94: Get Hurt

Inho’s heart was pounding so hard his vision blurred with the pulse. His mouth was sagging open in a shocked “o” and he clenched it shut with a click. This was impossible. This was just a really handsome foreigner that looked exactly like Stephen this was…

“Inho–”

“You need a key card to go in.” Inho turned to the monitor, ready to buzz the man through.

The man that definitely wasn’t Stephen blinked at him, confused. “Inho that’s not funny, it was a really long flight.”

Inho stared at the screen.

“Is it really you?” he muttered without looking up.

Stephen reached forward and covered Inho’s hand with his own, “Yes.”

“...Members need keycards to enter the gym.” Stephen could have called first, and Inho automatically took gentle revenge for the shock he was feeling. He snuck a glance, and Stephen looked dumbfounded. Inho suppressed a giggle.

“Inho, what the–” Stephen caught him peeking up with a mischievous grin. He puffed a breath through his cheeks, “You had me for a second.”

“Did I?”

“Yeah.” Stephen smiled at him, his big beautiful gleaming smile, then lifted Inho’s hand to his lips. “Are you going to come talk to me? I came all this way.”

Inho glanced around, he couldn’t actually leave right now, but his brain was still too stunned to form a coherent solution, “I have… to work.” He squeezed out.

The pink spandex-clad trainer that had recently called him a dick walked up beside him. “Is this a new member?” She asked Inho in a clipped tone, and turned a welcoming smile on Stephen who smiled blandly back. Inho pulled his hand out of Stephen’s grasp, but the movement only caught her attention.

“Oh!” she said, and her eyes widened, “That’s why?” Her attention skipped back and forth between them and Inho flushed. She swung her finger in a gesture that encompassed the two of them. “Is this your boyf–”

Stephen interrupted her in English, “Hello, I’m Stephen. Can I borrow Inho for a bit?”

Her eyes widened even further, “Inho, I don’t speak English, what is he saying?”

“He’s um, he’s asking if I can go with him.”

She was flustered, Inho could see the shock in every line of her face, “Oh uh, sure, you only have a couple hours left right? It’s dead, I can cover you.”

Inho perked up immediately, “Really? Thanks!” He spun and grabbed his jacket and umbrella from a drawer. Hopefully she wouldn’t say anything to anyone, but there wasn’t much he could do now. Besides, Stephen being here was literally all he could focus anyway.

Stephen put his hand lightly in the small of Inho’s back and they stepped into the rain together.

“Do you have a car or…”

“No, I took a cab here. Shall we go get dinner?”

“Yes, sure, okay.” Inho popped open his umbrella and held it high enough for both of them to be mostly covered, Stephen led the way.

“So… How did you know where to find me?” Now that they were together, Inho had no idea how to act. This was so far outside the realm of possible outcomes that had been running through his head since calling Stephen 18 hours ago.

“Well that, is a very long story.”

“I’ve got time.” Inho scanned for Stephen’s hands. Despite the cold, he hadn’t put them in his pockets. “Where are we going anyway?”

“I made a reservation, It’s not far.” Stephen hummed thoughtfully before continuing, “I got your address from Jamie. Then I went to your building and knocked on apartment doors until I found your mother.”

Inho stopped moving, and Stephen booped his forehead on the now still umbrella before stopping too.

“What!?”

“What to which part?” Stephen asked calmly as if he hadn’t just dropped a bomb of insane information, “It’s only a ten minute walk to the restaurant, max.”

“Not that!” Inho was flabbergasted, “Jamie?! MY MOM?!”

“She seems nice.”

“Which one?!”

“Your mom. Fuck Jamie, she didn’t give me the apartment number on purpose, she only gave me the building address.”

“Oh my god.”

“I talked to a lot of nice people though.”

“In Korean?”

“No,” Stephen raised an eyebrow as if that were a ridiculous question, “I don’t speak Korean, but they were pretty excited anyway. One woman invited me in and took photos with me.”

Inho covered his face, This was… the most Stephen thing ever. Stephen was grinning at him now, and Inho wanted to hold his hand so badly. They hadn’t addressed anything yet, but it felt so natural. “What did you say to my mom?”

“I told her I was your friend visiting from Canada. She told me about the gym you were working at.”

“And then you left?”

“No, she brought me in for lunch. It would have been rude to leave.”

“I’m going to kill you.”

Stephen was beaming at him now, enjoying his discomfort, “She’s a lovely lady. She made me some of the stuff you fed me on one of our first dates. Bulgogi.”

Inho gave up, “She does make great bulgogi.”

“Oh, we’re here.” They were outside a small French-themed cafe. The hostess greeted Stephen by name in heavily accented English, and guided them to a quiet table in the back. The decor was quaint and the low lighting had a romantic feel. A French love song filled the space with soft yearning tones.