Beside me, Seolhyo's brows knit together.
She shot a sharp glare at the others, then turned all her attention to me, patting my back gently.
"Seojin, are you okay…?" she asked, worried. "You don't have to drink it, you know. Don't mind these drunkards."
I chuckled weakly as I set the cup down. "I'm fine."
Park Dong laughed and reached to refill my cup, but the moment Seolhyo glared at him, he immediately pulled back, still laughing nervously.
"Alright, alright my bad," he muttered.
Seolhyo turned back to me, serious again. "Don't drink it."
I smiled and let out a small laugh. "It's okay. I was just surprised I didn't know you weren't supposed to chug it all at once."
She sighed, the tension easing, but her eyes stayed on me. "Okay… but be careful, alright?"
"Yes, ma'am," I said obediently, earning a faint smile from her.
Irina stared into her cup, nose wrinkling.
My dad always drinks soju with pork belly… I really don't get it.
It's just bitter and tastes awful.
Park Dong noticed and quickly covered her cup with his hand. "Hey. Stop drinking. Your face is already red, idiot. It's not even good."
Irina glanced at him, looking ahead, acting cool. "…You"
"You always drink, and you still treat me like a kid!!" she snapped, then grabbed her cup and gulped it down in one go.
"Hey, hey!!" Park Dong shouted, too late.
Nearby, Inseop was completely gone, his face flushed as he stared blankly into space. "Ughhh…"
Hyewon laughed and squeezed his cheek with one hand. "LOL, you okay? Your face looks totally wrecked."
Inseop mumbled weakly, words slurring,
"I… I feel like I might throw up…"
So this is what being drunk feels like… Why the hell do people drink this crap? If an adult hadn't handed it to me, I wouldn't have touched it.
"HAHAHA!"
Inseop turned toward the noise and saw Suwon grinning at him. "Look at you. After all that drama about drinking last time, now you're totally wasted."
"Shut up…" Inseop muttered. "Why aren't you drinking?"
"I did. One sip."
Inseop's gaze drifted to Seol Hyorim, whose cup still sat untouched in front of her.
She's not drinking either… Damn it, I shouldn't have either…
Suwon laughed again.
Seolhyo stared down at her cup.
I've never tried it before. Not even once.
Everyone else was drinking even Seojin, who never drank. It felt strange being the only one not drinking.
But it kinda scary.
A secret trip, sneaky drinking too…
Is this even okay?
If Seol Minsu finds out, I'm so dead…
As she kept staring, the reflection in the cup seemed to twist turning into a gorilla holding a cage, with her trapped inside it.
Her brow twitched.
Screw it. I'll do what I want!!
Whatever happens!!
She grab the cup and gulped it all in one go.
"OOOOH, Seolhyo's drinking!!"
"One shot!!"
"Hey, you shouldn't have !"
I turned to her immediately, worry flooding in. "Seolhyo, why did you drink? Are you okay? You didn't gulp it in one go, did you?" I bombarded her with questions.
She didn't answer.
After setting the empty cup down, she just lowered her head.
"HAHAHAHA!"
Irina doubled over laughing. "Look at her, I'm dying LOL!"
Daegyu pointing at her laughing so hard tears coming out of his eyes. "One drink and she's like that? HAHA!"
"HAHAHAHA She didn't pass out, right?!"
Seolhyo sluggishly lifted her head, her words just slightly slurred. "I'm… not drunk…"
The laughter exploded even louder.
"You're slurring! What do you mean not drunk? HAHAHA!"
"Why do her eyes look so soft now?!"
"She looks more sad than soft, LMAO!"
Inseop steadied Suwon, whose body was swaying in place, face completely red with a bit of drool at the corner of his mouth. "Another one who got wasted from just one drink, lol."
Park Dong glanced at Suwon and clicked his tongue. "Why does this guy always go for one-shots…"
"Huhu… be quiet already…" Suwon muttered weakly.
I gently patted Seolhyo's back. "Are you okay?"
She turned to me, cheeks faintly flushed, and smiled soft, bright, nothing like her usual fierce expression.
I froze for a second.
Fierce Seolhyo was beautiful but this… gentle Seolhyo was way too cute.
Suddenly, she latched onto me, wrapping her arms around my waist and resting her weight against me. "Hehehehe~"
she giggled, voice slurry. "Jin… can you play a song again?"
My face burned instantly.
With her acting like this, there was no way I could say no.
My words stumbled out. "Ah… I"
She didn't hear my hesitation. Instead, she looked up at me with wide, sparkling eyes, her face tinted red from the alcohol. "Pleeease…"
Without thinking, I answered, "Of course. What song do you want?"
Seolhyo put a finger to her temple, eyes closing dramatically as if deep in thought.
"Hmmm…"
Around us, everyone was staring, completely dumbfounded by this sudden transformation.
Then she opened her eyes and smiled.
"Sing me a song… just for me, hehehe."
Hearing her say that, something clicked in my head. I'd been meaning to sing this song for her anyway… and now, of all moments, it felt perfect.
"I actually have a song," I said quietly, meeting her eyes. "Just for you."
Seolhyo's face lit up instantly. "Really?"
She grabbed my sleeve and shook me excitedly. "Sing it now! Sing it!"
I laughed and gently patted her head. "I will. Let go of me first I need the guitar."
"Oh!" She hurriedly let go and sat up straight, hands neatly on her lap, as if she'd never clung to me just moments ago.
I chuckled at her acting like this and reached for the guitar lying nearby.
Around us, the others slowly quieted down.
I adjusted the guitar, plucked the strings once, twice then began.
My voice came out softer than usual, almost careful, and without realizing it, my gaze stayed on Seolhyo the entire time.
(Jvke - Pretty)
🎵'Cause you're my pretty...
Definition of beauty....
Pretty girl, you make everything feel alright
Pretty girl, pretty as the stars in the sky
Belt of Orion, the way we're aligning
And Heaven knows that it breaks my soul,
oh-oh-oh
When you don't know you're beautiful
And I won't let it go, oh-oh-oh
I need you to know…
🎵
Seolhyo didn't look away even once.
Her eyes stayed locked onto mine, wide and shining, her heart pounding so loudly she swore everyone could hear it. The teasing, the noise, the heat of the night everything else melted away.
There was only his voice, only the way he looked at her, as if she was the only person in the world.
Around us, the others watched in silence.
How romantic
Seolhyo is so lucky…
I want someone to look at me like that too.
The song went on, the melody wrapping around the night air.
🎵Yeah, the sun has good taste
He's peeking through the blinders just to get
a glimpse of your face
And he traveled quite a ways
Ninety million miles to see what I get to see
Every day, hey
Darling, you're beautiful in every single way
And there's nothing I'd change, hey
My love stays the same…
'Cause you're my pretty
Definition of beauty
And out of everything I've seen
Nothing can compete
with you
My pretty...
🎵
When the last chord faded, Seojin let his fingers rest on the strings and looked up, smiling softly at Seolhyo.
She was still staring at him.
Her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it might burst.
The flush already coloring her cheeks from the alcohol deepened, spreading all the way to her ears. For a second, her mind went completely blank
Seolhyo suddenly lunged forward.
She grabbed Seojin by the collar, pulling him down toward her, her hands sliding up to hold his face as she kissed him hard, impulsive, all heat and feeling.
Whether it was the alcohol doing or her restraint that she's been holding back for far too long, even she couldn't tell.
Seojin stiffened instantly, eyes wide in pure shock, completely unprepared for it.
Around them, time seemed to stop.
The others stared, mouths hanging open.
In all their years of knowing her never in their wildest dreams had they imagined Seol Hyorim would be pouncing on a guy kissing him.