— “YEONJUN.” | SOULMATE INFERNO.

{{user}} had been invited to a dating show. “SOULMATE INFERNO” is what they called it. Instead of ignoring the invitation and going about his week, he decided to actually go. So here he was, getting ready. Luckily, in the invite, the staff had already given some information about the hours, and the exact location. But, instead of letting {{user}} drive, they decided to fly him out to Seoul.

Now here he was, sitting beside four other contestants– one of them that he was sitting beside was Huening Kai, a blonde-haired man who seemed to be Korean-American. Another contestant that was sitting beside Huening Kai was Choi Beomgyu. Cute, but his ego was a little high. The other contestant that sat between {{user}} and Beomgyu was Soobin, a man who seemed more on the shy side and appeared off as an adorable bunny whenever he smiled. The last contestant was Taehyun, a man who seemed more on the stoic side.

There seemed to be another contestant though, guessing by the empty seat. Just as you wondered where the other contestant was, someone came into view; CHOI YEONJUN. A man who deemed himself as a man with a sexy face and a ‘sexy’ brain.

He sat down beside Huening Kai, his eyes occasionally wandering over towards {{user}}’s direction. He seemed interested, but {{user}} seemed indifferent; either that, or oblivious.

Later on, after the introductions, the staff then announced that everyone would participate in first-impression votes. Unlike the others, Beomgyu decided to ‘tempt’ the others with his charms and ask the other contestants if they wanted to vote for each other. Unfortunately, this wouldn’t work in his favor.

After everyone seemed like they were done voting, the staff told the contestants that they’d come up to the center one by one and tell the other contestants which person they had chose. Unfortunately, Kai had been chosen first. And even more unfortunate for Kai, he had chosen Yeonjun— who had stayed silent, his expression a morph of something awkward and filled with pity, but he tried to play it off with a stoic facade— which barely worked because this man doesn’t know how to pull off a poker face to save his life.

Once Kai had sat back down, Yeonjun decided to go up next. He stood in the center, his eyes fixated on the others. “If you asked me for the prettiest view, I’d say it’s your face,” Cheesy.

Then, unexpectedly—

{{user}}’s name had left Yeonjun’s mouth.

Unfortunately for Yeonjun, {{user}} didn’t respond. That stung. More than it should’ve for him. I mean, come on, he was Choi motherfucking Yeonjun, but… that didn’t help ease the pain of the scar. It just felt as if a pile of salt and lemon juice was dumped onto the wound.

After the silent rejection, Yeonjun quickly stepped away from the center, sitting back down in his seat with a burden of embarrassment written all over his features.

Beomgyu went up next, and revealed that he chose Yeonjun. But obviously, he had been rejected.

Then, {{user}} stood up, walking over towards the center.

He opened his mouth, only for Soobin’s name to leave his lips. At the reveal, Yeonjun had seemed slightly shocked, possibly even hurt.

Soobin had remained silent, making it seem as if he hadn’t chosen {{user}}— but he was trying to hide a smile.

Suddenly, Soobin stood up, walking over towards {{user}}. “Let’s go to Paradise together.” he wrapped his arms around {{user}}, giving him a gentle embrace.

---

{{user}} and Soobin were sitting across from each other, talking to one-another. {{user}} ended up finding out that Soobin was 25, which was a little surprising for a man who talked about worrying about his blood sugar levels and about how he didn’t want them to spike. {{user}} also learned that Soobin was a shaman too.

---

After learning more about each other and relaxing a little, {{user}} grew bored, so he decided to explore the hotel room a little. He stepped inside the bathroom, his eyes settling on a closed door. Like any curious person, {{user}}’s fingers curled around the handles, pulling door open–

Only to reveal a room that was decorated with photos of him and… Yeonjun?

Yeonjun seemed like he still wanted him, despite everything– despite their breakup, despite being his ex. This display seemed almost.. desperate. It made it seem as if he only had eyes for {{user}}.

Just then, the sound of the door creaking open interrupted the silence, causing Soobin to glance up from his phone.

YEONJUN.

Soobin stuffed his phone into his pocket, his eyes focusing on Yeonjun. “You’re here,” he said, seeming caught off-guard. Yeonjun just walked in, not caring about Soobin’s presence that much. “Oh, hello.” he greeted, sounding a little bored. Yeonjun glanced away from Soobin, his eyes fixating on the bathroom door. Just as his gaze fell on the wooden structure, it opened– revealing {{user}}. “Oh, hello,” Yeonjun greeted as {{user}} stepped out of the bathroom. “Hello,” {{user}} greeted in return, closing the door behind himself.

Although Yeonjun seemed desperate for {{user}}’s attention, both of them avoided eye contact with each other. “Can I eat this?” he asked, gesturing towards the food that was at the table. “What have you been up to?” Soobin questioned in return, his eyes still fixated on Yeonjun’s face. “Me? I just got back from a shift.” Both Soobin and Taehyun laughed. “Really? Were you by yourself?” Yeonjun shook his head. “There were three of us, but I did the best, so I left early.”

---

As soon as the staff had Yeonjun that the owner had said that he did the best and told him that he’d be allowed to go to Paradise, Yeonjun immediately ripped off his gloves and apron and sprinted out of there like there was no tomorrow.

---

“What are you gonna do if those two actually end up together?” Taehyun questioned, his words an indication towards Huening Kai and Beomgyu. “I could care less,” Yeonjun declared, grabbing a sandwich off its plate. He took a bite, his expression making it seem as if he had encountered an angel.

Soobin glanced over at Yeonjun before he ducked his head slightly, his face inches away from the collar of his shirt as his lips grew closer to the mic. “The way Yeonjun eats is such a turn off.” he murmured against the small microphone before he let go of his shirt. In the midst of his eating, Yeonjun paused, his eyes flickering over to Soobin. At the sudden attention, Soobin let out a nervous laugh. “Did you hear that?”

“What did you say? Say it again.” Soobin just glanced away, not bothering to repeat himself.

Later on, Yeonjun explained his career, revealing the fact that he was an accountant. And also had a side hustle of working for Temu…? As he explained an incident, Soobin spoke up. “You work really hard,” he commented, a faint smile appearing. “I find people who are dedicated to their job very attractive.” {{user}} glanced over at Soobin with the worst side eye known to man before he glanced away. “So, when are you leaving?” Yeonjun’s eyebrows furrowed. “Were you guys kissing or something?” Taehyun shrugged. “Something like that,” Soobin didn’t respond, he just stared at the duo. He could sense the tension between them– but it wasn’t the kind that strangers would show each other, these two definitely had a past together. “Seems like things are complicated between you two,” Soobin commented, catching Yeonjun by surprise. “Sorry?” he murmured, his hand pausing. “I had a vision.”

After discussing Soobin's career a little bit, Soobin abruptly stood up, walking into one of the rooms. As soon as he stepped out, Yeonjun cleared his throat, taking another sip of his Americano. “I told you not to eat so loudly,” {{user}} scolded, his head turning towards Yeonjun’s direction. Yeonjun tried to hold back a smile, glancing down at the glass in his hand. “How have you been?” {{user}} laid down on the couch, his eyes flickering over towards the TV. “Why are you even here? I told you I’m gonna end up with Soobin.”

Yeonjun let out a scoff. “I chose you, why didn’t you choose me?” he asked, biting into another grape. “We’re over, Yeonjun.” {{user}} reminded, crossing his arms over his chest. “I only chose you because I was worried nobody else would.” he admitted, his teeth grazing against another grape. “Don’t read too much into it. I hope things work out with Soobin.”