Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yang Du on Jul 2, 2020 4:18:05 GMT -8
[[This thread is backdated to February.]]
Yang had gotten the impression that the entire household was having a rough week, but he was relieved that maybe he could do something to make his and Hyojae's weeks a little bit better. He got home from work about an hour and a half before Hyojae, and it was a day that everyone else was out until late. He'd looked up a recipe for a food that Hyojae had mentioned missing that they hadn't really been able to find in restaurants because it was more of a home cooked kind of thing. Yang had gone to the nearest Korean market to pick up ingredients the day before, and before he'd left for work, he'd done a little bit of the prep for making the dish. He quickly changed into comfortable (though still pretty) clothes before heading back out to the kitchen.
He settled the little succulent that he'd found at the shop that sometimes had plants at the mall on the table before he pulled up the recipe for gukmul tteokbokki that he'd found [link] and started working on the rest of the prep, knowing that he had plenty of time before Hyojae got home as long as he was relatively efficient. Soon enough, the kitchen smelled really good, though he knew that if any of the others had been home, they'd have been complaining that he was making the house smell spicy. He'd definitely upped the spice to taste a little bit as he cooked.
As it was getting near done, Yang started watching for Hyojae to get home as he prepped to serve the food, setting two places at the table. They'd not precisely arranged to do food, but it happened often enough on their afternoon with the house to themselves, that he didn't think that Hyojae would be surprised that he'd cooked. He hoped that Hyojae would like what he'd chosen to cook though.
Hyojae Park
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Florist.
Pansexual.
Single.
05/01/1999.
24.
Rabbit (WA)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
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Post by Hyojae Park on Jul 5, 2020 12:05:35 GMT -8
It hadn't been a particularly bad day, but in the grand scheme of things, Hyojae was exhausted. He finally felt some of the stress of the week shed off him as he stepped back inside, and then his nose picked up something and he felt a smile cross his face, "great! I'm starving," He whispered to himself. He pulled off his shoes and slumped his jacket and bag over the couch before venturing into the kitchen. He was surprised to see Yang cooking something, usually he was essentially banned from doing so, and he figured it must mean the others wouldn't be home for a while. Ah, that's right. They said they'd be home late today... He reminded himself, nodding. "Hey," He said simply, peeking at what Yang was making.
"Is that... what I think it is?" He asked curiously.
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Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yang Du on Jul 5, 2020 19:34:53 GMT -8
Yang started serving the food as soon as he heard Hyojae come in, and he smiled a little bit at the other man when he asked his question. He replied, "You'd mentioned missing gukmul tteokbokki, so I looked it up, and it looked tasty and also like something that you couldn't find in restaurants, so I figured that I'd make some for both of us."
He'd looked up how to pronounce the name of the soup and practiced it to make sure he'd gotten that part right, and the little samples that he'd had through the cooking process had been good. He smiled at Hyojae tentatively, hoping that he'd made the right guess on that front.
After placing the bowls of soup on the table at spots next to each other by where he'd already set out soup spoons and chopsticks, he nudged the little succulent still in a plastic pot from the shop closer to Hyojae and said, "This little guy looked like it could stand to be taken home, and it seemed like one you might like."
He went to the kitchen, trying to busy himself and not look like he was waiting for Hyojae's approval, and asked, "What do you want to drink?"
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Florist.
Pansexual.
Single.
05/01/1999.
24.
Rabbit (WA)
Authored by Redeim.
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Post by Hyojae Park on Jul 6, 2020 22:39:54 GMT -8
"Wow," Hyojae said, thoroughly impressed with both the pronunciation and the meal itself. He tried some, and a smile instantly spread across his face. "This is great! It's almost just like mom used to make!" He praised. He wasn't lying, in fact, he almost felt it was better than what his mom used to make, but if he'd said out loud, he wholly believed she would materialize in the kitchen just to yell at him for saying that, so he stuck with 'almost.'
His eyes were directed to the succulent and he cooed at it, pulling it close. "Aww! It's so cute. Definitely needs some love though, and probably a bigger pot would make it happier. I think I have a spare one, but if not, I can bring one from work tomorrow." He set it in between the two of them, eying it between bites.
"Um, water please." He answered simply, then added, "thank you. For the food. And the plant friend. And, y'know, getting me a drink too." He punctuated the sentence with a short, soft laugh.
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Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yang Du on Jul 8, 2020 20:17:37 GMT -8
Yang couldn't help but smile when Hyojae complimented the food. He brought over drinks for both of them and put Hyojae's down in front of him first. He tried his own and said, "I'd never had this before, and I like it. I'm glad it turned out OK. I'll have to make it again sometime, just not for any of the others, they wouldn't appreciate the spice."
He took advantage of looking at the plant to not fully face Hyojae so that the other man was less likely to see that he was slightly embarrassed over having his food praised. Normally, Yang didn't shy away from praise, but something about the combination of cooking and it being Hyojae made this different. He said, "Yeah, it looked sort of sad and lonely and I figured that you could make it feel better."
He glanced over at Hyojae and gave him a little smile and said, "And you're welcome, but also thank you for spending time with me."
He focused then on the food, trying not to feel like maybe he'd said something he shouldn't have. Nika was going to mock him later, and he wasn't even sure exactly why.
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Florist.
Pansexual.
Single.
05/01/1999.
24.
Rabbit (WA)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
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Post by Hyojae Park on Jul 13, 2020 11:13:12 GMT -8
"I'm perfectly okay with you making it again!" Hyojae said, giving Yang a grin and thumbs up. "But yeah, the others might complain. Nika would probably try it, though, at least. She'd still complain. But she'd give it a chance." He said with a laugh.
Hyojae examined the plant again and nodded, "It does seem like it was sad and lonely. It could use a trim, too," He motioned to some dead or dying leaves near the dirt. "But I will make it happy again, and also give it friends." He promised. "Since you found it, you can have partial custody, and visit it in my room any time - within reason - if you want." He said, mostly joking.
He felt blush creeping onto his face, and hummed an affirmation in response to Yang's thanks before focusing on his food. It wasn't hard to do, the food was good and he was hungry.
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Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yang Du on Jul 13, 2020 19:37:27 GMT -8
Yang couldn't help the fond smile that crept onto his face at Hyojae genuinely seeming to enjoy the food he'd made and paying attention to the plant. A small part of his brain was doing a little dance of success. He tried to keep that from showing too much on his face.
His spoon clattered into his soup at the offer to visit the plant, and he hastily picked it back up, trying to pass it off with a little huff of laughter at himself. He took a bite, trying not to seem too embarrassed.
Finally he said, "I always like seeing your plants. I wish that I was better with plants than I am. They're really pretty."
He wanted to work with the fact that Hyojae seemed to be in a relaxed mood today. It was always nice when they actually had conversations. He asked tentatively, "How's your week been going?"
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Florist.
Pansexual.
Single.
05/01/1999.
24.
Rabbit (WA)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
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Post by Hyojae Park on Aug 2, 2020 21:55:45 GMT -8
Hyojae smiled endearingly at Yang, a quiet chuckle escaping as Yang seemed to fumble with his utensil, but not really thinking much of it. He looked down at his food, saying, "Well, that's what I'm here for. To let you have pretty plants without you killing them."
He stopped eating a moment and thought over how hi8s week had been, a sigh escaping. "It's been..." He was tempted to just say 'fine,' but reminded himself Yang was a friend and could maybe even help cheer him up. The food and plant was already a great start. "Honestly, it's been a stressful week. One of our long time managers quit last week and the replacement came in today and she's a lot more... business minded than plant minded. It's stressful on all of us, and probably quite an adjustment for her as well." He motioned to the soup, "this was actually really welcomed, not just because I'm hungry, but because comforting food really hit the spot."
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Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yang Du on Aug 2, 2020 22:06:55 GMT -8
Yang said softly, "You're here for a lot more than just that. You're pretty much the nicest person I know, and you're my food buddy. I appreciate you giving me plant visitation rights while keeping them safe from me though."
He wanted to reach out and give Hyojae a protective hug as he said that his week had been a bit hard, but he wasn't sure if Hyojae would appreciate that. He said, still keeping his voice gentle, "Is there anything else I could do to help? I'm glad this helped at least a little, but I'd be happy to do more. I can bring you lunch at work or something to check up on how things are going. We aren't that far apart at work."
He hoped he wasn't stepping over a line with the offer, but he didn't want to see someone pushing Hyojae around, and if Hyojae wanted, he could go there and hopefully be nice to him and maybe growl at people not being nice to him a little behind his back.
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Florist.
Pansexual.
Single.
05/01/1999.
24.
Rabbit (WA)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
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Post by Hyojae Park on Aug 10, 2020 10:19:17 GMT -8
Hyojae smiled softly at Yang's comment. It was nice to know he was wanted and had someone who appreciated him. Reasonably he knew all his friends were like that, but his mind was often mean to him. A lot of times, at best he believed they tolerated him being around.
He tried to think if there was anything Yang could do to help, but instead shrugged, "I think it's something that can't really be helped. Changes are stressful for everyone, especially me... But I'm trying to put myself in the new manager's shoes and I can only imagine it's a big change for her too, so I'm trying to give her the benefit of the doubt." He looked up to Yang, "though I would not argue against having a fresh, hot lunch with a friend." He said meekly.
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Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yang Du on Aug 10, 2020 15:50:27 GMT -8
Yang grinned and said, "It's a deal then. I'll start bringing you lunch. I would much rather have lunch with you than by myself, and much much rather with you than my coworkers."
He could tell that he sounded scornful about having lunch with his coworkers, but he didn't really care. He hoped that in the next few months, he'd be able to get one of the slightly more interesting styling jobs that he had been applying for, and actually be working in the field instead of at the mall, and then maybe at least his coworkers would push him a little more or be able to show him new things. He wasn't expecting them to be less annoying though.
He smiled at Hyojae and asked, slightly unsure of himself, "Any lunch food requests? Will your coworkers be appalled if I bring you too much spicy food?"
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Florist.
Pansexual.
Single.
05/01/1999.
24.
Rabbit (WA)
Authored by Redeim.
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Post by Hyojae Park on Aug 24, 2020 17:48:24 GMT -8
Hyojae blushed slightly at Yang's comment about preferring to eat lunch with him over seemingly anyone, and it was curious to him how he felt somewhat the same. Probably even just a year ago though, the thought of having a meal alone with Yang was an intimidating thought, though in general he got a lot better at being alone with Yang once they started living together. He busied himself with eating as his mind told him it was probably because he'd been developing a crush on the other boy for a little while now, banishing the thought from his mind. He shook his head quickly at Yang's questions, adding in a moment later, "um, I don't think they'd mind. And anything you feel like making is fine with me. If a day comes where I want something specific, I'll try to let you know ahead of time."
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Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
Offline.
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Post by Yang Du on Aug 30, 2020 1:10:58 GMT -8
Yang noticed that Hyojae was blushing a little bit, and was glad that blushing didn't show easily on his own skin. It was somewhat reassuring that they were kind of on the same page about whatever was going on. Hyojae wanted to eat lunch with him though, and that meant it was a good sign that he was blushing, Yang was pretty sure.
He smiled at Hyojae, one side of his mouth coming up more than the other, and said, "Hopefully none of the other roommates try to murder me over me cooking more than usual then. It's not like I don't turn on the vent or open the windows when I'm cooking with spicy peppers, so it airs out fine. I'm pretty sure that they're just being dramatic."
He grinned more fully and said, "It's decided then, I'll start bringing you stuff, so we can eat together. Just make sure that you do actually tell me if there's something that you want, or if I end up making something that is less your thing at some point. I know so far our food tastes have lined up pretty well, but I don't want to make things you don't like."
He watched Hyojae out of the corner of his eye as he turned back to his food. He was trying to make sure that he didn't scare Hyojae like he used to sometimes when they were younger. Yang knew that he was loud and brash in comparison to what Hyojae was most comfortable with, but Hyojae made him want to be softer around him.
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Florist.
Pansexual.
Single.
05/01/1999.
24.
Rabbit (WA)
Authored by Redeim.
Offline.
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Post by Hyojae Park on Sept 29, 2020 20:01:16 GMT -8
Hyojae laughed at Yang's comment about their roommates. "They are definitely being dramatic, though I suspect it actually bothers Lore, which like, by all means, make spicier foods in that case." He added a short laugh after it to try to pretend like he was joking, but he really wasn't.
His true smile returned and he nodded. "Sounds good, and I'm relieved to not have to worry about making my lunches before work. I'm not very picky with food, and everything you've made for up to now has been excellent, but I'll be sure to let you know if you make a food I don't particularly like."
He noticed Yang seemed to be observing him, or possibly rather himself, but he couldn't really guess as to why. He returned to his food, finishing it all too quickly and giving Yang a pouty look. "I finished it... Is there more?"
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Make Up Artist / Stylist.
Gay.
Single.
11/22/2000.
21.
Dragon (WA)
Authored by Etienne.
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Post by Yang Du on Oct 4, 2020 23:34:11 GMT -8
Yang had just about finished what was in his own bowl, so when Hyojae asked if there was more, he smiled and said, "Yeah, let me grab both of us second servings. I made enough that there would be second servings and maybe even some leftovers."
He smirked considering the earlier part of their conversation and added, "Though I should probably label them as something spicy so that Lore doesn't eat my leftovers accidentally again. Even if it was a little bit funny, except the bit where I'd wanted to eat them."
He filled the bowls again, bringing them back to the table and setting Hyojae's in front of him. He added, "Anything like this that I make for both of us though, you're welcome to eat any leftovers if you want to."
He wouldn't have even been annoyed if Hyojae had eaten the leftovers that Lore had gotten accidentally. Hyojae would have enjoyed them.
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