Yi Jeong took a sip from his whisky as a swanky blonde draped her arms around him. Smelling of cheap perfume and last night's cigarette, she attempted to loosen his collar. Checking his watch, he deflected her intentions coolly and moved to a more secluded side of the room. Where the hell was Woo Bin? The intoxicated girl pouted momentarily before sauntering off for some more obliging company. She nearly bumped into another handsome man on her way out.
"Finally," Yi Jeong greeted his broad-shouldered friend, "what took you so long?"
"I was, how should I put it? Tied up with work?" The man hinted, ruddy hair slipping into his eyes as he grinned a warm smile at his irritated friend. Yi Jeong studied Woo Bin, raising his eyebrows slightly in disbelief. The man cracked a full smile and continued.
"Fine, I got caught up playing golf with some wanna-be socialites," at the scoff from his friend, Woo Bin hurried to finish, "which is technically work seeing how I wouldn't see a single one of them outside of business."
"Golf? Didn't really think that was your 'thing,' and now you're out smooching business deals too? Times really have changed." Yi Jeong gave an irritated huff, barely concealing the annoyance that had been building up within. He wasn't actually mad at Woo Bin, but lately, he felt like his friends who made up the rest of the F4 had grown further apart. Like they were going somewhere he couldn't follow and this feeling only increased as his friends took over more of their family businesses. If he was being honest, Yi Jeong had also grown up—if that's how you wanted to put it—and contributing more to the museum and art dealership aspect of the family business which he had found himself thrust into more and more as the years passed since high school. But that didn't change how he felt. He longed for simpler times even if he wouldn't admit it to anyone else, himself included.
Sensing his friend was in a mood, Woo Bin threw an arm over Yi Jeong's shoulders, prodding him out of the smoky room that, even with all its chandeliers, red velveted cushions, and expensive alcohol, felt stifling.
"Come on, I know a new place, just opened, anything's gotta be livelier than this shit hole."
Woo Bin certainly had a way with words, Yi Jeong noted, the beginnings of a smile forming around the corners of his mouth as they left the club for a more relaxed hangout.
Relaxed isn't exactly the word Yi Jeong would have used 3 hours later, knee-deep in alcohol surrounded by the rowdy crowd of nightclubbers that swarmed any place promising cheap booze and easy company. Even drunk, Yi Jeong just couldn't get into the swing of things. His head throbbed with the beginnings of a hangover, and disgust rose at the throngs of girls throwing themselves at Woo Bin, who, in his defense, was quite drunk himself and kept shrugging them off to reach for another drink. Tired of the club scene and tired of the company they surrounded themselves with, Yi Jeong decided to call it a night. With a wave to his friend, he left to wait for his driver—Man was his head going to hurt in the morning.
Yi Jeong grabbed the back of his head where a lump was swelling and cursed as he stubbed his foot against the wooden window frame he had just climbed through. He hadn't recalled it being this difficult to climb into the dormitories, but then again, he hadn't been drunk or had to sneak through the girls' side, which had a mesh of trees and rose bushes against the building. He wouldn't have to sneak in at all, like a common thief, if word hadn't gotten out that he would now be staying at the dormitories; a decision his grandfather had forced on him after one too many tabloid scandals. True or not, the patriarch had stressed, this family could do with a little good publicity, and what's more down to earth than his grandson being a model student at the prestigious university he had paid good money to get him into? This arrangement had brought with it the usual crowds of students who hung around the entrance hoping to get a glance of Yi Jeong any chance they got and, given his grandfather's recent displeasure at his partying ways, Yi Jeong didn't particularly want any pictures of himself in this rumbled state spreading through school. The window it was! Only some idiot had decided to set up their club meeting right outside the boy's dormitories and tables were still being disassembled. The girls' window and, consequently, their rosebushes it was.
Pulling a twig out of his hair, Yi Jeong would have cursed again at the prick to his finger when a sound broke his thoughts. He stumbled up head swimming as he leaned in slightly to listen more carefully. There it was again, only this time it had echoed clearly throughout the hall. The panicked sound sobered Yi Jeong up for a moment and he made his way hesitatingly towards the door it had come from. Before he could decide what to do, Yi Jeong found himself diving for the shadows once again as the door swung open abruptly, bringing with it a rather intimidating figure silhouetted against the light blinding Yi Jeong's poor eyes. The disgruntled figure, clothed in robe and shower cap, who emerged from the brightly lit room muttered something darkly about incompetent staffing and how management would hear "a thing or two" from her in the morning before shuffling off, muffled words soon dying out along with her steps down the hall.
Yi Jeong clutched his pounding chest and started to stand up again when another scream wrenched his head. Rushing towards the still open door fully expecting to find a murder scene in his intoxicated state, he stumbled inside in time to see a girl hopping onto a chair from her loft bed clutching her nightshirt to herself in terror. Nearly tumbling from the rickety chair that had swayed with her sudden motion, the scene before him would have been a comical one if something hadn't brushed past his own foot at that very moment. Yi Jeong found himself scrambling up a chair too, his laugh turning to a screech of his own.
Squeak!
"It went that way, get it!" Ga Eul shrieked, pointing urgently towards a distant corner of the room cluttered with boxes.
Yi Jeong gaped at her without moving an inch. Even drunk, the dignified potter wasn't about to scamper after a mouse.
Ga Eul took in the rather drunk-looking maintenance man with disgust. She'd just have to do it herself then! Gathering every inch of courage left within her after being so rudely awakened to the scurrying of little, rodent feet, she jumped down, grabbing a near broom for protection, and began madly sweeping in an attempt to 'shoo' the creature out. All the while, Yi Jeong was an incredible help as his drunken brain gave her garbled orders.
"There! No! You just scared it towards me now!"
"Seriously, if you're not going to help, just be quiet," was the kind retort.
"yahhhhh hurry up!" Nearly tumbling off the chair this time in his enthusiasm, "no, not over there again, stick it over here," he gestured, waving wildly at the broom handle.
Ripping her eyes away from the floor for an instant to give him what she hoped was a withering glare, Ga Eul was about to tell him where he could stick it when another squeak glued them back to the floor as she raised her broom again. What followed was all confusion as the door slammed against the wall and her roommate, Ri Ma, returned, bringing with her another maintenance man, who, poor soul, looked even more put out than Ri Ma herself. Wearing PJs and a disgruntled glare, he examined the room. Ga Eul didn't envy the man as Ri Ma continued her irate tirade against him, the entire Shin University, and all creatures on four legs. Ri Ma, it turned out, was even more afraid of mice than she was. In all the disorder, Ga Eul almost missed the first maintenance man sneaking out, probably not wanting to be discovered drinking on the job she determined.
Yi Jeong awoke with a groan, morning sunlight worsening his aching hangover. Thoughts drifted to the night before. Odd thoughts they were indeed, mice scurrying through teacups and a girl wildly waving a broomstick. He scratched his head; it had all been a weird dream, right? A thorny scratch on his finger said it hadn't.
Well there it is! I had alot of fun while writing this chapter. Things will get more serious in the next one, but I wanted to have a little fun exploring a drunk Yi Jeong's reactions to an unexpected, and less than ideal situation, where he couldn't hold onto his usually polished persona. This fic will contain some heavier, slightly dark themes so I will probably include more fluff to lighten things. what do you think?
