Chapter Text
The wedding invitation sat on Jungwon's kitchen counter like a passive-aggressive reminder that his life was, objectively speaking, a mess.
It was one of those expensive ones. Heavy cardstock, gold foil lettering, the works. The kind that screamed "we have our lives together and we're making it everyone else's problem." Jungwon had been staring at it for the better part of twenty minutes, which was approximately nineteen minutes longer than any reasonable person should stare at a piece of paper.
"You're spiraling," Sunoo said from his position on the couch, not even looking up from his phone. "I can hear you spiraling from here."
"I'm not spiraling."
"You're doing that thing where you breathe really loud through your nose. That's your spiral tell."
Jungwon picked up the invitation again, running his thumb over the embossed names. Jake Sim & Lee Heeseung. Of course it was Heeseung. Of course his ex-boyfriend was marrying their mutual friend, and of course Jungwon would have to watch it happen while pretending he was completely fine and totally over it.
He was over it. Mostly. The breakup had been mutual, friendly even. They'd both agreed they were better as friends after six months of dating that felt more like an extended friendly hangout than an actual relationship. No hard feelings, no drama, just two people who realized they didn't quite fit.
That was a year ago.
The problem wasn't that Jungwon still had feelings for Heeseung. The problem was that everyone would think he did. Everyone would look at him with those pitying eyes, wondering if he was okay, if this was hard for him, if he needed to talk about it. The thought made his skin crawl.
"I need a date," Jungwon said suddenly.
Sunoo finally looked up. "To the wedding?"
"No, to my dentist appointment. Yes, to the wedding."
"Okay, Miss Attitude." Sunoo sat up, interest piqued. "Who are you thinking?"
"I don't know. Someone convincing. Someone who'll make it look like I've completely moved on and I'm thriving."
"So you want to lie."
"I want to avoid uncomfortable conversations."
"By lying."
Jungwon threw a dish towel at him. "Are you helping or not?"
"I'm always helping. I'm the most helpful person you know." Sunoo scrolled through his phone. "Okay, let's see. There's Jaehyun from your gym, but he's kind of boring. There's that guy from the coffee shop who always gives you extra foam, but I think he's straight. Oh, there's—"
"Forget it," Jungwon interrupted. "This is stupid. I'll just go alone."
"And be miserable the entire time? Hard pass. We're going out tonight. You're coming. Maybe you'll meet someone."
Which was how Jungwon ended up at a Korean BBQ place in Gangnam at eight pm on a Friday, surrounded by his friends and seriously regretting his life choices.
The place was loud, packed with people celebrating the end of the work week. Their group had claimed a large corner table, and the grill in the center was already smoking with pork belly and beef. Jake had called the hangout to celebrate his engagement, which meant everyone was in high spirits except for Jungwon, who was on his third shot of soju and feeling philosophical about his failures.
"You're grilling it wrong," a voice said next to him.
Jungwon didn't need to look to know it was Jay. Park Jongseong, who everyone called Jay because he'd spent a year in Seattle and apparently that made him cool. Jay, who had opinions about everything and wasn't afraid to share them. Jay, who was currently reaching across Jungwon to flip the meat with an expression of deep disapproval.
"I'm grilling it perfectly fine," Jungwon said.
"It's going to burn."
"It's called caramelization."
"It's called you not paying attention." Jay flipped the pieces with unnecessary precision, his shoulder brushing against Jungwon's. He smelled like expensive cologne and laundry detergent, which was annoying because Jungwon had specifically decided years ago that he wouldn't find Jay attractive.
That decision was becoming increasingly difficult to maintain.
"Can you not?" Jungwon grabbed the tongs back. "I was handling it."
"You were letting it char."
"Oh my god, it's meat. It's going to be fine."
"It's about respect for the food," Jay said, and he sounded so serious that Jungwon couldn't help but laugh.
"You're insane."
"I'm cultured."
"You're pretentious."
Jay's mouth twitched like he was trying not to smile. "Takes one to know one."
Across the table, Sunghoon was watching them with an expression of mild entertainment. "Are you two done flirting? Some of us are trying to eat."
"We're not flirting," Jungwon and Jay said simultaneously, which only made Sunghoon's grin wider.
"Sure you're not."
Jake, bless him, was oblivious as always. "I'm just so happy everyone could make it tonight! The wedding's going to be amazing. Jeju in spring, can you believe it? Heeseung's been planning for months."
Jungwon took another shot.
"Easy there," Jay said quietly, and there was something almost concerned in his voice that made Jungwon's chest feel weird.
"I'm fine."
"You're drinking like you're trying to forget something."
"Maybe I am."
Jay was quiet for a moment, turning the meat on the grill with methodical precision. "The wedding," he said finally. It wasn't a question.
Jungwon didn't answer, which was answer enough.
"For what it's worth," Jay continued, still not looking at him, "Heeseung's an idiot for letting you go."
The words hit Jungwon somewhere unexpected. He turned to look at Jay, really look at him. In the dim lighting of the restaurant, with the glow from the grill reflecting off his face, Jay looked almost soft. His hair was pushed back from his forehead, and there was a slight flush on his cheeks from the heat or the alcohol or both.
"You don't even like me," Jungwon said.
Jay finally met his eyes. "I didn't say I liked you. I said he was an idiot. Those are different things."
"Right."
"You're annoying."
"You're insufferable."
"You can't grill meat properly."
"You're a control freak."
They were sitting close enough that Jungwon could see the flecks of gold in Jay's brown eyes. Close enough that when Jay reached past him again for the tongs, their arms pressed together for a moment too long.
"I need a date to the wedding," Jungwon blurted out. The soju was definitely affecting his judgment now.
Jay raised an eyebrow. "Okay?"
"Like, a fake date. Someone to go with me so I don't look pathetic."
"You don't look pathetic."
"I look exactly pathetic. My ex is getting married and I'm going to show up alone while everyone whispers about whether I'm over it."
"Are you over it?"
"Completely." And that was the truth. "I just don't want to deal with the questions. The looks. You know?"
Jay was quiet, his expression unreadable. Then he said, "I need one too."
Jungwon blinked. "What?"
"A fake date. To the wedding." Jay picked up his own shot glass, staring at the clear liquid like it held answers. "I just got out of something. It was messy. She's going to be there, a mutual friend of Jake's and I really don't want to deal with the whole 'are you okay' thing either."
"Oh."
They sat there for a moment, the noise of the restaurant fading into background static. Jungwon's brain was fuzzy with alcohol and bad ideas, which was probably why the next words came out of his mouth.
"We could go together."
Jay turned to look at him. "What?"
"As each other's fake dates. We'll make them jealous. Or at least make it look like we've moved on." The idea was gaining momentum in Jungwon's head, fueled by soju and spite. "Think about it. We already argue like a couple. No one would question it."
"That's insane."
"It's practical."
"It's a terrible idea."
"You have a better one?"
Jay opened his mouth, closed it, then opened it again. He looked like he was genuinely considering it, which was either a testament to how drunk he was or how desperate. Possibly both.
"We can't stand each other," Jay pointed out.
"Exactly. So there's no risk of actual feelings getting involved. It's perfect."
"It's stupid."
"Are you in or not?"
Jay stared at him for a long moment. The grill sizzled between them. Somewhere across the table, Jake was laughing at something Sunghoon said. The moment stretched, pulled taut like a rubber band about to snap.
Then Jay picked up his shot glass and held it out. "One condition. We do this properly. No half-assing it. If we're going to convince everyone, we have to be convincing."
Jungwon grabbed his own glass and clinked it against Jay's. "Deal."
They drank, and Jungwon felt the burn of the soju all the way down. This was either the best idea he'd ever had or the worst. There was no in between.
Probably the worst.
Definitely the worst.
But watching Jay's face in the glow of the grill, seeing something that might have been a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth, Jungwon couldn't bring himself to care.
"This is going to be a disaster," Jay said.
"Absolutely," Jungwon agreed.
They shook on it, their hands clasping for just a second longer than necessary. Jay's palm was warm, his grip firm. When he pulled away, Jungwon's hand felt cold.
The rest of the night blurred together. More soju, more food, more of Jake's enthusiastic wedding talk. Sunoo kept giving Jungwon looks that clearly said "we're talking about this later," and Sunghoon was watching Jay with an expression of deep skepticism. But none of it mattered because Jungwon had a plan now.
A stupid, alcohol-fueled, absolutely-going-to-backfire plan.
But a plan nonetheless.
By the time they stumbled out of the restaurant at midnight, Jungwon was pleasantly drunk and feeling optimistic about his terrible life choices. Jay walked next to him, hands in his pockets, looking unfairly put-together for someone who'd matched Jungwon shot for shot.
"Text me tomorrow," Jay said when they reached the subway station. "We need to figure out the details."
"Details," Jungwon repeated, like the word was foreign.
"Rules. Boundaries. How we're going to make this convincing."
"Right. Rules."
Jay was standing close again, and Jungwon blamed the soju for the way his heart did a weird skip. "This is just pretend, okay? We fake it for the wedding, and then we're done."
"Obviously."
"I just want to make sure we're clear."
"Crystal clear." Jungwon held out his pinky. "Pinky promise."
Jay looked at the offered finger like it might bite him, then slowly hooked his own pinky around Jungwon's. "You're ridiculous."
"You already agreed. No take backs."
"I'm going to regret this."
"Probably."
But Jay was almost smiling as he pulled away and headed toward his platform. Jungwon watched him go, swaying slightly on his feet, and wondered what exactly he'd just agreed to.
His phone buzzed. A text from Sunoo: "explain. now."
Jungwon grimaced and typed back: "tomorrow. i promise."
Another buzz, this time from Jay.
Jay: "get home safe. we'll talk tomorrow when you're sober enough to remember this conversation."
Jungwon smiled at his phone. Jay's contact had been in his phone for three years, saved simply as "Jay" with a photo from some group hangout where Jay was mid-argument about something, his expression intense and slightly annoyed. It was very him.
Jungwon sent back: "bold of you to assume i won't remember."
The reply came quickly: "bold of you to assume this will work."
Jungwon: "guess we'll find out."
Saturday morning arrived with a vengeance and a headache that felt personal. Jungwon woke up on his couch, still fully dressed, with Sunoo standing over him holding a glass of water and two aspirin.
"Explain," Sunoo demanded.
Jungwon groaned and accepted the pills. "What time is it?"
"Ten. And you're deflecting. What the hell happened last night?"
The memories came back in pieces. The wedding invitation. Too much soju. Jay's hand in his. The stupid, impulsive deal they'd made.
"Oh no," Jungwon said.
"Oh no?" Sunoo sat down on the coffee table. "What did you do?"
"I may have agreed to fake date Jay for the wedding."
Silence. Then Sunoo started laughing, the kind of full-body laughter that made him double over. "You're joking."
"I'm not joking."
"You and Jay? Mr. 'You're Grilling It Wrong' and Mr. 'You're a Control Freak'? That Jay?"
"It made sense at the time."
"I'm sure it did. You were drunk." Sunoo wiped his eyes. "Oh my god, this is amazing. This is the best thing that's ever happened. I'm going to enjoy every second of this disaster."
Jungwon's phone buzzed on the couch next to him. He picked it up with a sense of impending doom.
Jay: "still alive?"
Another message: "we should probably talk about last night."
And then: "meet me at that cafe near hongdae station. monday at 6. we need to set ground rules before this gets out of hand."
Jungwon typed back: "too late. it's already out of hand."
But he sent a second message: "see you monday."
Sunoo was still grinning like the Cheshire cat. "This is going to be so entertaining."
"Glad my suffering amuses you."
"Oh, honey. You have no idea how much." Sunoo patted his head. "But for the record? Jay's been staring at you for months. So maybe this fake dating thing won't be as fake as you think."
"You're delusional."
"And you're in denial. It's going to be a fun few weeks."
Jungwon threw a pillow at him, but Sunoo just laughed and dodged. Outside, Seoul was waking up to a sunny Saturday. The wedding was two weeks away. And Jungwon had just agreed to fake date someone he definitely, absolutely, one hundred percent did not have feelings for.
This was fine.
Everything was fine.
He was going to be completely fine.
Probably.