Chapter 7

They stayed at the party for a while.

Kim Dokja thought it best to change the subject from childhood traumas and bad parents to something less heavy, frankly he was suspecting that he talked more than he should, the only person in the office who knew about his family history was Han Sooyoung and not even with her he liked to talk about these things. So they talked a little more about Stardew Valley, apparently since their last conversation Yoo Joonghyuk had started to evaluate his in-game marriage options to gain the perks that Kim Dokja had mentioned, but still hadn't chosen any of the suitors. He asked if Kim Dokja had given fishing one more chance and Kim Dokja said no because he wasn't an insane masochist. After that Yoo Joonghyuk recommended that he play Harvest Moon because of the similarities between that particular game and Stardew Valley, and Kim Dokja kept insisting that he really should give Animal Crossing a try, and talked a bit about the plot of a mystery visual novel he started playing the week before.

It was nice. Surprisingly nice.

He tried not to show it but he used to find Yoo Joonghyuk quite intimidating, but it turned out he wasn't that hard to talk to once they started, although maybe that was the influence of the wine Yoo Joonghyuk had drunk earlier.

Maybe after he stops having a crush on me we'll be friends , Kim Dokja thought.

Yoo Joonghyuk looked at his cell phone for the first time since Kim Dokja had arrived at the party.

"It's past eleven, I really have to go. I told the babysitter I would be back early."

Kim Dokja was a little surprised by this, he would have sworn that only twenty minutes had passed since he'd arrived. Time usually took so long to pass when he went to parties. 

"Okay, see you tomorrow…wait."

"What?"

"You drank a bit before I arrived, right? You shouldn't drive."

" I'll call an uber."

"Or if you want I can drive you home in your car, I didn't drink anything today and I've already stayed here longer than I was planning."

Yoo Joonghyuk seemed to hesitate for a moment, a moment that lasted long enough for Kim Dokja to think it was a stupid offer to make. He was about to say to Yoo Joonghyuk forget about it when the other man said:

"Yes, that would be okay."

"Alright, then let's go."

"Do you want to say goodbye to Han Sooyoung first?"

Kim Dokja looked around for Han Sooyoung, she wasn't dancing anymore but she was laughing while talking to a woman Kim Dokja didn't know.

"Better not, she seems to be enjoying herself and she will probably try to convince me to stay if I say anything."

She'll also get the wrong impression if she sees the two of us leaving together, and I'll wake up with a bunch of texts filled with dumb jokes on my phone about this. Kim Dokja thought.

.

.

.

On the street, in front of Yoo Joonghyuk's car. Kim Dokja said:

"Keys?"

"Here." Yoo Joonghyuk said putting the car keys in his hand.

Instead of immediately dropping the keys, Yoo Joonghyuk stayed still for a few seconds with his fingertips lingering on Kim Dokja's hand.

He really is kind, I can see why everyone seems to like him so much. Yoo Joonghyuk thought.

What the hell is this guy talking about? Damn, crushes really can make people a bit delusional. Kim Dokja thought.

"Let's go." Kim Dokja said, opening the car door.

Yoo Joonghyuk sat next to him and after Kim Dokja started directing he asked:

"Do you mind if I put on some music?"

"It's your car, you can do whatever you want."

"But you are the driver, the driver chooses the music."

"I don't have a preference, put whatever you want."

Yoo Joonghyuk then connected his cell phone to the car stereo and pressed play.

Most of the songs were in English, so Kim Dokja didn't understand much of what was being said except for a word or two. One of the few songs he recognized was one that was used in the end credits of the anime Neon Genesis Evangelion, and in that scene in the first episode of Squid Game where people were being shot by that giant doll. While the song was playing Yoo Joonghyuk kept looking at him with that serious and intense expression on his face that he got sometimes. The melody was beautiful and Kim Dokja wondered what was the meaning of the words being sung.

I should have focused on learning a foreign language when I was younger and had more neuroplasticity, probably learning a new language at my age would be so difficult. No wonder I have a job that pays so little money. Kim Dokja thought.

They arrived in front of the building where Yoo Joonghyuk lived about fifteen minutes after they left Han Sooyoung's apartment. The place wasn't as fancy as the place where Han Sooyoung lived but it was definitely way better than the place where Kim Dokja lived.

"Thanks for driving me home." Yoo Joonghyuk said. 

"It's no big deal. Anyone would do the same, you know traffic safety and all that. Anyway, see you tomorrow." Kim Dokja said and started walking away.

"Do you live close by?"

Kim Dokja stopped.

"No, but I saw a bus stop nearby."

"It's late, you should sleep here."

"On the street?"

Yoo Joonghyuk looked at him for a moment in silence.

"At my home." 

Kim Dokja hesitated for a second then said:

"Okay, why not?"