Sunlight sieved through the gaping curtains, bathing the room in the soft golden glow of early morning. Jung-wook stirred, basking in the sun's glory as he slowly regained consciousness. His memory of the previous night was foggy, but the last thing he remembered was falling asleep next to Ananya. His lips curled into a small smile as he felt a gentle hand resting close to his. Without opening his eyes, he reached out, locking his fingers with theirs, turning to face Ananya with a sleepy smile.
But something felt off. He could hear Ananya giggling, but it was not right next to him – sounded like she was farther away. The sound of a camera shutter made his eyes snap open. His heart leaped into his throat as he let out a scream and recoiled abruptly, yanking his hand away. It wasn't Ananya's hand he had been holding – it was Dae-jung's!
In the corner of the room, Ananya stood with her phone, still laughing as she lowered the camera. "You two make such a cute couple!" she teased, her giggles growing louder.
Jung-wook blinked rapidly, the events of the night starting to come back to him in a rush. He had woken up in the middle of the night, groggy and restless, and had somehow ended up dragging a very drunk Dae-jung back to his place with Ananya's help. It was all a blur, and now here he was, waking up next to him, having mistaken him for her!
Beside him, Dae-jung groaned, finally waking up from the commotion. His bleary eyes opened just enough to take in his surroundings, then he squinted at Jung-wook. "Where… am I?" he muttered, his voice hoarse and heavy with sleep. He rubbed his eyes and looked up, thoroughly confused.
Ananya watched as Dae-jung slowly registered their surroundings, his usual calm demeanour replaced by a look of absolute confusion. Before Jung-wook could utter anything sarcastic, she quickly stepped forward, "You're at his place, Dae. We couldn't get you to wake up for home so we brought you here."
"Oh," was all he managed to croak out sleepily before burying his head back into his pillow – which, for some reason, turned out to be Jung-wook's chest instead.
"Hey, watch it!" Jung-wook snapped, pushing Dae-jung away as Ananya giggled yet again, pointing the camera towards them for another shot.
"Enough with the pictures already!" He groaned, swinging his legs off the bed, getting up onto unsteady feet, and dashing to the bathroom. As he passed by Ananya, he shot her a playful groan. "Thanks for inviting this unwanted guest into my bed, by the way."
Ananya smirked at his childish attempt at hiding embarrassment away as Dae-jung tucked under his sheets once again, only the top of his head and his eyes peeking out from the covers. "Did I actually just fall asleep? I feel like a train ran over me."
"More like passed out, yes." Ananya chimed in with an airy laugh, "I have made some of the Indian ramen you brought yesterday. It has been a hangover staple for me since I began drinking, so I'm sure it will help you both." Dae-jung's expression instantly shifted to one of delight as he took the covers off and crossed the room in just two strides, settling down at the table. "We don't have to wait for him, do we? I'll just-"
A ping on his phone caught his attention. He turned to it and glanced at the screen, his brows furrowing slightly. "Ah, Ji-yeon wants to know what we're up to for the day."
Ananya's eyes widened, and she practically lunged across the table, grabbing Dae-jung's arms, panic clearly lacing her voice. "Did you tell her you stayed over and that we spent the night drinking together?"
"Not yet. As you can see, I just woke up," he replied with a soft chuckle, eyes hinting at a little concern, "Am I not supposed to?"
"I… I just don't want her to get the wrong idea." Ananya muttered, shooting him a warning look.
"Like what? That we're all just friends who had a fun night?" Dae-jung teased, shrugging nonchalantly and leaning against the table with a casual air. "It's not like I'm trying to hide anything. Or is there-?"
"Absolutely not!" Ananya shot back, cheeks flushing as she turned away to hide her embarrassment. "I'll tell her myself when I see her at the uni tomorrow. Can you please keep it to yourself till then?"
"On one condition," Dae-jung said, a sly grin creeping across his face as he held his hand out and added, "Let me take you out today. Just us."
Jung-wook emerged from the bathroom just in time to catch their exchange. He raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest, a playful smirk on his lips. "What did I miss? Planning your escape route already?"
Ananya rolled her eyes but couldn't help but smile. "Nothing concrete yet, but we might get there."
"Right," Jung-wook said, stepping closer to the table and pouring himself some water from a jug. "I'll just take my seat here and pretend that this doesn't concern me."
"That would be the best, indeed." Dae-jung mumbled, making Jung-wook frown as he sat down, turning to Ananya and continuing before the other could even utter a word, "So anyways, where were we?"
"It's a deal." Ananya smiled, serving ramen to both the hungover men.
Jung-wook leaned back, arms crossed and brows knitted together as he observed the banter between Ananya and Dae-jung. "So, plans are being made in my house without me now?" He kept his tone light, but an edge slipped through, hinting at a deeper annoyance.
Ananya shot him an exasperated glance, "You just woke up and went straight to the loo. You cannot expect to be part of every conversation."
"Maybe I should be," Jung-wook replied, leaning forward slightly, narrowing the distance between him and Ananya. "I mean, who's going to keep you two from doing something stupid?"
"Please! Like you're any better at making smart choices." Ananya snickered as Dae-jung slurped his noodles loudly, relishing the moment.
Jung-wook grunted, tapping his fingers against the table as he studied them both with mock intensity. The playfulness stung more than he expected. Each laugh shared between Ananya and Dae-jung felt like a jab, knowing that they shared something he hadn't been able to breach yet.
"Alright then," he said, forcing a casual grin. "If I'm not invited to your little escapade today, I'll just make my own plans."
"Suit yourself," Dae-jung replied nonchalantly. But Jung-wook didn't care about his opinion either, his eyes clearly focused on Ananya, hoping for a reaction.
Ananya set her chopsticks down and turned her gaze towards Jung-wook, a challenging smile plastered on her face. "What do you plan on doing? Make sure to keep yourself entertained?"
"Just hanging out around the market again. Might see if there's anything interesting I can find."
"Aw, that sounds lonely," she countered with a chuckle. But before Jung-wook could respond, Dae-jung broke in with a laugh that echoed through the room, joined by Ananya.
The teasing was lighthearted enough; Jung-wook fought back the urge to smile and let their banter slide. He took another sip of water instead and shifted gears abruptly. "What's the plan anyway? Are you two really going out today?" Dae-jung glanced over at Ananya before returning Jung-wook's gaze with an air of mischief. "It's a secret."
Turning back to Ananya, he added, "I'll leave for home now, get fresh, and be back in an hour to pick you up. Sounds good?" Ananya blinked with a smile in affirmation as Dae-jung got up, gave a curt nod to Jung-wook, and left – leaving a curious Jung-wook and an exasperated Ananya behind.
"What is it?" He whined, toying with his ramen. "I don't know either. It's a secret for everyone including me." She replied with a shrug. It really was – she was just as unaware as Jung-wook.
"Not that I planned on telling you even if I knew." She shrugged matter-of-factly.
"Why not?" He frowned, inching closer to her, arms still on the table. She moved away instinctively, the past few instances between just the two of them making her even more aware – and perhaps a little shy – of his presence. She cleared her throat to regain composure, shooting back, "Just so you'd know what it feels like when someone doesn't tell you what you want to know."
"Hey!" He protested, but couldn't say anything more, knowing fully well that he was guilty of just that. "At least I have you here for another hour."
"Not really. I need to take a shower and get ready so hurry up with your now-cold ramen already!"
"Okay, okay," he pouted, pushing his bowl aside and standing up. "I'm done so I will let you get ready then. Just promise me you will call me if you need anything throughout the day. Even if you don't. Just call me whenever."
"I'm sure that won't be needed, but thanks." She chuckled, stepping out into the hallway and turning back to face him, "I'll see you tonight then, I guess?"
He leaned in with a soft smile, his face mere centimetres away as he whispered, "No guesses. I'll be right here, and you know it too."
As soon as he closed the door behind him, Ananya let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. The odd tension from their conversation had shaken her up and she stomped her feet to bring herself out of it. Why does he get to have the last word and leave her breathless, speechless always!?