Another hour passed like that, unnoticed, over food and conversation. After a bottle of soju, Jia no longer looked as energetic as she had at the start of the meal: she was propping her head up with her hand, slowly spinning her shot glass on the table. Suho had caught her giving him long, thoughtful looks a couple of times.
What was she thinking in those moments?
Suho himself was still quite sober. Realizing that Jia had lost her focus, he shamelessly watched her.
The way Jia's wrists looked so fragile and slender sent thrilling images racing through Suho's imagination. He wanted to wrap his fingers around them. Gently squeeze, without hurting her, trace the protruding bones, then lift her arms above her head and press her against the wall. Could Suho do that with one hand?
Would Jia look at him with those same sleepy, thoughtful eyes?
Suho was lost in his thoughts while Jia picked up the last bits of salad with her chopsticks. They were sitting so close that if Choi reached out, he could touch her hair.
Suho felt a light intoxication from his thoughts alone. This was dangerous. He had no right to cross that line.
Choi tried to pull himself together and stop fantasizing.
"What do you…" Jia started to ask something, but suddenly stopped mid-sentence when her phone buzzed under her fingers.
As soon as she saw the message, her brows furrowed, and the soft, sleepy haze vanished from her eyes.
They sat in silence for a few seconds while Jia read. Suho felt worry stir in his chest.
"Is everything okay?" he asked carefully, noticing that Jia's gaze had frozen on the screen at some point.
"Huh?" She startled and quickly locked her phone. "Yes, nothing serious. But I…" she looked like she didn't know what to do with herself. "I need to go home."
Suho looked into Jia's eyes, meeting waves of anxiety. He couldn't hold back and covered her fingers with his hand. Her hands were trembling slightly.
"You need to call a taxi. It'll come quickly, don't worry," Suho could feel that Jia wasn't really with him right now, and he tried to hide his own worry behind a steady voice. "Order one now, and I'll go pay for the food."
Choi stood up from the table, letting go of her hand, and called the waiter. As he paid for the meal, he tried to keep his eyes on Jia. His thoughts shifted from slow and languid to chaotic and abrupt.
Jia didn't look good: she'd gone pale and started chewing on her lower lip, quickly typing the address into the app.
After paying, Suho quickly returned to the table and helped Jia to her feet, steadying her by the shoulders. She seemed lost, withdrawn into herself, as they walked outside.
"If you need any help, you can tell me."
Jia shook her head and managed a grateful smile.
"Thank you, but it's okay. It's my younger sister… I think something happened at school, and my mom is worried…" she said quickly, struggling to string her words together. "Thank you for a wonderful dinner. I really, really enjoyed it."
Suho smiled warmly at her and gently took her by the wrist as she started toward the arriving taxi.
"Text me when you get home."
Jia nodded, and Suho let go, releasing her to the car.
"Thank you," Jia said one last time as she closed the door.
Suho watched the car slowly pull onto the road and disappear around the corner, until he suddenly found himself standing alone in the middle of the evening street, feeling utterly unsettled.