Chapter Text
It was late at night when San got the notification. His phone screen lit up on the desk beside his laptop as he typed away. He was finishing up an assignment for one of his classes and so close to being done with it that he only needed to power through for a bit longer, but his eyes flickered to the screen regardless. An Instagram notification.
Woo wants to send you a message
San’s eyebrows pulled together. He really needed to work on this assignment, but he also really didn’t want to, and this was the perfect quick distraction. He picked up his phone before he could think too hard about it, clicking the notification. The chat opened, a single message that made San roll his eyes.
‘Hey handsome’
He clicked on the profile to inspect it, expecting one of those bot accounts. There wasn’t much posted on the account, a small following and a small follow list. The account only had a few posts and San went to the very first and clicked on it. The man in the pictures was pretty, the kind of pretty you’d expect a bot account to be. He clicked his phone off, ignoring the message and going back to his assignment. He stared at the screen blankly, his train of thought completely thrown. He sighed, digging the heels of his palms into his eyes until stars appeared in the darkness. He was never going to finish the assignment at this rate. His screen lit up again with another notification and San accepted defeat, shutting his laptop. He stood from his desk, stretching his arms above his head. The joints in his back popped like chestnuts over a fire, giving him slight relief from his previous slouched position. He snatched up his phone before shuffling over to his bed. The opposite side of the room was barren, and had been since his dorm mate suddenly moved out at the beginning of the semester. The ghost of San’s social life moved out with him. San assumed housing would fill the spot eventually, but for now, San was basking in the peacefulness of living alone. He checked his phone again, eyebrows raising at another message from the account. He opened the chat, eyes flickering across the words, this message longer than the first.
‘Shoot your shot, they say. The worst they can say is no. But what if you get ignored entirely?’
San’s lips curled at the edges, his interest peeking. Was he wrong about this being a bot? But that made it even stranger to get a random flirty message such as that. His fingers glided across the screen, hesitating before pressing send. What’s the worst that can happen?
‘Do I know you?’
Seen appeared underneath it instantly, the man already typing.
‘Nope. But I think we should get to know one another’
‘What a great introduction’
‘Hey,’ San could read the offence through the screen. ‘I’m trying here. I saw your profile and thought you were cute.’
Before San could reply another message came through. ‘And I’m slightly tipsy, but that’s besides the point.’
‘Yeah, drunk texting strangers is always a good choice’
‘It is when they’re cute’
San stupidly felt his face flush. Even if it was from a stranger over text, the compliments went straight to his ego. Not that he had much of one anyway- San had always been a shy kid, and he used to be pretty lanky and awkward and it hit his self-confidence hard. These days he just kept to himself so much that any kind of flirty advancement was rare although he’d personally say he’d bettered his appearance quite a bit. San bit down on his bottom lip, feeling even more stupid as he typed.
‘What’s your name?’
‘Jung Wooyoung. Yours is San, right? That’s what it says on your account anyway. What’s your last name?’
‘Choi’
‘Choi San,’ Wooyoung typed his name and San imagined he was sounding it over his tongue, dissecting the way it felt in his mouth. ‘When we get married should I take your name? Or will you take mine?’
San laughed at the unexpected message, shaking his head.
‘Hypotheticals,’ He typed.
‘Predicting the future,’ Wooyoung responded.
San grinned at the screen, a giddy feeling spreading in his chest. He clicked on Wooyoung’s account again, bringing up the most recent post. He tilted his head at the screen. Like he said, Wooyoung was pretty, not his usual type, but witty, flirty. Something fun for the night as San’s sure this would fizzle out when Wooyoung woke up sober and realized what he’d done.
‘Gay marriage isn’t legal here’
‘Don’t worry, I’m working on it’
San grinned. ‘What’s that mean?’
‘I’m getting our visas ready, duh’
San knew this wouldn’t be a thing in the morning, and if it was it wouldn’t last for more than a day or two, but what’s the harm in flirting back? San never flirted back, he deserved to have a fleeting moment of fun.
‘You’re moving a little quick here. Shouldn’t I take you on a date first?’
‘Does that mean you want to take me on a date?’
‘Idk, maybe if you’re just as fun when sober’
‘Trust me, I am. I’ll prove it to you’
San felt heat creeping into his cheeks and let it happen, let himself feel sickenly giddy by being flirted with. Wooyoung followed up with a second message not too long later.
‘Are you going to bed soon? It’s late’
‘Probably,’ San responded, ‘I have class tomorrow.’
‘Will you text me in the morning?’
‘Sure, if you even remember this happening’
‘I’m tipsy,’ The sarcasm bled through the screen, ‘Not drunk.’
‘Fine, then if you aren’t too mortified over texting strangers while tipsy’
‘I have no shame’
‘I’ll expect to be blocked in the morning’
‘Don’t get your hopes up,’ Wooyoung responded, ‘Goodnight, San.’
‘Goodnight’
San set his phone down and stared at the ceiling. His body tingled, the feeling washing over him in waves. San didn’t get flirted with, maybe it was because he never put himself in the position to, always diving headfirst into his studies. He didn’t go out much, didn’t even have any friends, really. It was nice to have a distraction for the night, as fake as San felt it was. He wouldn’t reach back out in the morning. He’d leave it up to Wooyoung to decide how long their communication would last, but even with that being said, San stupidly hoped Wooyoung would still be around when he woke up.
San overslept, woke up late and in a panic. His morning felt like an incoherent blur. Getting up, hopping in the shower, brushing his teeth, finding something to wear, and shoving all his stuff in his backpack to rush off to his first class. He made it to his lecture with a single minute to spare. It was midday before San even got the chance to look at his phone. And when he did, his chest tightened in a pleasant way, heat building behind his cheeks. A notification from Wooyoung, sent at nine twenty-three that morning.
Just a simple, ‘Good morning.’
His lips spread into a grin unconsciously.
‘Sorry,’ He responded, ‘Busy morning.’
He shoved his phone into his pocket as he walked. He was headed off campus to grab something to eat since he’d missed breakfast. His phone vibrated a few minutes later and San’s heart skipped a beat.
‘I was just starting to worry you were gonna ghost me after accusing me last night’
‘Why would I do that?’
‘Idk, I thought you were weirded out or something’
‘I am weirded out’
‘But you’re still responding’
San looked away from his phone for a second to open the door to a convenience store. It vibrated in his hand.
‘Be honest, you’re starting to like me, right?’
The attention made San light-headed, his heart thudding in his chest like a middle schooler. But admitting that was humiliating.
‘Maybe’
And his phone exploded with a series of messages.
‘Wait, really?’
‘Are you serious?’
‘I thought I was annoying you lol’
‘What is it? My pretty face or charming personality?’
San found Wooyoung’s excitement more endearing than he should have. He grabbed a small container of gimbap, his fingers typing away.
‘If you thought you were annoying me then why continue?’
‘The goal was to bug you until you eventually fell in love,’ Wooyoung confessed, ‘You didn’t answer my question.’
‘You’re definitely pretty,’ San admitted, ‘But I think you’re fun to talk to.’
‘So you like me for my personality?’
‘God, that’s hot’
‘You’re hot in general, but I also like talking to you more than I expected’
San slipped his phone away to pay for his food, feeling it vibrate as Wooyoung continued to message him. He read through them as he exited the store.
‘Was that weird to say?’
‘Nah, I think you like the compliments’
‘Are you grinning at your phone right now? I bet you are’
And San was, stupidly so. But he responded, ‘No, that’s weird.’
‘Sure,’ came Wooyoung’s disbelieving response. ‘You live in Seoul, right?’
‘Yeah, you trying to stalk me or something?’
‘I’m too busy planning our overseas wedding to stalk you, don’t flatter yourself’
San rolled his eyes, chuckling lightly. ‘You live in Seoul too?’
‘Yeah, but I think we go to different schools’
‘Wow,’ San teased, ‘So you are stalking me.’
‘God forbid a man recognize a building from one of your posts’
They talked throughout the day, going late into the night before San caved and bid Wooyoung a goodnight. He was already growing attached to the man on the other end of the phone, even if it had only been a day. A warm space was starting to occupy San’s chest, filled with typed out compliments and a mere three posts. When Wooyoung eventually grew tired of this, San would miss having someone to talk to during the day.
San woke up the following day and was immediately greeted by a message from Wooyoung.
‘Good morning, Sannie’
San’s heart fluttered and he wished it would stop.
‘Morning,’ He responded.
It was radio silent for the next hour. His classes were a bit later in the day today, so San lounged around in his dorm for a bit. Each time his phone vibrated, his eyes would flicker over excitedly, only for disappointment to fill him when it wasn’t Wooyoung. This was absolutely pathetic of him. San had just started getting dressed when his phone vibrated with a notification from Instagram. He practically dove onto his bed to get his phone.
‘Oh wow, you were up earlier than I expected. I sent that and fell straight back asleep lol’
‘I’m assuming you slept well?’
‘Yeah,’ San tried to calm his racing heart. ‘Did you?’
‘Yeah, but I have a crazy hangover now’
San’s eyebrows furrowed together in confusion. They had talked late into the night, but Wooyoung still had time to get drunk afterwards, more noticeably, that was two nights of drinking in a row. But San didn’t know him, not really, and he didn’t know Wooyoung’s life, so he couldn’t judge although it elicited a slight concern.
‘Do you just drink nightly?’
‘I’m not an alcoholic I swear’
‘Sounds like something an alcoholic would say’
‘My roommate decided to have a party last night and I went down for a few drinks’
‘I already regret it though. I have a lecture at ten’
San stood up to finish getting dressed. He didn’t want to risk being late to his morning class.
‘Sounds like the consequences of your own actions’
‘I might just skip’
‘Don’t do that. You’ll end up failing’
San’s smile faded as Wooyoung’s next few messages came through.
‘I don’t really care about that. I don’t know what I’m doing here anyway.’
‘My parents really wanted me to continue school, get a fancy degree and fancy job, but I’m just kind of floating along here’
‘I’m a business major. I don’t even want to run a business’
San stared at the messages, unsure how to reply. All of their texts so far had been playful, flirty, but this felt real. A little too real for San to feel comfortable if Wooyoung was planning on up and disappearing one day. He swallowed the feeling back as Wooyoung texted again.
‘Sorry for rambling, that was a bit much’
‘It’s okay,’ San reassured, ‘What would you want to do instead? If you didn’t go to school?’
Bubbles appeared and disappeared on Wooyoung’s end a few times, like he was debating what to answer. Or maybe he was debating how much more of himself he wanted to reveal after opening up to San suddenly. Finally, he responded.
‘I like cooking’
Day by day, San learned more about Wooyoung. He was playful, witty, making quick flirty remarks and jokes, but every now and then he’d let something slip that made San want to believe this was more than a fleeting distraction for him too. Little glimpses into his mind, past all the teasing and coy messages. And despite what he’d told San about not being an alcoholic, he did seem to drink a lot. He never mentioned when he was drinking again, but he got more comfortable texting San even when he was belligerent.
San groaned, stirred awake by the constant vibrating of his phone. He reached for it, squinting at the time. One thirty-two A.M. What was Wooyoung even doing up this late when he’d mentioned he had a morning lecture again?
‘San’
‘Sanieee’
‘You’re probably asleep sorry’
‘But I wanna talk’
San rubbed at his eyes tiredly. His fingers moved across the keyboard sluggishly.
‘Are you drinking?’
As expected, Wooyoung responded instantly.
‘A little bit’
‘I’ve only had a few shots’
‘How many is a few?’
‘Not sure’
‘Maybe like four or five?’
San groaned, plopping his head into his pillow. They’d only been talking close to two weeks and this was the sixth time Wooyoung had gotten drunk in that time frame. That San knew of, at least.
‘Why?’ San questioned, ‘Don’t you have class in the morning?’
‘Because it’s funnnn’
‘Usually it helps me turn my brain off, but it won’t be quiet tonight so I can’t sleep’
‘And there’s still people downstairs, they’re loud’
‘Another party?’
‘Sort of’
‘It’s smaller this time, only like twenty people’
‘I’m sorry,’ San yawned, his eyelids heavy with sleep. His fingers moved across the keyboard sluggishly. ‘I wish I could help somehow.’
‘Don’t be’
‘I’m sorry for waking you up, you can go back to sleep’
‘I just wanted to talk to you and wasn’t thinking’
‘It’s fine,’ San responded despite his eyes steadily trying to slip shut. ‘I don’t mind.’
‘Of course you’d say that’
‘Go back to sleep, I’ll talk to you tomorrow’
‘Goodnight, Sannie’
San wanted to stay awake to talk to Wooyoung, he really did, but his eyes were already falling shut again. His chest warm with the stupid, drunk boy that had crawled his way in there in such a short amount of time.
For the first time since they started talking, San didn’t wake up to a good morning text from Wooyoung. He wasn’t shocked, considering how late Wooyoung was up drunk the night before. So he messaged first instead.
‘Good morning! I hope you actually managed to get some sleep last night’
He put his phone away, knowing it would be awhile before he heard back. He checked his phone again after his morning class. Nothing. Wooyoung hadn’t even opened his message yet. It was close to twelve when he finally got a response.
‘Oh my god, I’m so fucking sorry’
‘I swear I wasn’t in my right mind. Idk why I decided to blow up your phone’
‘It’s fine,’ San tried to reassure.
But Wooyoung disagreed quickly. ‘No it’s not. I really am sorry.’
‘You said you wanted to talk to me,’ San teased, ‘How cute.’
‘Okay, when did you get bold?’
‘I always want to talk to you, it’s nothing special’
‘Oh, really? Always?’
‘Keep talking to me like that and you’ll get blocked’
‘But then you can’t talk to me and you’ll be stuck always wanting to’
Wooyoung sent him a screenshot of San’s own profile with the block button pulled up. He followed it up with, ‘Don’t test me.’
‘Alright, I’ll stop,’ San gave in, a smile ghosting his lips as he typed, ‘I like talking to you too much to let you block me.’
And god, he really did. He hoped Wooyoung meant the words he told San and this wasn’t some game to him, but it was so difficult to gauge. He hadn’t even heard Wooyoung’s voice, how was he supposed to tell if he was sincere or not?
‘Wait, I’m blushing’
‘Are you blushing rn?’
‘No, I’m in a crowded hallway’
‘Wow, you’re so cool and nonchalant’
‘Can’t even blush, everyone might know you’re crushing on a random dude in your phone’
‘You can block me now’
‘Lol’
‘You’re funny’
San wondered what Wooyoung’s laugh sounded like, how his voice sounded. Wooyoung messaged again.
‘But you didn’t deny the crush statement’
‘You’re definitely blushing’
‘God, I bet you sound so cute when you’re flustered’
San rolled his eyes with a grin. His cheeks felt warm.
‘You don’t even know what I sound like’
‘I want to know’
San typed out the message and stared at it for a few minutes. His thumb hovered over the send button debatingly. This could go wrong in so many ways. Wooyoung could say no, confess he never intended for things to go this far. He could stop responding all together, realizing San was more involved in this than him. Or, he could say yes, and rope San in even further. He pressed send.
‘Then call me tonight. I’ll give you my number’
Wooyoung read it immediately and San held his breath. Everything about this felt foolish, but so light-hearted and fun he wanted to talk to Wooyoung every second of the day. Those three little dots appeared, and then Wooyoung sent several messages back to back.
‘WAIT’
‘Are you being serious?’
‘Is this like the next step or something?’
‘Wait, you are being serious, right?’
‘Yeah,’ San responded, overwhelmed by Wooyoung’s excitement. At least San hoped it was excitement. ‘Why wouldn’t I be?’
‘Idk, I guess sometimes I question if you actually like talking to me or if you’re just saying that’
And it was funny, because San felt the same uncertainty.
‘I really like talking to you’
‘Oh my god’
‘Yeah, I’ll call you tonight’
They exchanged numbers, swiftly switching over to texting instead. San was too far gone. It was more than him just liking talking to Wooyoung, he was starting to like Wooyoung. Every text notification made his heart jolt and stomach flutter like a hopeless highschooler. He spent all day wondering what Wooyoung was like in person. How San’s name would roll off his tongue, how his cheeks looked when pink dusted over them, if his eyes glimmered when he laughed, and so much more.
San’s fingers tapped against his desk rhythmically. His laptop sat open in front of him, open on a blank document. It was getting late and he still hadn’t heard from Wooyoung. He tried to keep himself distracted with his school work, but his mind raced too much to focus on anything but his phone burning a hole in his desk. Maybe Wooyoung got busy, or maybe he forgot all together. For all San knows, Wooyoung is already two shots in and giggling tipsily with all the people that floated in and out of his house. Not that San felt any way about that, definitely not. He and Wooyoung were just talking, flirting, friends maybe? But bordering on something else. Either way, what he did was none of San’s business. Right as the thought passed through San’s mind, that Wooyoung wasn’t going to call as he said, his phone lit up, ringtone playing out. And San’s breathing stopped entirely. His fingers shook as he picked up his phone, swallowing around the tremble in his voice.
“Hello?”
It was quiet for a moment, then a light groan sounded out followed by a soft thump, like Wooyoung had tossed himself onto his bed. “Oh my god, your voice is so hot.”
San let out a startled laugh. “What does that mean?”
“Your voice is attractive. Everything about you is attractive actually.”
San’s stomach exploded with a fluttery sensation. Wooyoung’s voice was nice too. San was expecting a deeper tone, just based on how he looks, but his voice was higher pitched, bordering on whiny with how he drug out his words.
San started teasing to deflect from the butterflies in his stomach, “Have you been drinking again?”
Wooyoung giggled, and the sound crackled through like a melody. “No, drunk on you maybe.”
San rolled his eyes although Wooyoung couldn’t see. “You’re so corny.”
“But you like it, don’t you?” Wooyoung teased back.
And San could imagine the grin on his face. He was melting over a boy he’d never seen in person. He stood to turn his light off and climb into bed, responding to Wooyoung as he tucked himself under the blanket.
“Yeah, I do.”
It came out way softer than intended, his adoration bleeding into his words. It went silent on Wooyoung’s end and San’s heart thudded, terrified that his affection had seeped out too much and scared Wooyoung off. But Wooyoung responded a moment later, changing the subject.
“Sorry I called so late. You’ll probably go to sleep soon, won’t you?”
San snuggled against his pillow. He was tired, but he would sacrifice his rest to talk to Wooyoung for however long the boy wanted.
“It’s fine, I can stay up later.”
“Just for me? How irresponsible of you.”
“I like talking to you,” San mumbled tiredly.
“You sound like you’re already falling asleep,” Wooyoung let out an amused breath. “Go ahead, I’ll stay on the phone until you do.”
San hummed softly, “Don’t drink after I do. You should get some sleep too.”
“I won’t,” Wooyoung’s voice held a tinge of sadness, one that San couldn’t catch as he drifted off. “Goodnight, Sannie.”
And San drifted off the sound of Wooyoung’s breathing and the rustling of his bedsheets.