faced waiter walking towards him.
"Welcome to Hyunseong's Cafe, I'm-..."
Only once he was standing a mere two feet away did Namjoon finally put two and two together. He paused before his last word, tilted his head to one side, adjusted his thin-framed glasses, and cracked the subtlest of smiles as he gazed at the ever-growing one on Hoseok's face.
"You're..." A quiet breath that sounded something like a laugh escaped Namjoon's mouth. "One of the guys from the chat. Hoseok, right?"
The redhead beamed. "Or Hobi, if you'd prefer."
"And this is..."
It wasn't that he forgot. He simply wanted to wait till he could get a clearer view so that he could be assured he wasn't mistaking the man for someone else. Hoseok tapped his friend on the shoulder several times, then several more times, and even then Seokjin's eyes still lingered on the phone screen as he turned his head around to face forward.
"...Seokjin."
Having been 110% invested in the contents of that TV show rather than the outside world, it came as a genuine shock to Jin to find this man standing so close, and with a look of remembrance upon his face - his awfully handsome face that appeared much tanner in person than it did in that selca, and the eyes that appeared brighter as a result of being pleasantly surprised by the two's unannounced visit.
"Oh, uh, hello."
"Hello." Namjoon chuckled. "元気ですか？" [Are you well?]
"はい. 元気です." [Yes. I'm doing well.]
"ま, よかた." [Well, I'm glad.]
"Oh, don't start this again," Hoseok groaned audibly, but at the same time he couldn't repress the amused laugh that crawled its way out of his throat. Namjoon shot him an apologetic glance.
"Right, my bad," he spoke softly, then extended an arm in the direction of the seating area. "You're free to sit where you'd like. Unless you want me to escort y-"
"Yes, escort us," Seokjin blurted with the sole intention to amuse himself, but against his will the slightest hint of red touched the tips of his ears at the smile his comment earned him. Pursing his lips and putting on a smile of his own, Jin followed his escort to a nearby table, his redheaded friend walking shortly behind with a toothy grin. The moment the two were seated - Namjoon had so kindly pulled out the chairs for both of them - Seokjin took notice of his friend's cheeky expression, and as politely as possible he told their waiter they would need more time before ordering. So Namjoon left them with their menus.
Not two seconds passed. Hoseok cleared his throat conspicuously. In response, Seokjin leaned across the table to press a finger to his friend's lips to shut him up.
"Don't talk. Let me first." He pulled his hand away. "I have to reevaluate everything. One thing in particular."
"If you say your sexuality I'm gonna kill you, Jin. I've known you swung for the other team since-"
"I said don't talk. I gotta tell you something."
Curious, Hoseok paused, quirking an eyebrow at his friend whose eyes had followed Namjoon to a different part of the cafe.
"He's really hot - no, not just hot." Jin squinted. "Charming, too. That's a dangerous combination. I can handle looks, but the smile's too much. Also, his Japanese pronunciation is sexy. No, stop that. What am I saying? My pronunciation is sexy."
"Jinnie, stop." Hoseok couldn't hold his laughter this time. "That last part you can drop. Your panic filter is on again."
"Panic filter?" Furrowing his brow, Seokjin cocked his head to one side, pouting and crossing his arms in protest of his friend's remark. "I don't have a panic filter." His eyes stole another glance at Namjoon. "Oh, the glasses, too..."
Not long after this was so breathlessly uttered under Seokjin's breath, who should return to their table but the charming waiter himself, notepad and ballpoint pen in hand as though fully expecting the two college boys to be ready with their orders. But alas, Jin's vocalized train of thought had occupied the spans of time that could have been used skimming the menus.
"Are you two ready, then?"
"Uh, yeah, of course."
"もちろん [of course]," Namjoon repeated. Seokjin looked up from the menu he had so hastily grabbed just in time to see the waiter smirk, but it was a cute smirk, which only made Jin flustered.
"Uh, H-Hobi, you order first."
Struggling to bite back his grin, Hoseok scanned the choices quickly and picked out the first thing that sounded appetizing to him at the moment. "Uhhhh, I'll have the spicy pork, aaaand dumplings, and milk tea."
Namjoon repeated the order back quietly as he jotted it down, then turned to face Jin. "And you?"
"Teriyaki chicken, white rice, and an espresso, please."
"Jin, you don't like espresso."
"Oh, that's right." He cleared his throat and searched the drink options again. "Uh, then I'll just have water."
"Teriyaki chicken, white rice, and water, got it." Placing the pen in the spirals of his notepad, Namjoon assured the two boys he would be back with their orders as soon as possible. And he left. Hoseok and Seokjin watched in silence until he had disappeared from their sight completely. All the while, Hoseok was slowly, subtly leaning across the table so that he could whisper in his friend's ear.
"That was flirting if I've ever seen it."
Seokjin didn't hesitate to push the boy away from his face. "Stop, it wasn't flirting," he insisted, though even Hoseok could tell that Jin wasn't entirely convinced by his own words. "He's just really friendly, I'm sure."
"Right," Hoseok deadpanned, "I'm sure." Still smiling, he said in a quieter voice, "So tell me, what were you two saying to each other?"
"What?"
"Be my translator."
"We were just greeting each other," Jin explained. "He said 'how are you', I said 'I'm good', then he said 'well, I'm glad'."
"Okay, well, what about after that? Don't think I didn't catch you blushing, Jinnie."
"He literally just repeated what I said, but in Japanese. 'Mochiron' means 'of course'."
"Right, sure it does. I'll bet it means, like, 'you're cute, date me' or something."
"Right. Whatever makes you happy, Hobi..."
As the two patiently waited for their food to arrive, Hoseok and Seokjin made light conversation, briefly discussing college matters and how classes and studies were going, and Seokjin happened to make mention of fellow music major Min Yoongi, who often attracted the attention of girls in their class. As it turned out, many people quite liked his dark and mysterious aura and were intrigued by it, but now that Jin was at least somewhat acquainted with Yoongi thanks to the group chat, he had a funny feeling that the boy wasn't the least bit dark or mysterious.
"We could always ask Namjoon about him," Hoseok suggested. Jin shook his head.
"No, the group chat has been revealing a lot so far." As he said this, Seokjin pulled out his phone and opened the chat. Hoseok did so as well.
"I wonder if Jiminie's working today."
"Let's just ask him."
"Well, if he's working, wouldn't he not respond?"
"Do you know Jimin?"
"...yeah, you right."
[Meme Team]
YourHobi:
ey jiminie we at ur cafe u working today
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
yeh
also who's we?
YourHobi:
me and yoongi
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
WAIT SRSLY?
SINCE WEN R U AN YOONGI SO CLOSE
Hoseok and Seokjin lifted their heads simultaneously to look at each other, both scarcely able to repress the urge to laugh.
[Meme Team]
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
ur lying i dont believe u
Chocochip_kookie:
jimin if ur at work shouldnt u be working
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
im on break hush u
namjoons here 2
i think his break starts in like five minutes
anyway back to wut i was saying
is yoongi rly there w/u??
Yoongi:
im not
idk y he's saying that
YourHobi:
dont be shy yoongi u can admit we're here on a date
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
WHAT
"I knew it, I knew he'd snap."
"This is hilarious, Hobi, you're a genius."
"Thank you, I know."
[Meme Team]
Yoongi:
again
we're not
dont know y he's saying that
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
i believe yoongi more than u hoseok
nice try
YourHobi:
ouch i thought i was ur friend and yet u dont believe me :,(
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
so r u there alone then or is jin w/u
YourHobi:
yeh i'm with jinnie
Handsome_face:
hello eights a ten is here
Yoongi:
on a scale of what
Chocochip_kookie:
wow what a savage
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
*:.｡.o(≧▽≦)o.｡.:* LMAO
Chocochip_kookie:
gonna need some ketchup for those harshbrowns
Handsome_face:
mean
YourHobi:
jin our food is here
Handsome_face:
ok y didnt u just tell me that in person
YourHobi:
u werent looking up from ur phone
Handsome_face:
neither r u
YourHobi:
we're being rude namjoon is waiting
Blue_ribbon_mochi:
lmao u guys
Both putting their phones aside, Hoseok and Seokjin lifted their eyes to watch as Namjoon set down each item on the tray he was carrying according to who had ordered what. Except there was one extra item on the tray, a large plate of bulgogi (Korean meat dish), which neither Hoseok nor Seokjin had ordered. Before either of them could ask, however, Namjoon spoke up.
"I'm actually on break starting now. Do you guys mind if I join you?"
"Absolutely. Jin would love that."
"Excuse me?"
"So you don't want him to?"
"Wait, no, that's not what I mean, I-..." Feeling he had lost to his friend once again, Jin heaved a sigh of defeat and pulled out another chair. "Just sit down, Namjoon."
He smiled. "ありがとう, ソクジン." [Thanks, Seokjin.]
"どういたしまして." [You're welcome.]
"You guys are already driving me crazy with this."