08. cheesecake & rumpled bills
by the time their food arrived, the two had finished all the planning needed for their assignment. every friday after school, they would meet and take turns teaching each other their specific skill; riki, ever so musically inclined, would teach jungwon how to play the guitar.
jungwon, who was hesitant at first, plucks art from his short list of skills and decides to teach riki the basics of drawing.
(he wasn’t sure about how to go about it at first, not knowing how his parents would feel about having some delinquent over at their house every other week. riki must have sensed his hesitance,
“my friend, sunoo-hyung–he’s your age–is president of the art club. i’m sure he wouldn’t mind us using the art classroom,”
jungwon knew sunoo, knew of his position in the art club and knew he was the drummer of hyphen. jungwon just hopes he won't have to run into the blonde.)
jungwon stares at the cheesecake on the table before him; topped with strawberries and drizzled with syrup, he doesn’t doubt that it will hurt his wallet. when he looks back up, riki is staring at him hopefully.
“i hope you like cheesecake,”
“i mean, it’s okay if you don’t, we can swap, i know a lot of people don’t like cheese, i chose it ‘cause it’s popular and you looked like a cheesecake guy and–”
“no no, i like it,” jungwon cuts off the younger, “..it’s my favourite, actually.” he doesn’t remember the last time he had cheesecake, the basic fruit cake he gets for his birthday every year flashes through his mind–he never has the heart to tell his parents that his tastes are different from when he was five.
“good. i knew you would.” riki’s beaming mischievously at him again.
jungwon says nothing and picks up his fork, digging into the cake and savoring the way the soft cake melts in his mouth. a few moments pass in silence, jungwon again wonders if he should strike up a conversation.
“so,” again, riki beats him to it, “you’re friends with jake hyung and sunghoon hyung right?”
jungwon freezes. is riki going to bring up The Incident after all?
“....i am,”
riki hums thoughtfully around a forkful of strawberry shortcake.
“how come i never see you at our gigs? they mention a ‘jungwonie’ a lot and complain about you not coming each time,”
jungwon nearly chokes on his cheesecake. does riki not remember?
“i guess it’s just…not really my thing,” jungwon lies through his teeth. attending a hardcore show has been on his bucket list for years. he’s never gone for..other reasons, “besides, i don’t wanna see jake and heeseung-ssi being gross–no offense–i’ve seen enough through jake's phone,”
riki bursts into laughter, chuckles coming out more like wheezing as he tries to regain his composure.
“i get it. heeseung-hyung brings jake-hyung over all the time and i don’t even want to get into what i’ve walked into when they thought i wasn’t home,” he makes a fake gagging noise.
at jungwon’s mildly confused expression, riki explains,
“i live with heeseung-hyung,” he shrugs, “his family was my homestay host and i left with him when they–when he moved out,”
there seems to be more the younger isn't saying, ears turning red beneath his piercings–but jungwon just nods and takes another bite of his cheesecake, buying time as he tries to think of what to say. although, it seems he never has to when he’s with riki,
“fuck! i forgot we have practice today..sorry hyung–i can call you that right?--i have to–” riki jumps up from his seat and hastily pulls out a couple of crumpled bills from his pocket before slamming it onto the table, “--go. jay-hyung’s gonna kill me. bye! see you on monday, hyung! so sorry!”
jungwon gapes as he watches riki practically fly out the door and down the street.
the enigma that is nishimura riki clouds his thoughts as jungwon makes his way back to his own home, wallet the same weight it was before as the money riki left was enough for both of their sweets. shit–now he owes this guy.
shameless smiler and wheezy laugher, rumpled uniform and silver hoops–terrible memory, too–or is he simply great at pretending?
who exactly is nishimura riki?
SYNOPSIS — in some sick and twisted turn of fate, jungwon is paired with nishimura riki—the screamer and vocalist of local hardcore band HYPHEN—for the final project of his japanese class. usually, he'd just bite his tongue and thug out a project with someone he didn't like through spite and sheer will. the catch? he threw up on the boy a mere month ago at one of HYPHEN's shows.
i dont rly like this tbh but i havent updated in over a week (and im sorry for that) :') the writing js kinda stressed me out LOOL ill be more consistent after this trust!
