Thank you very much for reading, I hope you enjoy this chapter :)
KathrynethePyro-bitch: Thank you so much *_* And yes, 707 is the best! I'm glad you like Mei and that you're becoming invested her. That's such a compliment, I hope I can keep meeting your expectation :D Have a Happy New Year!
Chapter Five
Vodkabulary and Whiskeypedia
The artificial light from the monitor burned her eyes and Mei rubbed them tiredly. She had been answering emails for two hours straight and while the responses were somewhat entertaining, it reminded her of the dreadful hours she usually spent cooped up in the agency's office. It definitely wasn't the vacation she had imagined. How Rika had worked in the apartment without going insane was beyond her.
The interior was modest and tasteful, yet it was lacking something essential. It reminded her of a cup of bland coffee—murky and monotone—that turned cold because it had been forgotten next to a pile of paperwork. Maybe she was biased, but she simply didn't trust rooms that didn't have stacks of books laying around and pictures covering the walls.
Good literature, potted plants and photo collages were a must.
Shaking her head as if to get rid of the discomfort, Mei opened the RFA messenger in hopes of encountering a wild Seven. He had been absent since yesterday evening—most likely because he was busy catching that mysterious hacker—but she had still missed him and his hilarious comments in the chatroom.
It had only been six days, but Seven had already become one of her favorite people to talk to.
If she was being honest though, the new-found feeling of happiness and excitement also terrified her to some degree. No matter how she may appear to others, Mei wasn't a social butterfly. It wasn't normal for her to get attached to someone quickly. While the detective was glad that she made some unexpected friends, she wasn't sure with how much of herself she trusted them yet. However, her uncertainty didn't change the fact that she wanted to get to know Seven.
It was terrifyingly exciting, much like riding a rollercoaster for the first time or standing at the edge of a tall building. She wasn't sure she trusted the feeling, but she didn't hate it either.
[A new chatroom has opened; Code Green; 707, Jaehee Kang]
Jaehee Kang: Luciel, it's good that you're here. I've been meaning to ask you something.
707: Tsk, tsk, tsk~ If you have a question please raise your hand first!
Jaehee Kang: Luciel, I'm serious.
[MC has entered the chatroom.]
707: Hiya Mei (￣▽￣)ノ
MC: God Seven!
707: God Mei!
Jaehee Kang: I wish I knew what language you two are speaking;;
[ZEN has entered the chatroom.]
ZEN: Don't bother, it's their alien connection. Normal human beings like us won't understand.
707: Correctamundo!
MC: It's 1011000011 & 1001011110 language.
707: (｡ ‿ ｡)
Mei felt a light blush spread across her cheeks and while she was sure he only used the emoticon for comedic purposes, it put a smile on her face regardless.
Jaehee Kang: It's kind of surprising that you two get along so well despite being on opposite sides of the law.
Jaehee Kang: You'd think a detective would try to capture a hacker and put them behind bars.
ZEN: Mei arresting Seven? Somehow I can't see it (ー∀ー；)
707: Well, she can try^^
707: I wouldn't really mind if it's her who is chasing after me.
MC: Sounds like a lot of work _(┐「ε:)_
707: Yeah. You'd have to find me, trick me and handcuff me.
707: And even then you'd have to watch me the entire time, so I don't run away again lol
ZEN: Handcuffs?
ZEN: KEEP THIS CHAT PG13 (ﾟ□ﾟ*川
ZEN: Either way, I can't see that scenario ever becoming reality. It sounds like the plot of a movie tbh
707: One is running from the law while the other is defending it.
707: Perfectly balanced as things should be.
MC: lolol
Jaehee Kang: I agree with Zen, but we're getting off topic.
Jaehee Kang: I've been meaning to tell you that I've heard that alarm yesterday as well.
ZEN: Same here. Is the messenger safe?
MC: What's going on? Is it the hacker again?
707: Calm down, everyone. I'll explain, okay?
707: The RFA server was hacked yesterday, most likely by the person who led Mei to the apt.
ZEN: Omg they could read all of our conversations? (ʘᗩʘ')
MC: This is worse than I thought …
Truth be told, Mei had expected this ever since she realized her phone had been hacked. If Unknown wasn't observing them, how would they make sure that their possibly evil masterplan would succeed? Or rather, why would someone hack into an app and then just leave it be? It didn't make sense, which only left the possibility of an ulterior motive.
Sure, she had hoped Unknown wasn't reading their conversations, but delusions won't get you far in life.
707: No need to worry. Seven-Zero-Seven already took care of everything ( •̀◡• ́)ﻭ✧ᕗ
707: Code Red is back to Code Green.
707: I moved the information to one of my spare servers.
ZEN: Holy crap, that's fast!
707: That server is better protected that a government server.
707: Alcatraz Server lmao
MC: Wow, you really are a genius. Nice work (๑ᴗ๑)
707: (⌐▨◡▨)
Despite his upbeat attitude, Mei was sure he was beyond exhausted. Judging by the speed in which he got the work done, he must've been slaving away the entire night. It made her worry for his health and left her impressed by his work ethic simultaneously. She had always admired hard-working people.
Jaehee Kang: I'm relieved to hear that, but do you know who they are?
707: Still working on that, they're pretty good at covering their tracks.
Jaehee Kang: Since they are obviously targeting us, we should be cautious from now on.
[Jumin Han has entered the chatroom.]
Jumin Han: I agree with Assistant Kang, so I'll send bodyguards to protect all of you.
ZEN: Yeah, I agree with this guy for once. Safety comes first.
Jaehee Kang: What about Mei? I would like her to be safe as well, but the apartment's location is classified.
ZEN: Who cares if it's classified? I don't want her to get hurt over some stupid documents.
Jumin Han: Exactly my thoughts. V will surely understand.
707: I can call him, but I don't think he's going to change his mind.
707: I'm sorry.
MC: You don't have to apologize. Thank you for worrying, but I'll be fine (◠‿◠)
707: ...
ZEN: Seven, you can't be serious!
ZEN: (╬ಠ_ಠ)
MC: It's not his fault. He's doing his best to protect everyone and I walked into this knowing the hacker might still be after me.
MC: I never truly believed they were gone, so even when they become more overt it doesn't change my situation at all.
MC: ┐(￣ヘ￣)┌
707: Mei …
ZEN: You're not hacker bait! Your safety matters too!
ZEN: Say something, Seven! How can the location be more important than her? (╬ಠ_ಠ)
Mei swore she could almost physically feel how agitated the RFA members were. However, making Seven the scapegoat and blaming him for this mess because they were frustrated was unfair. Shifting the blame never helped anyone. It was Unknown's fault this was happening. He was the culprit—not Seven or V—which is why she decided to ignore Zen and steer the conversation in a more productive direction.
MC: Although, I'd be great if you could send bodyguards to protect my sister, Jumin.
MC: She may not be part of the RFA, but I don't want her to get hurt.
Jumin Han: Of course, it's the least I can do.
Jumin Han: I may not have a good feeling about leaving you unprotected, but I'll respect your decision.
Jaehee Kang: If Mei is okay with it, then I guess I can't argue.
Jaehee Kang: However, I'd feel a lot better if you allowed bodyguard to accompany you while you're not at the apartment.
MC: Aye, aye madam (￣^￣)ゞ
Jumin Han: Good. It looks like everything has been settled.
Jumin Han: I need to leave for dinner with my father now.
Jumin Han: Goodbye.
[Jumin Han has left the chatroom.]
ZEN: I still think this is a terrible solution!
ZEN: (╬ಠ益ಠ)
[ZEN has left the chatroom.]
Jaehee Kang: I need to babysit the beast while Mr. Han is gone.
Jaehee Kang: Talk to you later, Mei (◡‿ ◡ ✿)
MC: Cuddle Elly for me (つ´∀｀)つ
Jaehee Kang: I absolutely won't, but I'm sure she'll appreciate the sentiment.
[Jaehee Kang has left the chatroom]
MC: Seven! Sevy! Seveny! 707! God Seven! Sevmaster!
707: lololol
Seven hadn't contributed much to the conversation. She suspected that he still felt guilty for putting V's orders above her safety. Mei could see where he was coming from, but that didn't mean she couldn't try to take some weight off his shoulders.
MC: I can feel the depressing thoughts all the way to my home planet.
MC: Please respond before I'm forced to shoot you with my nyan cat beam of happiness. Meow ღゝ◡╹)ノ
707: Activate anti-happiness forcefield!
707: IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII
707: Tremble at the might of my inpenetrable defenses against cat alien girls.
MC: （（（・×・；）））
MC: Really though ... you shouldn't beat yourself up over nothing. Thanks to you the hacker problem is solved for now.
MC: And if anyone can find them, it's you.
707: Your safety isn't nothing!
Seven remained unexpectedly stubborn, making her wonder about his true personality. He was still a mystery to her since it was easy to hide your feelings behind the safety of a chatroom. One moment he was happy-go-lucky, cheering everyone up with his jokes, and in the next moment he could suddenly be dead serious. Mei was aware that some people pretended to be an entirely different person when they were online and hackers definitely belonged in that category, but glimpses of themselves slipped through the cracks regardless.
707: Let's stop talking about that;;
707: I wanted to say thanks for defending me earlier.
707: You didn't have to and I don't deserve it, but I'm relieved you can stay calm in this situation.
MC: No, I definitely had to and you don't deserve to be blamed（´ヘ｀；）
MC: If we start fighting with each other, we'll lose focus and play right into the hacker's hands.
707: Right. Then I'm gonna work hard to become worthy of your trust, m'lady.
707: You can count on me!
MC: (ﾉ≧∀≦)ﾉ
707: Gotta go back to work now … but I need Honey Buddha Chips first.
MC: I'm so jelly (ノ﹏ヽ)
MC: Of the chips lolol not work, you can keep that.
707: lololol
707: Gonna save a box just for u if you behave and stay safe (¬‿¬)
707: Laterz
[707 has left the chatroom.]
Leaning back in the metallic office chair, Mei mentally prepared herself to get back to answering emails from excentric guests. However, concentration didn't come easy since her thoughts always drifted back to Seven, wondering whether he was actually doing okay. She wanted to call him to make sure, but worried that she would get on his nerves. Suddenly, her phone buzzed in her hand and for a millisecond she thought Seven saw her mope around through the CCTV and decided to call her.
Mei swallowed the unwelcome disappointment that left a bitter aftertaste in her mouth when she saw it wasn't him.
ZEN: Hey, are you free this evening? I though we could go for a drink later since my rehearsals end early today.
ZEN: It's just ... after everything that happened, I don't feel good about you working late and going home on your own at night.
MC: Sure. I could use a drink or two. Gotta make the best out of this vacation (ღ˘⌣˘ღ)
ZEN: Great ꒰･◡･๑꒱
ZEN: We could meet at Crossroads or is there another bar you like?
MC: No, it's my favorite bar. How did you know? (≧▽≦)
ZEN: Seven told me when I mentioned I was looking for a bar where I wouldn't be recognized by fans. It's kinda creepy how much he knows about all of us and how little we know about him lol
MC: It takes some getting used to;;
ZEN: I think he means well though, despite what I said earlier.
ZEN: Does 9PM sound good?
MC: Yup. Can't wait to meet you. My sister is gonna be so jealous when I tell her (*≧▽≦)ﾉｼ))
ZEN: See you later, princess (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧
Mei felt her mood improve drastically after their conversation. She couldn't wait to meet the charming musical actor since she had been talking to him the most with the exception of Seven. In the beginning, Zen had been constantly flirting with her, but once he realized his attempts were failing and that she wasn't interested, he had toned it down. Girls and women all across the planet—Hana included—were probably thinking she was insane to decline a romantic relationship with this gorgeous man, however, she just hadn't felt that spark.
As soon as the disappointment of rejection faded, they became good friends and his protectiveness reminded her of a big brother defending his little sister from the evil beasts roaming the world.
수상한메신저
When the detective was finished for the day, she picked up her pastel bag and headed for the train station. She checked her bulky wristwatch and realized she would be more than a little early.
It was only half past eight.
The train rocked her from side to side as an announcement on one of the news monitors caught her attention. Mei frowned at the picture of a familiar man who was dining in an expensive restaurant with two other fancily dressed people. They seemed unaware of the photo being taken. Paparazzo were like sharks these days, lurking in the shadows with a hunger for juicy scoops.
Jumin sat next to his smiling father and was staring at his plate with disinterest, yet she thought he had never looked unhappier than in this picture. On the other side of the table sat a woman with a black blouse and red pencil skirt, whose light brown hair was tied up in an elegant ponytail. Her back was to the camera, but she didn't need to see the face to know that it was Glam Choi, who was supposedly the new flame of Mr. Chairman. It was all over the news.
Mei opened the RFA messenger with a sigh, hoping to catch their resident business heir and offer support if needed.
[A new chatroom has opened; Cats are better than people; Jumin Han, MC]
MC: Hiya, Jumin. What's up? I thought you were having dinner with your father?
Jumin Han: Good evening, Mei. Yes, you are correct.
Jumin Han: I didn't expect he'd bring that woman along though.
MC: Glam Choi, right? I saw the articles in those trashy online tabloids and they just showed it in the train news as well.
MC: Is he really going to marry her or is the rumour mill going crazy?
Jumin Han: Going crazy indeed（´ヘ｀；）
Jumin Han: And yes, it appears that he wishes to be engaged with her in the near future.
MC: Oh.
MC: You don't sound too happy about it. What kind of person is she?
Jumin Han: The gold-digging kind.
Jumin Han: Glam Choi is a cunning person, who would do anything to achieve her goals.
MC: Have you talked to your father about how you feel? If you're this concerned, I'm sure he'll listen to you.
Jumin Han: I wish it was that easy. I already tried talking to him, but he refused to believe me.
Jumin Han: I don't have any evidence either, but I'm sure that she has a couple of skeletons hidden in her closet.
MC: Well, then that only leaves …
MC: A thorough background check. All sins shall be revealed to the world (๑˃̵ᴗ˂̵)و
MC: I could ask my agency for help if you want me to.
Jumin Han: Thank you. I don't want to involve the police at the moment, but I'll definitely get back to you should the situation require it.
[Yoosung has entered the chatroom.]
Yoosung : Hey guys! Just beat the new super-powered boss with my guild in LOLOL.
MC: Applause, applause! ƪƪ'▿')
Yoosung: (๑ᴗ๑)
Yoosung: Wow, I thought they were joking about the engagement. It's real?!
Jumin Han: Indeed.
Jumin Han: However, that's not the worst of it.
MC: It gets worse?;;
Yoosung : (ﾟ□ﾟ*川
Jumin Han: Before dinner my father told me that he would like to arrange a marriage between me and Glam Choi's student, Sarah.
Yoosung: Okay, wow. He just decided that for you? That's not how marriages work.
MC: Yeah, this isn't the 18th century;;
Yoosung: Are you feeling okay, Jumin? Don't tell me you're going along with it?!
Jumin Han: Of course, I'm not going along with it. I refused him right away and it turned into an argument.
Jumin Han: I don't know how I feel. I guess I'm disappointed in my father, but more than anything I'm worried about Elizabeth the 3rd. They might plan to do something to her to make me compliant.
MC: You really think they'd go that far?
Jumin Han: I need to increase security and make sure she stays safe from those women.
Jumin Han: Thank you for listening to me. I feel a little better now. Good night.
[Jumin Han has left the chatroom.]
Yoosung: I never thought Jumin's dad would force him to marry. They usually get along so well …
MC: It's super weird that those two women are ready to marry someone so fast.
Yoosung: Right? I mean, I believe in love at first sight but that's just rushed.
On her way to the bar, Mei continued to philosophize with Yoosung about the meaning of love. His insight on the matter was unexpectedly mature, considering he never attended university and played video games all day, every day. She concluded there was more to the blonde cinnamonroll than what meets the eye and continued walking towards her destination in the slowly vanishing sunlight with a smile on her lips.
수상한메신저
Crossroads—much like the name on the glowing pink neon sign suggested—was a place for people who were taking a welcome pitstop before they continued driving down the winding paths of life. It was a quaint run-down bar, where lost souls stranded in search for cheap whiskey and a one-sided conversation. Mei had never been a big fan of alcohol, knowing too much about its negative effects ruined the experience for her, but she made exceptions sometimes and definitely didn't regret discovering the place.
It almost became a ritual to nurse a glass at the bar after particularly gruesome cases and she appreciated the anonymity it offered.
It was a place for everyone and anyone.
Attorneys, stressed doctors and overworked business women mingled with rowdy street thugs and old men. Lala Escargot, the cross-dressing owner, had managed to gather a loyal following of regulars over the years. She didn't discriminate against her clienté and always lend an ear to their swashbuckling tales as long as they paid for their drinks. Business was business after all.
"I can't believe there is a fool around who would ditch a lovely young woman like you." Lala complained over the noise of the jazz piano while she polished a whiskey glass. "If I swung the other way, I'd totally have a go at you. Then again, I'm probably too old for you, sweetheart."
"Old? You don't give yourself enough credit, Lala." Mei winked and rested her cheek on her hand, playing idly with a stand of hair. "I'm a sucker for purple wigs and red lipstick, I'll have you know."
"Cheeky thing."
The deep, throaty laugh from the elderly bartender was soothing in its familiarity. However, Lala wasn't one to be distracted by pleasantries for too long and got right back to the point. She was hungry for gossip and once she caught the scent of a juicy story, she could be worse than a police dog. "So who's the guy, Detective?"
"A friend, actually." Mei admitted with half a smile. "And he didn't ditch me, I'm just early."
"Men these days …" Lala left the words hanging in the air as though they explained every mystery in the world. She shook her head, purple wig bobbing up and down with the movement, and set down the now shining glass. "The usual then?"
"Yeah, thanks."
While she busied herself with the shelves behind the bar that were filled colourful bottles, Mei let her gaze wander over the crowd to pass the time. Snippets of animated conversations provided relaxing background noise and mixed with the jazzy tune in the dimly lit room. She found herself listening in on a particularly interesting discussion between two older men, who were roughly in their sixties. While eavesdropping was generally frowned upon, it was a habit that became hard to kick once it was part of your job.
"'Ey, old fella. Have ya heard of that poor sap that disappeared last week?" The rough voice of the first man was barely audible over the music. "They said 'e had a couple o' rough days behind him. Said the fella wanted to off himself but 'e ain't had it in 'im. Then 'e just disappeared into thin air and no soul ever saw 'im again."
"Sounds to me like he finally done it." The second man shrugged disinterestedly. "May his soul rest in heaven or wherever they go these days."
"That's what the cops thought too, buddy." He stroked his grey beard and took a large gulp from his beer, the foam sticking to the unruly stubble. "It's another one of 'em kidnappings, I tell ya."
"Damn, those kidnappings are givin' me the creeps. What are they doin' with all these fellas?"
Unfortunately, Mei didn't get to hear the rest of their conversation or their speculations about the identity of the mysterious culprit because her vision was suddenly shadowed by a tall presence. She looked up to find out who dared to enter her personal bubble and was pleasantly surprised to find two familiar red eyes staring back at her. He was incredibly handsome—almost dazzling—and looked as though he stepped right out of a fashion magazine with his smooth, flawless skin and glossy silver hair.
"You're Mei, right?" Zen looked nervous, but breathed a sigh of relief once she nodded. "You're even more beautiful in person, I almost didn't recognize you."
"Why aren't you a charmer," Mei teased and gestured for him to take a seat. "Right back at you. No wonder girls freak out when they see you. I'm barely holding myself back from squealing."
"No need to hold back," he replied with a wink before sitting down and throwing a hand over his heart in an overly dramatic fashion. "My face is a gift to society from the Gods, so it needs to be worshipped properly every day."
"Yeah, right." Mei rolled her eyes and grabbed the gin tonic that had magically appeared in front of her. It looked like Lala had gotten more stealthy. "So, how are rehearsals going? Are they still gonna make you take your shirt off in the third act or did they decide to have mercy on the hormonal teenage girls in the audience?"
"Ha. Ha. Very funny." Zen shot her a mildly annoyed look before ordering a beer for himself. "It's going well, I can't wait for the live performance. You'll come and watch, right?"
"I swear on my obsessed fangirl sister," Mei said with a smile. "She's going to drag me there and if she doesn't, Jaehee will probably take over for her."
It was only after the words left her lips that she realized how unenthusiastic they sounded. She was actually looking forward to see him on stage and quickly sobered once she noticed the disappointment on his face, which he tried to hide from her.
"Sorry, that came out wrong," she apologized. "I really can't wait to see your performance and I honestly think your hard work is admirable. Acting is difficult enough, but with singing and dancing on top of it? You need lots of talent and dedication to make that work."
"It's not easy, but dealing with the industry is what actually makes it difficult." Zen admitted and smiled brightly at her, having caught onto the sincerety that ran beneath her praise. "It's especially difficult when you start from nothing like me. If Rika and V hadn't supported me, I wouldn't be where I am right now. Jerkmin really doesn't know how good he has it. Fame and money come easy to him."
He frowned at beer before taking a few large gulps.
Mei shrugged. "My dad always told me that everyone faces challenges in life. Maybe they come in different shapes and sizes, but there are no exceptions."
"It's hard to imagine Jumin struggle with anything." Zen sighed as he set down his glass. "... Although, after what I read in the chatroom earlier, I guess rich kids have their own issues."
"Oh? Is that a spark of empathy for your mortal enemy I hear?" Mei waggled her eyebrows and prodded his arm with her elbow. "Are you not feeling well?"
"I'm fine, just trying to defend true love." Zen laughed heartily until the seriousness of the subject caught up with them again. "It must suck to be married off to some woman like that. Free will apparently doesn't exist in the Han family."
"Yeah, Jumin seems really worried about what Glam Choi and Sarah are capable of."
Her eyebrows pulled together in thought as she watched the ice melt in her tonic. The detective had encountered a few gold diggers throughout her career and to be frank, they weren't beyong pulling dubious stunts to get what they wanted. Money was everything to them. None of the women—and men—had broken the cliché and Mei didn't want Jumin to suffer the same fate as her clients.
"Ah, jeez. I didn't want to talk about depressing things." Zen rubbed the back of his neck in a frustrated manner, reminding her of a boy on his first date. It was adorable and made her wonder why the women and men in the bar weren't making a move on the guy already.
Instead of dwelling on the topic of forced marriage—which seriously was a mood killer if she ever heard one—they slipped into a pleasant round of small talk. Time passed by in a blur while they shared stories about their lives. One drink soon became two, then three and Mei started to feel the effects of the alcohol dull her senses. It was nice.
"Do you sing, Mei?"
She blinked a couple of times as her mind attempted to catch up with the unexpected question.
"No, I don't have a musical bone in my body. My singing voice is a torture device." Mei shrugged when she saw his doubtful expression. It might be an exaggeration, but it was the truth. "It could probably break every glass in this bar, including the windows."
"You're only making me more curious." Zen protested. "It can't be that bad."
"Well, you might get lucky tonight. I'm only a few glasses short of an improv performance on the tables." Mei shrunk back in her seat when Lala glared warningly from behind the bar. "... or maybe another time."
"Light-weight, huh?" Zen mused, watching the ice cubes in his whisky sour clink together as he swirled the glass around. "Don't worry, I'll make sure you get home safely after singing a duet with me."
"My prince charming~"
"Really now?" Zen sported a mischievous smile that spelled trouble for her. "I think that position is reserved for Seven."
Surprised, Mei almost spat out her drink. Keyword being almost since the woman swallowed the liquid too quickly and ended up in a coughing fit instead. It was graceful, really. Zen patted her back, which didn't help at all. It was a myth that patting on the back helped—scientifically proven wrong even—but she appreciated the gesture.
"And where did you get that impression?" Mei asked between coughs, voice still weak from the near-death experience. "Maybe you need to lay off the whiskey, my dear drinking buddy."
"Come on, it's obvious that there is something going on between you two. You can't fool a romance expert." He rested his head on one hand and gave her an almost impatient look. "How do you feel about him?"
They had an intense staring competition from which neither was willing to back down. Maybe it was the alcohol, or maybe it was the desire to understand her own confusing feelings, or maybe it was because she was super inexperienced when it came to romance that made her tongue loose, but she decided to answer him honestly. Mei only hoped she wouldn't hate herself the next morning. Alcohol and regret were close friends after all.
"Fine," she muttered, "but promise me you won't tell anyone."
"Yeah, yeah. Spill the beans."
Mei prolonged the inevitable as she fumbled nervously with the edges of her black skirt. Avoiding his searching gaze, she studied the wood grain of the bar counter as though she had never seen anything more interesting in the world. It might be easier if she got everything out in one go like ripping off a bandaid. "I kind of like him ... I know it's super weird since I've never even met him, but he always makes me smile and it's been a while since I've been this happy."
When she finally lifted her blue eyes from the counter, Zen was gloating like he just won an award and it made her mood darken in response. She was sure her words had been slurred, so it was a mystery to her how he was even able to glean anything from her rushed confession.
"But?"
"I don't think he feels the same way." Mei sighed in defeat, slowly getting over her insecurity. "We've only known each other for a few days and it's difficult to tell what he really thinks in a chatroom."
"I wouldn't be so sure about that." Zen winked at her and reached into his jean pocket. "Why don't we call him and find out?"
Maybe the actor was tipsier than she thought.
"No. Zen. Bad Zen. We're not drunk-dialing Seven," she protested. "He'll record it and save it as blackmail material."
"Excuses, excuses. I didn't think you were such a coward."
"I'm not a coward." Mei puffed her cheeks up angrily. "It's a universal rule that nothing good comes from drunk-dialing exes."
"Seven isn't your ex though." Zen continued searching through his contacts, unperturbed by her protests, and squinted his eyes at the screen. It wasn't easy to read small letters and hit the right keys on a smartphone once you're tipsy.
"Put the phone down." Mei used her most intimidating detective voice, but apparently musical actors were immune to the bad cop. "Zennnnn~ I'm begging you."
"Nooope~"
He must've found the correct contact because his phone was already dialing a familiar number when he pushed it on the counter in front of them and turned on the speaker. It was too far away from her to make a grab for it and she still thought it would be rude to take his phone, so she simply waited for the inevitable to come to pass and embraced her fate. Mei definitely regretted telling Zen about her crush on the hacker. She should've kept her mouth shut.
"Hey Seven!" Zen cheered. "Guess who?""
"A famous musical star is calling me?" Seven's melodic voice came from the speaker and a small part of her was happy to hear it, despite the circumstances. "Are you sure you have called the right number, sir?"
"I'm not that famous yet, but I'm gonna be." Zen's words slurred together, the lovely blend of beer and whiskey in his stomach was probably to blame. "You sound tired, were you asleep?"
Seven groaned and she could imagine him rolling his golden eyes. "Of course not. I always go sky-diving at 1AM."
"What? I wanna go sky-diving too. Why didn't you invite me?"
Zen was pretty easy to distract when he was drunk and she crossed her fingers that he'd forget why they called in the first place. She really didn't want to have a conversation about her love life—or the lack of it—with the person in question. No, thanks.
"Are you drunk-dialing me?" Seven snickered. "I'm truly flattered. I didn't know you felt that way about me~"
"We can still save ourselves if we just hang up now," Mei whispered to Zen in a last attempt to preserve her dignity. "There is a red button with a phone icon on it. Go press that one, okay?"
"What's that lovely sound in the background?" Seven asked and she felt herself freeze up. She wasn't sure how he managed to pick up her stealth voice over the phone, but she probably hadn't been as quiet as she thought. "A musical actor and a detective walk into a bar and call a hacker ... Oh, that almost sounds like the beginning of a joke. I forgot how it goes though. Have you heard that one before, Mei?"
"I'm sorry, but the person you have called is currently not available," she stammered, warmth rising to her cheeks. "Please leave your message after the beep. Mei will definitely listen to it and call you back once she's home. Beeeeeep."
"Hello, Mei. It's been a while," he said, sounding amused as he played along. "I called to bestow you with the amazing knowledge passed down to the defender of justice from generation to generation, known under the name of Hangover 101. Remember to drink lots of water before you go to bed and when you wake up tomorrow, don't make any sudden movements and take some painkillers, okay?"
He was such a dork. Whenever she listened to his voice or talked to him, she felt slightly drunk from the happiness he elicited from her. Wait a moment, she was drunk, wasn't she? It looked like her brain had stopped functioning properly.
"I'm not Mei though, I'm the answering machine."
It looked like her brain-to-mouth filter had been broken by the combination of gin and embarassment. She suffered an internal panic attack at the thought of sounding like a drunk idiot with her maybe crush on the other end of the line. Today was definitely cursed and she wished a hole would open up in the ground to swallow her whole ... and it could swallow Zen with her. He deserved it.
However, she felt slightly better about herself when she heard Seven's happy laughter. "Sorry, I forgot."
Of course, her relief wasn't meant to be long-lived because a certain someone decided to sling an arm across her shoulder and blow her perfect cover. She wanted to be an inconspicuous answering machine, but the uninverse had other plans.
"That's right. She isn't Mei. She is Drunk-Mei," Zen announced proudly. "She's my favorite by the way."
She didn't even have it in her to stay angry at him. Honestly, she was having fun despire being embarrassed to the moon and back. Mei buried her head in her arms. "God, I wish instead of airplane mode phones came with 'drunk mode'."
"Oi, Seven. You've been awfully quiet," Zen observed quite observantly for someone in his state. "What are you doin'?"
There was an ominous pause that seemed to last longer than it probably was.
"What? Little old me? Don't worry about me," Seven said innocently. "I'm recording all of this for future use."
Mei decided that Seven was pure evil—hiding behind an adorable, cat-loving exterior—and threw Zen and accusing glare. "See? I told you he would do that!"
"Dude, I put my faith in you." Zen actually looked surprised by the betrayal. "Don't record people when they call you. Learn some decency!"
"Sorry, that word is not in my vodkabulary."
Mei giggled behind her hand. "Then look it up on whiskeypedia."
"Thanks for the advice." Seven chuckled. "I can be a little absinthe-minded sometimes."
"Well, it might not solve all your problems, but it's definitely worth a shot."
"I don't see wine not. I'm capub-ble of solving all my problems with the help of computers, binary code and wifi."
"Oh beer me, you've raised the bar, but there are problems that are lager than life. Sometimes you need to see the bigger pitcher and go the whole vineyards."
"Damn, you're on fire." Zen cheered when their spontaneous pun match ended and patted her shoulder. "You're going to make him cry if you keep this up."
Mei laughed, but she was sure that Seven took it easy on her. He was the mighty king of puns and memes after all. She didn't know much about him yet, but she was certain that he was actually quite competitive when he felt like it.
"I can't believe I'm getting body-bagged," Seven cried in mock shock. "I really need to improve my pun game, but that's not important right now. With a hacker targeting the RFA, it's really dangerous for you to be surrounded by a bunch of random strangers. Zen is with you, so I feel a little better ... but … that sounded patronizing ... what I mean is … there are really bad people outside who will take advantage of situation like that. I uhm … please be more careful in the future."
"Thanks for worrying, Seven." Mei smiled fondly at the phone. "I'm a regular at this place and I'm sure Lala—the bartender here—would kick anyone's butt who looked at me the wrong way. She's a fierce one."
Lala, who had apparently eavesdropped on their conversation, nodded in approval and pourder herself a Martini. Seven hummed, but judging by his lack of reply he wasn't entirely convinced yet.
"She's safe with me, worrywart. We called to ask you something veeery important though, didn't we?" Zen's red eyes focused on her and the smirk on his lips made her blood run cold.
"Did we? I can't remember." Her own laughter sounded fake to her ears. She needed to think of a way to distract the self-proclaimed matchmaker. "But ... I remember that you promised me a song by yours truly."
"Somehow, I doubt that."
"Seven did you hear that? The lady insists." Zen tried to sound suave, but he reminded her of an excited boy on his first day of school. "And I've never turned down a lady's request."
Mei was glad her distraction technique worked because without wasting another second, he began to sing his own version of Wonder Wall by Oasis. Out of all the songs he could've picked, he picked that one. It was probably the most covered song of all time; abused by street musicians to the point where just the mention of the name made people's ears bleed. Nevertheless, there was something about the song that compelled you to sing along, so she wasn't surprised to find herself getting swept up in the melody.
Zen's voice was beautiful like a graceful swan and hers more like the croaking of a dying frog. It didn't go well together, but he didn't seem to mind.
At the very least, he wasn't trying to cover his ears yet.
Seven on the other hand had the time of his life and was laughing his ass off at the other end of the line. Mei was sure he wouldn't let them live that one down. Once they got to the refrain a second time, Lala stomped over and slammed two glasses of water in front of them. The force of the impact made the clear liquid slosh over the edges and the look in her eyes effectively stopped what probably sounded like wails of agony—or two drunk people singing Oasis.
"You're annoying the other guests and you butchered one of my favorite songs," Lala grumbled and crossed her arms. "That's enough for today. I'm cutting you off."
Mei was looking down at the glass as though it personally offended her. "Really ...?"
"Come on now, sweetheart. You need to drink up," Lala encouraged her sweetly. "You've only just started speaking legible Korean again. Don't lose your progress now, okay?"
"Okay." Mei picked up the glass and obediently drank some water. "I'm sorry, Lala. We're going to keep it down. Promise."
"Mom mode has been activated." Seven sounded robotic and she wouldn't be surprised if he had a couple of voice filters installed. "Mother hen Seven suggest you two go home before evil hackers come out to get you."
"Ah, he's right." Mei turned towards her companion, who still looked rather disgruntled that his performance was so rudely interrupted. "How are we going to get home?"
"I'll call a cab." Zen smiled kindly and fumbled with his wallet to pay the bill. She insisted to pay for herself, but he would have none of that, muttering something about chivalry.
"Get home safely, lock your doors and sleep well." Seven cooed which immediately made a smile break out on her face. "I'll be waiting to laugh at your complaints in the chatroom in the morning. Alcohol you tomorrow. Good night~"
Of course, the hacker couldn't leave without a pun.
After he hung up, Zen pocketed his phone and they headed to the door together. She waved the bartender goodbye before she was embraced by a draft of summer air that cooled her skin. While they waited for their cab to arrive, the musical actor pulled out a pack of Black Angel cigarettes and lit himself one. Its end glowed bright orange in the dark when he took a drag and blew a cloud of smoke into the night.
"Guilty pleasure." Zen shrugged sheepishly under her disapproving look. "I know it's bad for my health, but it's soothing and hard to resist once I had a few drinks."
"You have dangerous hobbies," Mei observed with curiosity. "You also have a motorcycle, right?"
He nodded excitedly. "I love the wind in my hair and when the city rushes past me in a blur. It feels like I'm flying and helps me clear my head when I'm stressed. Sometimes, I just need a break and escape from everything. Working in this industry is my dream, but people constantly judging you can be tiring."
Her heart sank as she watched exhaustion seep into his features, so she rested a hand on his shoulder to comfort him. "I don't think I could withstand that kind of pressure."
"I … I had a hard time when I was younger." Zen admitted with a pained smiled. "I've never been bullied thanks to my looks, but even with the rising popularity of idol groups and dramas, it's still seen as unusual for a guy to develop a passion for traditionally feminine fields like music, theater, beauty and romantic movies. Society expects men to become doctors or lawyers and while they may not always openly tell you that they disagree with your choices, I know that look when they think you're abnormal."
Silent anger and the desire to defend him flared up in her chest while she listened to his story.
She could relate to his experiences a lot more than she liked. When she had expressed her interest in medicine to her classmates in middle school, they had always assumed she wanted to become a nurse and had laughed at her when she said she wanted to be a doctor. In the end, she had managed to become a consulting detective for SIDA with a specialization in medicine, however, women always had to work twice as hard as the men to be taken seriously in traditionally masculine professions.
"Screw those people!" Mei muttered and crossed her arms below her chest. "Seriously, screw them. Your passion is what makes you special and unique and interesting. It doesn't matter if it's meant for men or women, life is too short to waste it doing something you don't love."
Silence settled between them while Zen stared at her in surprise before breaking into light laughter. He looked a lot more relaxed when he threw the cigarette butt on the ground and crushed it beneath his heel.
"I'm glad you joined the RFA," he said suddenly. "Although, I'm a little jealous of that guy for stealing you away before I even got a chance."
Amused red eyes met hers and she felt heat rise to her cheeks. "Thanks for inviting me today, Zen. I'm glad I got to meet you … and that you didn't run out of the bar when I started singing."
"Your voice isn't even half as bad as you made it out to be, princess." Zen laughed and smoothly took her hand in his, planting a kiss on it. "If you're free, I'd love to take you to a karaoke bar next time."
"Sounds like fun."
Crossroads—much like the name on the glowing pink neon sign suggested—was a bar for lost souls searching for the comfort of cheap alcohol and one-sided conversations. It was a pitstop for the weary, an oasis is the desert that made it possible to bond with others over the hardships of life. However, it was neither of those things for Zen and Mei. It was simply a bar filled with mindless chatter, snazzy jazz music, interesting people and the place where they met for the first time.
To Be Continued ...