"So, this here is the N1 compressor where the air goes through first," Insoo explained, pointing the tip of his pen to the diagram between them. "And as the rotor turns, it traps the air and compresses it."

Myungsuk nodded. With his face in his hands and elbows on the table, he tucked his leg under him and sat forward, focusing on the diagram. "And after it'll push the air through the discharge port?" he asked.

"Correct," Insoo grinned. "You're right. And after...?"

"The air will go to the N2 compressor," Myungsuk said, grinning brightly.

Insoo nodded. "You got it. You learn fast, Myungsuk."

"Only when I want to."

"I know the feeling," Insoo chuckled. "I'm so glad to be in university now."

"Lucky," Myungsuk sighed. Going through 12th-grade for what he considered the third time was not the type of repetition he wanted. Shaking his head, Myungsuk leaned in further. "What comes next?'

"Right." Insoo nodded. "So after the compressor–" He waved his pen and hit his hand against his mug. Gasping, he caught the tipping mug and sighed in relief when nothing spilled on his notes.

Myungsuk released his held breath and giggled. "It's funny not being the clumsy one."

Chuckling, Insoo shrugged shyly. "My bad," he said. Insoo switched his pen to his other hand and started to fill in the next label. "Next is the combustion chambe–"

"You switched your hands."

Insoo looked up, blinking. "Oh, yeah. I can write with both."

Myungsuk's eyes widened, sparkling at the revelation. "You're ambidextrous," he said and wiggled his toes. "That's so cool!"

Shrugging, Insoo ducked his head. "Ah, it's nothing really," he said, rubbing the back of his neck. He glanced up again while Myungsuk kept marvelling and cracked a smile. "I can actually write with both hands at the same time."

"You can?" Myungsuk gasped and squeezed his hands together. "Can I see?"

"Sure," Insoo laughed. He pulled out another pen from his case and held it to the paper. He hummed for a moment before he started to write.

Myungsuk slid his hands over his mouth to muffle his giggles.

"Here," Insoo said once he was done and turned the paper. Myungsuk picked it up and grinned. One sentence was 'My name is Cheung Insoo and this is my right hand. I can keep going but I'm not sure what else to write," and with his other hand, he wrote a list of the rest of the parts of the diagram.

"Can I keep this?" Myungsuk asked, holding the paper to his chest.

"Uh, sure," Insoo said. "I actually got that one for you. I didn't want to use the ones we use in class since they're really complicated," he explained, his hand on his nape.

Brushing his thumbs against the page, Myungsuk whispered, "This is for me?"

Nibbling his bottom lip, Myungsuk carefully folded it and held it in his hands, holding back his purrs.

He glanced over to the counter at Taeyong and Kwangsun. Myungsuk should be there with them, but they insisted it was fine. Plus, Insoo was more than just a customer. They were friends now. He was sure of it.

"Myungsuk, can I ask you something?"

"Can you ask me something?" He nodded, tugging his sleeve. "Yes. Go ahead."

"You know about Galactica, right?"

Myungsuk blinked. That was not one of the several common questions he was expecting. "Yes, I do. Why?"

"My friend's birthday is coming up, and I know she likes Galactica too. So, I was hoping you could help me pick something out."

"Yeah, I can do that."

Insoo sighed in relief and smiled. "Thanks. I really have no idea where to start."

"Well, you came to the right person," Myungsuk said and sat up. "When's her birthday?"

"Tomorrow."

"Oh." Myungsuk pursed his lips. His favourite websites won't deliver something on time. "Um, there's a store close by that sells lots of good stuff. I always find good stuff there."

Insoo nodded. "I see," he said and chuckled. "I still don't know what to pick. Do you want to come with me?"

Myungsuk blinked. "What?"

"Do you want to come with me to that store?" he repeated.

Myungsuk gaped. Was Insoo really asking him to go and do something with him? He tugged on his sleeve and glanced at the counter. "Um, I need a minute," he said, jumping up from his seat and straight to Taeyong's office in the back.

"Hyung?" Myungsuk asked, knocking frantically on the opened door.

"Myungsuk." Taeyong snapped his head up. "My door's open. You don't have to knock."

"But you're busy, and I need your attention," Myungsuk said.

Taeyong smiled and fondly shook his head. He closed his cheque book and sat up, folding his hands over his desk. "Yes?"

"Um," Myungsuk started, tugging his sleeve. "Can I go out with Insoo?"

Taeyong blinked. "Come again?"

"Can I go out with Insoo? Just for a bit? Twenty minutes at most. Just to the merch store and back. He wants to buy a birthday present for a friend and her birthday is tomorrow, and she's a fan of–"

"Okay," Taeyong said, holding his hand out. Myungsuk pressed his lips shut. "I got it," Taeyong said. "You can go."

"Really?"

Taeyong smiled. "Of course. You're just around the corner, and it's the middle of the day. Nothing to fear."

Myungsuk furrowed his brow. "Fear? What's there to be afraid of?"

"He's still an alpha, Myungsuk," Taeyong said with a pointed look. When Myungsuk frowned deeper, Taeyong sighed and shook his head. "It's okay. Take your bag and be back soon, okay? You can stay in uniform. Just remove your apron."

Myungsuk nodded. "Okay. Thank you, Hyung," he said and hung up his apron before rushing to grab his bag from his locker, carefully tucking the paper inside.

"I'm ready," Myungsuk said, as he approached the table.

Insoo perked up and smiled. "Great. Thanks again," he added and got up, packing his own things. "I'll head to class after, okay?"

"Oh." Myungsuk pouted. It was the same time he always left, but that didn't mean he liked it when he left.

When Insoo was packed up, Myungsuk led him out of the store and through the narrow streets. His heart was thumping. This is the first time he's taking someone with him to the store. Would Insoo think he's weird for knowing so much? Myungsuk shook his head. He'll control himself somehow.

They stepped into the store, the subdued purple interior instantly calming Myungsuk down.

"Woah," Insoo breathed out, looking around. "This place has a lot of stuff."

"Yup. They have a surprising amount." Not only Galactica but multiple shows too. "So, do you have an idea of what she would like?"

Insoo shook his head. "No clue."

Myungsuk pursed his lips. "That's not helpful. Do you know who her favourite character is? What's her favourite season? Is she a fan of the reboot or the original? There's more merch for the reboot, even though most fans still prefer the old design. It's also important to know if she calls herself a fleet member or an intergalactic martian. Both are distinct types of fans who prefer different things."

Insoo stared at him, blankly and shook his head.

Myungsuk gulped. "Sorry," he muttered. He scrunched up his nose. "I just–" He wants to make sure that Insoo gets a good gift. "Sorry," he repeated.

"No. Don't be," Insoo said. "I should be sorry. I asked you for your help. I'm glad you know so much. I just don't know what you need to know," he said with a sheepish smile. "She has a Galactica wallet? Does that help?"

"Maybe." He pointed to the only wallet from the table. "Like this one?"

"No. Hers is very sparkly."

A clue. Myungsuk nodded, smiling slowly. The only other merch wallet was a limited-edition Evil Queen Sukki wallet. "She's a big fan then. Normal fans didn't even know about that wallet until they were already sold out."

Myungsuk scanned the table. He owned everything on it, and someone who managed to get the wallet probably did too. "We'll have to go deeper," he said and walked to the end of the store. "She'll be thrilled if you buy her something from this section."

Myungsuk held up a pair of keychains of Captain Sukki and Giya that snapped together to look like they were holding hands. So cute!

Insoo nodded and picked up a notebook. He stared at the cover and flipped through it. "Is 70,000 won too much for a gift?"

Myungsuk shrugged.

Furrowing his brow, Insoo pulled out his phone. "I think one friend suggested a price limit," he said and scrolled through his messages. "Okay, here," he said and smiled sheepishly, placing the book back on the shelf. "I shouldn't spend more than 20,000."

Myungsuk nodded. "That's so little," he said and sighed, placing the keychains back. "I don't think anything in this section is less than that. Are you sure that's all you can spend?"

"Well, I can spend more. But, I don't want to burden her," he said and started walking to another table. "Let's look around here."

"Okay." Myungsuk followed him, though he tilted his head. It was strange that Insoo had to double-check. Most people knew all those gift-giving courtesies. Except Myungsuk.

They both roamed the store, Myungsuk educating Insoo on the characters and whether they were fan favourites or not. Eventually, they both settled on a phone case with all the characters to be safe.

"Are you sure she'll like it? What about this one?" he asked, pointing to a case with Giya and Sukki. The same one Myungsuk had.

Myungsuk shook his head. "Some people don't like the romance part of the show. Which is stupid, in my opinion."

Insoo chuckled. "So you watch it for romance?"

"Not at first. But it's my second favourite part of the show," he said and grinned. "The first is the aliens."

"Of course," he laughed. "I'm going to pay for this now."

Myungsuk nodded and wandered around the store as Insoo paid. He looked down at a Captain Giya sticker and held it up. He couldn't imagine what Giya would look like as a real person, but if he had to choose someone, it'd be Insoo.

They stepped out, making their way back to the cafe.

"Thank you again for coming with me. I really don't know what I would've done without you."

"You're welcome," Myungsuk said. "I hope she likes it."

"Me too. I was worried about getting her something wrong. I only met her this semester, and I don't want to give her the idea that I'm interested in her or something," he said.

Myungsuk nodded slowly. "So you're not interested in her. Just as a friend?"

Insoo nodded. "Of course," he blurted out. "She's just a friend. I like her, but I'm not interested in dating her."

Myungsuk halted and stared up at him, tugging his sleeve. "Do you have someone you're interested in dating?"

Insoo stared at him for a moment. "Um–" He rubbed the back of his neck and shrugged. "I'm still trying to figure it out."

"I see," Myungsuk said, and they continued walking, a pang of disappointment in his chest.

"Ah, but it's only because I haven't dated anyone before," Insoo explained. Myungsuk hadn't asked, but that brought up more questions.

"Why not?"

Insoo shrugged. "Strict parents, I guess. Plus, who has time to date in high school, right?"

"You have a point." This year was the first time in a long time, Myungsuk felt he could breathe, and he knew that's how the majority felt.

The conversation fell silent until Insoo stopped a few steps from the cafe door.

"Uh, Myungsuk. Are you doing anything this Saturday?"

"Hm?" Myungsuk tore his eyes away from staring at the porcelain birds on a window sill. "Am I doing anything this Saturday?" He shook his head. "Nope."

"There's this presentation happening on campus. Some professors are giving lectures on their research. It's open to the public. Do you want to come with me?"

"That sounds–" he hummed, tilting his head side to side. He'd seen numerous videos on presentations. They were always held in massive auditoriums. He grimaced. But, most audiences were engaged and silent. Myungsuk hummed. Everyone's scents would be distracting, but with a hospital-grade mask, he'd be fine.

Myungsuk smiled. "I would love to go with you."

Insoo let out a breath and broke into a wide grin. "Great. I'll text you the details, okay?"

Myungsuk nodded. "Okay," he said, curling his toes and folding his fingers together. "I'll see you later, then."

Insoo nodded. "See you later," he said with a wave, and Myungsuk watched as he walked down the street, past the cafe and down the hill. At the end of the street, Insoo turned around and waved one last time.

Standing on his toes, Myungsuk frantically waved back and was sure he could hear him laughing from there. And then, he was gone.

Myungsuk jumped up and squealed in his hands. Saturday couldn't come fast enough.