the law of unintended consequences. | jake sim (part one)
→ posits that actions often have unforeseen and unanticipated effects, which may be positive, negative, or neutral, that are not part of the actor's original intent.
MASTERLIST | PART 1 | PART 2 | PART 3 | PART 4
pairing: astrophysicist jake x assistant reader
genre: co-workers to lovers
wc: part 1 – 20k
warnings: slowburn, topics of abandonment issues, jake has his first kiss, makeouts, some touching (that's as far as it goes), cheesy ass astronomy rizz :'D
a/n: dividing this into 2-3 parts bc tumblr fuck you and your 1000 blocks limit
one.
you are not supposed to be here.
you have zero qualifications in astrophysics, no background in quantum mechanics, and absolutely no business being inside one of the country’s top space research facilities.
but you’re just a desperate graduate looking for a job.
when you applied for an assistant role at a science institute – thinking it would involve scheduling meetings, filing paperwork, maybe even making coffee – you did not expect to end up working under a literal genius.
seriously, you thought you’d be running small errands. and here’s the thing. you’re good at what you do, you’re good at the whole administerial part of the job. you’re needed to print copies of the meeting notes? done. you need to coordinate with the finance department because sunghoon somehow submitted last year’s budget instead of the current one? you already emailed them. jay forgot about an important board meeting? no, he didn’t. because you added three reminders to his calendar and physically dragged him out of the lab when he tried to pretend he had “urgent research” to finish.
you keep this place functioning, to whatever extent you can. you are efficient. you are essential. you are the one making sure the right documents reach the right people in the chaos that is everyday and the coffee machine’s up and functioning.
but the moment anyone in the lab starts talking about science stuff? you might as well be a hamster in a quantum mechanics lecture.
seriously. it’s like your brain just taps out.
you’ve been working here for months, and you still don’t know what these people actually do. you know it involves space and big words and a lot of coffee-fueled all-nighters. but the second someone starts explaining their research, it’s like you’re staring into the abyss.
you’re basically surrounded by insufferable nerds who talk about wormholes and black hole singularities like they’re discussing the weather. it’s like walking into a foreign country where the language is pure equations.
the worst part?
not all of them are entirely insufferable. some are just too passionate for their own good, their conversations looping endlessly in circles you can’t follow. if anything, you’re the fish out of water here.
take jay, for example. he’s not that bad. in fact, he’s one of those hot nerds who knows he’s hot – but doesn’t flaunt it. sure, he runs a hand through his hair a little too often when you’re around, throws you that lopsided smile when you hand out research papers you don’t understand, and occasionally offers you free coffee when you pass by his workstation.
but he’s also the guy with an endless arsenal of space puns and the world’s worst pick-up lines.
so yeah, not entirely insufferable.
sunghoon is more moody, more reserved, always hyper-focused on his work. he doesn’t bother with small talk, barely acknowledges your presence unless necessary, and when he does, it’s usually with a furrowed brow and a clipped “can you move?” when you accidentally block the whiteboard. he’s a bit of a jerk in your opinion, but jay seems to swear by him, assuring you that his friends have been literal losers since university, never even having dated anyone at all and that he just needs time to warm up to someone. you believe him because it's believable.
but leading this entire team of genius lunatics?
dr. jake sim.
jake sim is brilliant. annoyingly brilliant. the youngest astrophysicist to be leading major research on gravitational waves and exoplanets. the golden boy of the lab. the guy who talks about space-time distortions the way normal people talk about the weather.
jake sim is also hot – surprise (not really). he completes the trio of jay and sunghoon – the hot trio of the lab. everyone knows it. every assistant and secretary in the building has fun batting their eyes and twirling their hair at them. but while jay flirts back and sunghoon ignores it, jake… doesn’t even notice.
jake has a quiet, brooding edge to him. he always wears his glasses – except when he slides them off to rub a tired hand over his stupidly handsome face, his black hair somehow fluffy yet perfectly in place. you’ve often found yourself staring, wondering what kind of haircare routine produces that level of effortless perfection. (“papaya extract shampoo,” jay tells you later.)
even when he’s frowning, he looks like a lost puppy. he’s not intimidating per se, he’s just … not a very socially apt person you’ve met. and that’s saying something because the first month you joined, sunghoon avoided you like the plague. you thought you had done something to offend him but turns out, as jay informed you later, sunghoon’s just very awkward around new people.
jake sim is a genius. a literal, world-altering, lab-coated prodigy whose brain works at speeds the average person can’t even comprehend.
he is also, unfortunately, a menace to basic workplace efficiency. you’ve learned this the hard way.
because for all his brilliance, jake has zero awareness of his surroundings. he’ll abandon pens in entirely different departments, walk off mid-sentence because he’s already three equations ahead in his mind, and somehow exist in a state of constant near-calamity – like a human science experiment teetering on the edge of disaster.
which is where you come in.
you, the assistant who keeps his world running. the one who reminds him to eat. the one who nudges a coffee into his hands before he even realizes he needs it. the one who subtly rearranges his misplaced files, retrieves his lost stationery, and – on more than one occasion – has saved his life by yanking him out of the way of an incoming cart of hazardous materials.
you do all of this seamlessly. efficiently. and completely unnoticed.
because jake sim doesn’t know your name. not really.
you’re just the person who hands him reports and dodges his absentminded shoulder bumps in the hallway. the one he thanks without looking up, too engrossed in his work to register you as anything more than background noise.
which brings you to now.
standing outside his office, gripping a file filled with research you don’t understand, mentally preparing yourself to not make a fool of yourself this time.
you take a breath. knock. no answer.
you knock again. still nothing.
maybe he’s not here? maybe you can just leave the file on his desk and escape unnoticed—
the door suddenly swings open. and you immediately take a step back, startled.
jake blinks down at you, clearly pulled out of deep thought, his glasses slightly askew, lab coat unbuttoned.
he doesn’t say anything. just stares.
and for the first time, you’re really seeing him up close.
his sharp features. the faint shadow of stubble along his jaw from too many sleepless nights. the way his hair falls slightly over his forehead.
yeah, this man has no business being this attractive.
you open your mouth, but words fail you.
jake glances at the file in your hands. then back at you.
“are you lost?”
what.
“no,” you say, straightening. “i—i work here.”
jake frowns, clearly trying to recall if he’s ever seen you before. he has not.
“…right.” his gaze flicks down to your name tag. “y/n.”
holy shit, it’s at this moment that you realise, this man has no idea who you are. he doesn’t know who his assistant is.
regardless, you nod, offering the file like it’s a peace offering. “dr. lee said to give this to you.”
jake takes the file from you, barely glancing at it before flipping through the pages. silence. you shift awkwardly, waiting for him to acknowledge your existence beyond just your name tag.
“this is wrong.”
…excuse me?
you blink. “what?”
jake flips the file around, showing you a page filled with numbers and diagrams that might as well be ancient hieroglyphics to you. “these calculations. they don’t match the expected parameters.”
your brain short-circuits. “uh… okay.”
jake sighs, pinching the bridge of his nose. “did dr. lee give this to you?”
“yes.”
“did you change anything?”
you gape at him. “do i look like i know how to change a single digit in that mess?”
jake finally looks at you properly, as if realizing you are, in fact, the last person who would alter high-level astrophysics data. then, to your absolute horror, he scoffs. somehow, that’s more insulting to you, the fact that he’s just now realising that you’re an assistant and not a fellow colleague or intern or junior. really, it was just a sign of realisation, but why did it piss you off?
“fair point.”
he steps back, gesturing for you to come in. “i need to cross-check this. you might as well wait.”
before you can protest, he’s already walked back to his desk, completely expecting you to follow.
here’s another thing about you. you’re efficient, yes. you keep the schedules running like a well-oiled machine. you manage people, deadlines, and occasional office chaos with ease. you have your occasional run-ins with the high tech coffee machine, but you compensate with the packets of instant mixes. you clock in and out of work on time, you don’t butt your nose where you’re not required. you sit quietly in those boring meetings, stifling your yawns but its not like many people notice you anyway. you are definitely efficient at what you do.
but you’re also... clumsy.
not in a way that actively disrupts work (you swear). just in a way that has you constantly bumping into desks, tripping over air, and somehow finding new, creative ways to spill coffee on yourself. you blame it on your flat feet – probably. but the truth is, you’ve simply made peace with your gravitational challenges.
it’s something that has plagued you since an early age where you’d be slipping off swing sets or bumping into tables or accidentally rubbing the eraser too hard across your notebook page, causing it to rip right through the middle. but it's alright, it’s not a life threatening… disorder, you’d suppose.
and for the most part, no one notices.
except that one time jay did when you tripped over a computer wire. he snickered so loud, half the office turned to stare at him. you ran away in a blushing mess before he could turn it into a full roast session.
you're standing in jake sim’s office with the hesitation of someone who just walked into an active minefield. but it’s always this way when you need to go into his office.
his office is… exactly the way you had seen it in your initial days of work.
not in the normal executive kind of way – no sleek, intimidating decor, no minimalist furniture that screams i’m too rich to function. no, jake’s office is chaos disguised as a workspace.
the walls are lined with whiteboards covered in scribbled equations – formulas, diagrams, and the kind of notes that make your brain hurt just looking at them. books are stacked in precarious towers, some open, some closed, all of them filled with words and symbols that might as well be hieroglyphics. a crumpled hoodie is draped over the back of his chair, and an abandoned coffee cup sits dangerously close to the edge of his desk, a faint ring staining the surface underneath.
there’s a rhythm to the disorder, though – like his mind works too fast for his space to keep up. you’ve known jake to be someone who knows exactly what he is doing and you have no doubt this is all just an organised mess to him. he’d probably be able to tell you in alphabetical order where all his things were. you knew the moment you saw him maneuvering himself through this trash pile of a room with the ease of a cat, that he knew exactly where everything was.
but you did your part as a good assistant and helped clean up his desk once in a while. nothing much, just stacking the reports in different piles, labelled ‘to be read’ or ‘needs review’ with coloured sticky notes for his sake, making sure his pen stand has a decent amount of working pens and sharpened pencils, bookmarking pages of books he left open on his table and stacking them in another corner of the desk, making sure the dust is cleaned off and no stains of coffee cups remain on his workspace.
it smells faintly of coffee, whiteboard markers, and something else – something subtly clean, like fresh laundry, though you doubt he even has time for things like that.
and in the middle of it all is jake sim himself, hunched over his desk, glasses slipping down the bridge of his nose as he scans a file with sharp, calculating eyes. he absently pushes his glasses back up, muttering something under his breath.
you catch the words “data inconsistencies.”
you have no idea what’s wrong with the numbers on the page, but based on his frown, they seem to have personally offended him.
you shift your weight from one foot to the other, trying not to focus on the dim office lighting casting soft shadows over his face.
which, objectively speaking, is unfairly attractive.
in that disheveled genius way – like he hasn’t slept in days but could still win a magazine cover shoot by accident.
not that you care. obviously. you’re just here to do your job. your very normal, very non-physics-related job.
and then, in true you fashion – disaster strikes.
it happens fast. one second, you’re standing still, being the picture of professionalism. the next, your foot catches on something – probably your own dignity – and suddenly, the ground is rushing up to meet you at an alarming speed.
you don’t even have time to process your impending doom before a firm hand catches your wrist, steadying you just before you faceplant into the floor.
for a brief, shocking moment, you’re pressed against jake sim’s side, gripping his arm as if your life depends on it.
because it does.
you look up – eyes wide, breath caught – and find him staring down at you, completely unfazed, those damn glasses of his slightly crooked over his nose bridge. his grip is steady, warm, but impersonal – like he just reacted on instinct before immediately moving on.
and then — "dark matter interactions shouldn’t be this inconsistent," he mutters, releasing you as if the whole thing was a minor inconvenience.
you just nearly wiped out in his office, and he’s already back to contemplating the mysteries of the universe?!
you gape at him as he casually flips a page, frowning at the numbers again, like he hadn’t just saved you from a mild concussion.
"uh—thanks?" you manage, still trying to steady your heartbeat.
jake hums in response, not even looking up. "watch your step next time."
unbelievable. it’s official.
this man has zero self-awareness.
two.
jake swears on his life he had kept the papers on the ‘dark energy survey’ report on his desk last night before he left.
yet, as he stands in his office now, staring at the very-much-empty surface where they should be, his jaw tightens.
he exhales through his nose. okay. no need to panic. maybe they got buried under the mess.
he starts shifting through the stacks of books and scattered notes, moving one pile to another area of controlled chaos. but the more he looks, the more it becomes evident – those papers are gone.
and he needs them. now.
biting his cheeks, he squats on the floor, peering under his desk but nothing. not the report he was looking for. maybe he kept it somewhere else, somewhere away from the mess on his desk just to be sure that they were in a more accessible place. but where? there’s not a single nook and cranny in his room that could possibly meet that standard, it’s all just piles of papers and charts and books.
his desk drawer?
a quick survey of that yields nothing but two dried up pens, some loose sheets he had scribbled rough calculations on and an empty paper cup.
fuck, where the hell did he put that report?
with a frustrated sigh, he runs a hand through his already-messy hair, striding across to the middle of his room and casting a wary glance all around. a muscle in his jaw twitches as he stares at the scattered disaster zone that is his office.
he has checked everywhere – under the desk, between stacks of papers, in his desk drawer (twice), even inside an old laptop case for some godforsaken reason.
nothing.
this doesn’t make sense. he left it right here – unless he didn’t.
he presses his palms against the desk, eyes squeezing shut for a second. he’s tired. maybe he just—
"are you okay, or are you plotting an intergalactic war?"
jake's head snaps up.
you stand at the doorway, arms crossed, eyebrows quirked in amusement. you’re holding a different set of documents, clearly in the middle of your usual rounds, but now you’re just watching him suffer.
"i’m fine," he says flatly.
"uh-huh. that’s why you look like you want to launch yourself into a black hole."
jake pinches the bridge of his nose. "i lost something." he’s seen you before, weren’t you the person from yesterday? the one who tripped over air?
you hum, stepping inside. "what?"
“the dark energy survey report.”
at that, you pause. a flicker of something crosses your face, like you’re remembering something.
jake notices. “what?”
“nothing,” you say automatically. then, a second later, “wait. you’re sure you left it on your desk?”
“yes.”
“you’re sure sure?”
jake glares. “i don’t say things i’m not sure about.”
you give him a look, like you find that highly debatable, but instead of arguing, you shift the documents in your hands and tilt your head in thought.
"because," you start, "i came in yesterday to drop off a memo from dr. lee, and i remember seeing your desk. it was already a disaster zone, but i don’t think that report was there."
jake frowns. "that’s impossible. i was working on it last night—"
and then it clicks.
his expression shifts, frustration turning into something more like realization.
“oh,” he says.
“oh?” you echo.
jake straightens, rubbing his jaw. he had been talking to jay and sunghoon about data discrepancies in the report yesterday. they had moved to the adjacent lab to compare notes on a new simulation model—
shit.
"i think i left it in lab c," jake sighs, already making a beeline for the door. "i took it with me while discussing—"
"—dark matter inconsistencies, right?" you finish dryly, following him out.
jake doesn’t acknowledge that. but you’re right.
as jake strides toward lab c with you trailing behind him, you take a moment to process the absurdity of this situation.
you are an administrative assistant. your job is to schedule meetings, file reports, and occasionally wrestle the coffee machine into submission.
yet, here you are, following the lab's star astrophysicist on a quest for lost paperwork like you’re in some sort of intergalactic treasure hunt.
lab c is as chaotic as you expect it to be. desks cluttered with scattered notes, half-drunk coffee cups balancing precariously on top of stacks of journals, whiteboards filled with scribbles that look more like encrypted messages from an alien race than anything remotely comprehensible.
jake wastes no time. he scans the room, eyes sharp, movements precise. you, on the other hand, stand uselessly by the door, because let’s be honest – you wouldn’t even know what the report looks like if it smacked you in the face.
he mutters under his breath as he sifts through a pile of books, pushing aside a crumpled hoodie and a few loose sheets. “it should be here…”
“you know, for a genius, you’re pretty bad at keeping track of your own stuff.”
jake shoots you a look. “i have a system.”
you snort. “a system of losing things?”
he doesn’t dignify that with a response. instead, he bends down, checking under a table. you take this as an opportunity to glance around the lab, pretending like you’re helping even though you don’t know what you’re looking for.
then you spot it. a thick, spiral-bound stack of papers shoved to the very edge of a side desk, partially covered by a takeout container.
“uh… dr. sim?”
“what?” he asks, voice distracted as he pulls open a drawer.
you point. “is that it?”
jake follows your gaze, and for a second, he just stares.
then, with a slow exhale, he walks over, picks up the report, and flips through the pages.
“…yeah.” he sighs, a muscle in his jaw flexing. “this is it.”
you cross your arms, grinning. “you’re welcome.”
he glances at you, eyes narrowing slightly. “you didn’t actually do anything.”
“excuse me? i found it.”
jake shakes his head, turning his attention back to the report. “if you weren’t distracting me, i would’ve found it faster.”
your mouth falls open. “oh, i’m sorry – who was about to tear his entire office apart thinking it had magically disappeared?”
jake ignores you, already skimming through the contents like the numbers and graphs hold the secrets of the universe.
you roll your eyes. this man is impossible.
and it's a fact you make known very clearly when you’re in the break room, muttering under your breath about how a simple thanks would have sufficed, but no, jake sim is a dumbass with his head up his–
“woah, woah y/n, you know you don’t really mean that,” jay interrupts your rant with a smile that shows that he’s clearly enjoying this, “what did the man ever do to you?”
what did he do to you?
“well for one, he didn’t even know i existed until yesterday–”
“give him a break, he’d probably forget his own name with all the things that go around in that brain of his.”
“–and then he scoffed at me when he realised i’m just an assistant–”
“i don’t think he meant any offense.”
“and then today, he didn’t remember me of course and when i helped him find that damn report he didn’t even thank me!”
jay lets out a small laugh. “he was probably just too relieved that he found it. he’s been stressing over that for a while.”
you squint at him. “what are you, his boyfriend?”
your pout is completely involuntary, but jay, the traitor, just smirks knowingly.
he raises an eyebrow, clearly holding back laughter. “not yet. but hey, if he keeps ignoring you like this, i might have a chance.”
you groan, dramatically flopping onto one of the break room chairs. “i swear i’m going to lose my mind!”
jay snickers, settling into the chair across from you. “you’re being a little dramatic.”
“oh, am i?” you lean forward, eyes narrowing. “because i don’t think i am. i think this is a completely rational response to being treated like a piece of office furniture.”
jay bites back a smile. “so you’re saying jake treats you like… a chair?”
“no! worse! at least a chair gets sat on – it has a purpose!” you throw your hands up. “i’m like… i’m like an extra paperclip. you know? just there, completely overlooked, until one day he might need me for something and then immediately forgets i exist again.”
jay blinks. “that is… oddly specific.”
“because it’s true!” you shoot up from your seat, now fully committed to the metaphor.
jay opens his mouth, but you’re already spiraling.
“three months – that’s how long i’ve been working here as his assistant, but he didn’t even know my name!” you don’t why it bothers you, you didn’t expect everyone to know your name here, but that damn jake sim just… got on your nerves for some reason.
“last week, when he bumped into me in the hallway. i swear, jay, i could have been a ghost. no ‘excuse me,’ no ‘oh, my bad,’ nothing! i could’ve been a gust of wind for all he cared.” you throw up air quotes. “just a mild inconvenience in his trajectory.”
jay hums. “maybe he just didn’t see you—”
“i was wearing a bright red sweater, jay.”
jay coughs to hide a laugh. “okay, fair.”
“oh, and this morning? i held the elevator door open for him. you know what he did? he walked in, pulled out his phone, and scrolled on it the entire time like i was the automatic door button.” you gasp. “oh my god, i’m not even a paperclip. i’m a goddamn elevator button – just pressed when needed and ignored otherwise.”
at this, jay actually doubles over laughing, wiping at his eyes. “y/n, i’m begging you, please breathe.”
you exhale sharply, arms crossed, foot tapping against the floor. “i refuse.”
jay grins. “so you’re telling me you’re this upset because he, what, didn’t grovel at your feet for holding a door open?”
you scoff. “i’m not asking for groveling! i’m asking for basic human decency! a thank you! a nod! a brief moment of eye contact! something to prove that i’m not just an inanimate object in his world! to at least memorize his own goddamn assistant’s name!”
jay leans back in his chair, arms crossed. “so basically… you want him to notice you.”
you freeze.
jay’s smirk deepens. “ohhh.”
“no.” you point a warning finger at him. “don’t even go there.”
“but we’re already here.” he has a shit eating grin on his face which you want to slap off, “why is this bothering you so much? i swear i can’t remember you being this antsy when sunghoon avoided you in your first month.”
you scoff at that, a dry laugh following.
why? because you’re his goddamn assistant, not sunghoon’s.
“okay, what about last month? he walked into the office looking like a lost child because he forgot his laptop charger. guess who lent him one?”
jay winces. “you?”
“yes! and do you know what he said to me? ‘oh, you have one? cool, thanks, man.’ ” you pause, scowling. “man, jay. man.”
jay laughs. “okay, that’s a little rough.”
“i’m not done.” you hold up a finger, eyes ablaze. “lunch break. he was on the phone, right? kept checking his watch like he was late for something, totally zoned out. he dropped his damn wallet right in front of my salad.”
jay whistles. “and let me guess…?”
“i picked it up, ran down four flights of stairs because the elevator was taking too long, found him outside, and handed it to him before he even realized it was gone.” you cross your arms. “do you think he looked at me? do you think he was even the slightest bit aware that he nearly walked into financial ruin?”
jay grins. “what did he say?”
you deepen your voice in the best jake impression you can manage. “‘oh, sick, thanks, dude.’ ” you slap your hands on the table. “dude.”
jay is fully laughing now, shaking his head. “wow. okay. that is… a lot.”
“right?” you throw yourself back into the chair, hands dramatically covering your face. “i’m literally the human equivalent of an undo button. always there, fixing things, never noticed. just a—”
“a paperclip?”
“exactly!”
jay smirks, taking a sip of his coffee. “you could just stop helping him, you know.”
you scoff. “and let him walk around with a dead laptop, no lunch money, and a general lack of survival skills? please. he’d die within the week.”
jay snickers. “so you want to help him?”
“no, i just…” you hesitate, glaring at the table. “it’s not fair that he gets to be so careless and people like me have to pick up after him.”
jay tilts his head. “people like you?”
“people who actually pay attention,” you mutter, running a frustrated hand through your hair. “it’s so easy for him, you know? he gets to waltz through life, forgetting names, misplacing things, just… assuming everything will work out for him. and the worst part? he’s right. because someone like me is always there to make sure it does.”
jay watches you quietly for a second. “y/n…”
you shake your head, standing up and grabbing your coffee. “whatever. it’s fine. it’s not like he’s doing it on purpose.” you glance at jay. “and no, before you say it, it’s not because i want him to notice me. it’s just…” you sigh. “it’d be nice to feel like i exist.”
jay gives you a knowing look but doesn’t push further. “well. if it makes you feel better, i notice you.”
you snort. “wow. how reassuring.”
but even as you joke, there’s a tiny, sinking feeling in your chest.
because deep down, you know – jake sim will never notice you the way you want him to.
okay, now that shouldn't be a problem. because the way you put it, anyone would conclude you have a thing for him, but that’s not it. because you don’t mention to jay how when you were just a week into the new job, you had spilled coffee all over yourself, and jake sim had been the one to hand you the spare hoodie in his arm.
it had smelled like laundry detergent and something vaguely citrusy. clean. warm.
you don’t tell jay how, back then, you had hesitated before taking it, surprised that the lab’s most brilliant astrophysicist had even noticed your minor catastrophe.
“here,” he had said, casual, like it was nothing. like it was just a reflex.
and maybe it had been.
because when you had stammered out a “thank you,” jake had already turned away, scrolling through his phone.
like you weren’t even there.
like handing a coffee-stained assistant his hoodie was just another thing on his long list of unconscious habits – like losing reports, misplacing wallets, or forgetting names.
just another thing he would never think about again.
and you? you had worn that hoodie for the rest of the day. then, after work, you had folded it neatly, walked up to him in the break room, and said, “hey, thanks again for this.”
and he had blinked at you. blinked like he had no idea what you were talking about.
“oh,” he had said after a beat, glancing at the hoodie in your hands. “right. cool.”
that was the first time you had felt it – the quiet, sinking realization that in jake sim’s world, you were just… background noise.
that was three months ago.
now, you’re still here, still stuck in the same loop, orbiting his chaotic existence like some unnoticed planetary body, pulled in by the sheer force of his gravitational field but never quite seen.
and it’s exhausting.
you sigh, dragging a hand down your face. jay is still watching you, amused but not unkind. “are you done spiraling?”
you groan. “i hate you.”
“no, you don’t.”
you glare. “no, but i might start.”
jay snickers, pushing his coffee toward you like some sort of peace offering. “here. take a sip before you actually implode.”
you roll your eyes but take it anyway, muttering under your breath.
jay grins. “so, what’s the plan?”
you blink. “plan?”
“yeah.” he leans back, crossing his arms. “clearly, you’re at your limit. are you going to keep playing office paperclip, or are you finally going to make jake sim realize you exist?”
you scoff, your eyes narrowing. “and why would i need to do that?”
jay hums, tilting his head like he’s studying you under a microscope. “y’know… i think this might be deeper than just wanting to be ‘noticed.’”
you narrow your eyes. “the hell does that mean?”
he taps his chin. “i mean, it’s kinda funny, isn’t it? how personally you take this?”
you scoff. “i do not take it personally.”
jay gives you a look. “right. which is why you’re two seconds away from stabbing a straw through that coffee cup.”
you immediately release your grip, only to cross your arms instead. “i just think it’s rude, that’s all. i do so much for him, and he doesn’t even know my name? it’s basic decency.”
jay nods, way too agreeable. “mhm. basic decency. has nothing to do with, say… i don’t know… a deep-seated need for validation?”
your jaw drops. “excuse me?”
“or,” he continues, as if he didn’t just hit you with psychological warfare over morning coffee, “maybe even something more?”
you blink. “more?”
jay grins like he’s just won the lottery. “yeah. like romantic feelings.”
you almost choke. “i—what—no—”
jay shrugs. “i mean, it would explain a lot.”
“oh, shut up.”
“i’m serious! if this were just about office politics, you’d be annoyed for, like, a day. maybe a week. but this?” he gestures vaguely at your entire existence. “this is an obsession.”
you point a finger at him. “i hate you.”
he smirks. “no, you don’t.”
you take a deep breath, trying not to lose your mind. “for the last time, jay, i do not like jake sim.”
jay leans forward, smirking. “then prove it.”
you blink. “what?”
“prove it,” he repeats. “if this really isn’t about your feelings, then let’s run an experiment. let’s make jake see you.”
of course the scientist proposes an experiment; you roll your eyes. “that doesn’t prove anything.”
“it proves everything,” he counters. “because if you really don’t care, then it shouldn’t matter how he reacts.” he tilts his head, eyes gleaming. “right?”
you hesitate.
jay takes that as his victory. “great! i’ll draft a game plan.”
“wait—”
too late. jay is already pulling out his phone, typing something with way too much enthusiasm.
you exhale sharply, rubbing your temples. this is a terrible idea.
but the thing is… you do want jake to see you. even if it’s just to prove – to yourself – that you don’t care.
right?
three.
you know, you don’t think you entirely mind that jake doesn’t know your name yet. you don’t think you would have cared so much. but then, once in a while, you’d catch him having lunch with jay and sunghoon and actually laughing – an act that makes him look younger than he is – a charming smile settling on his lips or chatting with a fellow colleague who he calls by their last name and it makes you realise that you’re probably not as important to him as these people are.
like, come on, he brushes shoulders with the top scientists of your country while you’re here, sitting behind a reception desk, manning phone calls and printing reports. of course he doesn’t care about you or your existence as a whole. but then it’s small things he does like thanking you absentmindedly when you hand him a report, not even sparing you a glance as he flips through the pages.
or humming under his breath when he passes by your desk, like he’s so comfortable in the space that he doesn’t even realize you’re there, like you’re just part of the background noise.
it’s never outright cruel. never intentional.
it’s just that jake sim, in all his effortless brilliance, has never had to make space for people like you.
and why would he? you’re not on his level. you never have been. you bet if you disappeared tomorrow, he wouldn’t even notice.
the world would keep spinning, jake sim would keep working, and someone else would take over the dull, insignificant tasks you do every day. your existence in his orbit is incidental – a means to an end, a faceless cog in the well-oiled machine of his career.
and yet, you notice him. even when you don’t mean to. even when you don’t want to.
you notice the way his sleeves are always rolled up to his elbows, his watch gleaming against his skin. the way his brows pinch together when he’s deep in thought, or how his hair falls into his eyes when he’s exhausted, too overworked to care.
you notice the way he speaks – smooth, confident, magnetic – and how everyone around him seems to hang onto every word like it’s gospel.
you notice the way he never fumbles. never hesitates. never second-guesses himself.
because that’s just the kind of person jake sim is.
and you – you are just the kind of person who will never be enough to matter to someone like him. but then he does things that make you doubt your reservations about him.
like, there was the elevator incident.
you were balancing a precarious stack of documents when you rushed to catch the closing doors, only to wince when they slid shut right before you got there. you sighed, shifting your grip on the papers, when you suddenly heard a soft ding – the doors sliding back open.
jake was inside, one hand on the door button, barely sparing you a glance as he scrolled through something on his phone.
you stepped in, mumbling a quiet, “thanks.”
he hummed in response. nothing more. no conversation. no recognition. just the soft whirring of the elevator and the occasional sound of him scrolling.
it was so small. so insignificant.
but you still felt yourself standing just a little straighter, just a little warmer, for the rest of the day.
and then, there was the pen.
you weren’t even sure when it started, but at some point, you began keeping track.
jake had this habit – whenever he borrowed a pen, he never returned it to the original spot. he didn’t even seem to notice he was doing it, always too focused on whatever was in front of him to realize he’d left the pen somewhere completely different.
so, naturally, you started leaving extras.
just subtle little things – placing an extra pen near his usual meeting spots, sliding one closer to him during group discussions when you were pretending to sort paperwork nearby. you never expected him to notice. you weren’t even sure why you did it.
until one afternoon, when you sat at your desk, rummaging through your drawers, only to realize you’d somehow misplaced your pen. you sighed, about to get up for a new one, when something was set down beside your elbow.
a pen.
you looked up, startled.
jake was already walking away. didn’t even spare you a glance, his attention on the tablet in his hands.
you stared after him, the pen warm from his hold, the weight of it heavier than it should have been.
it was probably nothing. probably just a reflex.
but you still use that pen for the next two weeks straight.
then there was the tripping incident.
now, it’s established that you can be clumsy, not dramatically so – no full-on disaster movie falls – but you do have a tendency to bump into things. desks, chairs, open cabinet doors that definitely weren’t open when you last checked.
and, of course, corners. corners were your worst enemy.
one day, you were hurrying through the hallway, files stacked high in your arms, when – bam. your hip slammed into the sharp edge of a desk, hard enough to make you wince. the papers wobbled dangerously in your grip, and you cursed under your breath, already anticipating the bruise that was definitely going to form.
you didn’t think anyone noticed.
but the next morning, when you walked into the office, there was a strip of foam padding stuck neatly along the desk corner.
your brows furrowed.
it was subtle – so subtle that if you weren’t you, if you weren’t someone with a running list of all the places in this office that had betrayed you, you probably wouldn’t have noticed.
but you did.
and later that day, when you caught jake in the break room, he was patting the foam as if ensuring it was stuck on there properly, absentmindedly nodding to himself as if he had confirmed what he was inspecting, then promptly left without sparing you a second glance.
you didn’t say anything.
didn’t bring it up.
but as you passed by the desk, running your fingers over the softened edge, something in your chest ached. just a little.
so jake sim did notice you – but not as an individual, just someone he thought might be having a hard time and because he is kind, he did what he could. it didn’t matter who the recipient of his good intentions was.
hence, you do what a good assistant does. because at the end of the day, you’ve seen jake work – you’ve seen the passion he pours into it.
so if he forgets to eat, you quietly step away from your desk, heat up the extra sandwich you packed for him from the cafeteria, and place it on his cluttered desk, clearing a small space first. a gentle knock on the wood to get his attention, a silent reminder to eat.
if he’s scribbling on the backs of old reports, running low on notebooks and clean sheets, you take a trip down to inventory, restocking his supplies, stacking them neatly within reach.
if his desk is drowning in coffee cups and crumpled post-its, you quietly dispose of the trash, leaving only the essentials behind – his laptop, his research papers, the single pen he never seems to lose (because you always make sure it’s there).
if he forgets where he placed his whiteboard markers, you don’t say anything – you just pull a fresh set from your drawer and slide them onto his desk before he even notices they were missing.
you’ve just been there, silently observing and noting things – like the way his brows knit together in deep concentration, or how he absently chews on the cap of his pen when he’s stuck on a problem. how he spaces out sometimes, staring at the whiteboard like it holds the answers to the universe itself, only to snap back to reality when you clear your throat to get his attention.
you know that he prefers black coffee in the morning but switches to tea in the late afternoon. that he always loses his glasses, only to find them perched on top of his head. that he hums under his breath when he’s deep in thought, a quiet melody that never quite forms into a song.
you notice everything, because that’s just what a good assistant does.
and that, apparently, is a problem. or so jay states. hence, the first step in jay’s ‘game plan’? make jake feel your absence.
“you’re too available,” jay had said, stirring his coffee with a smug little smirk. “jake doesn’t notice you because you make his life too easy. you’re like air – essential but invisible. so what happens when air gets sucked out of a room?”
“…people die?”
jay gave you a flat look. “no, they panic.”
and so, the plan began.
it’s such a tiny step, but it bothers you nonetheless because not only would this be disrupting jake’s routine, it’d be disrupting your perfect track record of a ‘good’ assistant.
but jay somehow manages to convince you. and you like the utter fool you are, give in, because hey… maybe it wouldn’t be too bad to disprove jay’s theory of your alleged feelings for jake. the need for validation? yeah, we’ll talk about that later.
today is the day you start, and you start small. it’s the little changes that usually go unnoticed.
you don’t remind jake about his 10 am meeting.
it’s a minor detail, barely even a test, because technically speaking, it’s not your job to remind him – it’s just something you’ve always done, anticipating his tendencies to get lost in his work. normally, you’d give him a heads-up around 9:50 am, watching as he’d nod absentmindedly, only to scramble up five minutes later when he finally processed your words.
today? radio silence.
at 10:07 am, sunghoon enters the meeting and frowns.
“where’s jake?” he turns to jay. his friend shrugs but hides the smile behind his cup of coffee.
meanwhile you’re glancing sneakily at jake’s door, slightly ajar and you can see him engrossed in something. your eyes glance at the time; 10:07 am. fuck, what if actually forgets he has a meeting? should you do something? is this going too far?
but you don’t have to worry because a few minutes later, there’s a thud, followed by a rushed shit, and then, a disheveled jake sim barrels past your desk, tablet clutched to his chest, hair a little messy from how he clearly just ran a hand through it in frustration.
his eyes flicker to you – just for a second. you’ve already gone back to pretending to be very busy typing nonsense into an email draft.
it works. he huffs under his breath and rushes to the meeting.
okay you should feel awful, but then you catch the tail end of jake’s coat disappearing behind the lift door and you can’t help the snicker that leaves your lips. surely, nothing could go wrong, right?
there’s one person who seems to be enjoying this more than you though: jay is having the time of his life.
like, actually. he hasn't had this much fun since the last office christmas party, when someone spiked the punch and sunghoon tried to fight the vending machine.
because watching jake sim fall apart over the smallest inconveniences? absolutely hilarious.
the moment you agreed to his plan, jay knew it would be gold. but even he underestimated just how much of jake’s daily functioning depended on you. it’s like watching a toddler suddenly realize their velcro shoes don’t tie themselves.
jake doesn’t realize something is wrong at first.
he barely makes it to his chair before the department head gives him a pointed look.
“you’re late.”
“i—uh—” jake swallows, trying to catch his breath. his tablet is still locked, his notes are disorganized, and when he flips open the file he brought, it’s yesterday’s report.
shit.
“right. sorry.” he forces a sheepish smile, scrambling to pull up the right document. across the table, jay lazily spins a pen between his fingers, watching with barely concealed amusement.
jake barely registers it – he’s too busy trying to recover. it’s fine. he’s got this.
except… something about this morning feels off.
and not in the way most of his chaotic mornings do. he just doesn’t know why. he just assumes his morning is…off. which, fine, it happens. he’s had late nights before, maybe he’s just tired.
jay had told you this would work.
in fact, he was so confident in his plan that he even grabbed a front-row seat to witness the destruction firsthand (he was already attending this meeting, but the man likes to gloat sometimes.)
and man – jake does not disappoint.
from the moment the meeting starts, jay knows this is going to be good.
jake looks off. nothing too obvious – just little things, things that someone like jay (who has spent years around him) can pick up on. the slight furrow of his brow. the way he keeps adjusting his notes, like something feels wrong but he can’t quite place why.
and then – the moment of realization.
jay almost chokes on his coffee when jake subtly pats his pockets, confusion flickering across his face.
oh, here we go.
he watches, barely holding in his laughter, as jake double checks – where, usually, there would be a pen. his pen. the one that miraculously appears every time he loses it, as if the universe itself conspires to keep him functional.
except today?
the universe (or rather, you) has left him to suffer.
jake blinks. blinks again. then, with the air of a man experiencing an existential crisis, slowly reaches for sunghoon’s pen instead.
sunghoon, understandably, looks at him like he’s lost his damn mind.
jay snickers and grabs his phone.
jay park [10:14 am]: what did u doooo
jay park [10:14 am]: he looks like a lost puppy rn lmfao
jay park [10:15 am]: deadass just patted his pockets like he was expecting something to magically appear there??
he glances up again, and – oh god, jake’s still buffering. he’s not even listening anymore, just staring at the table like it personally offended him.
all this over a pen? damn, maybe you were underestimating yourself, jay thinks, because there is no way you were just a paperclip, not if jake’s been this dependent on you.
jay is loving this.
four.
jake doesn’t notice things. not in the way people expect him to.
he notices equations. the subtle patterns in star systems. the way gravitational forces interact in ways most people don’t care to understand. his mind is built for that – patterns, logic, science.
but people? not so much.
back in university, he was dubbed a genius. a prodigy in astrophysics. someone who could map out entire celestial mechanics in his head but would somehow still forget his own birthday if no one reminded him.
the way jake relies on logic, structure, and predictability – because it’s safe. because he understands it. because people? people don’t make sense. they’re inconsistent. they leave. they change their minds. they say one thing and mean another.
but science? science is constant. a star will always burn out the same way under the same conditions. a planet will always follow its orbit. gravity will always exist.
as a kid, he preferred numbers over words, equations over feelings. when the other kids ran around the playground, playing tag or arguing over who was “it,” jake was perfectly content with his space books, tracing the orbits of planets with his fingers, memorizing the speed of light just because he could.
he learned early on that he wasn’t good at reading between the lines. that when someone said ‘i’m fine’, they didn’t always mean it. that people expected you to just know when they needed something, when they wanted comfort, when they wanted you.
jake never knew. so he stopped trying.
science was easier. there was no guesswork, no hidden meanings. an object in motion stays in motion unless acted upon by an outside force. simple. predictable. the universe followed rules, and if jake studied hard enough, he could understand them. he could map them out, make sense of them, never be caught off guard.
but people? people made no sense at all.
and maybe that’s why, when he gets to work and sees that his desk is missing something so stupidly small – a cup of coffee, nothing more – he feels a flicker of something he doesn’t like.
a glitch in the system.
it doesn’t matter, he tells himself. it’s coffee. he can make it himself. he’s a grown adult with multiple degrees. a missing cup of caffeine should not throw him off.
and yet. jake stares at the empty space on his desk.
a week ago, he wouldn’t have noticed. wouldn’t have even thought about it. he never questioned why it was there in the first place, never thought twice about the sticky notes, the extra set of markers that magically appeared when he misplaced his own, the last-minute reminders that kept his schedule from turning into chaos.
he never questioned it. and that, apparently, was the problem.
because for the first time, he has to ask. and he really, really doesn’t want to.
jake debates it, which is insane. why is he overthinking this? it’s a simple request. a normal interaction. but something about it feels… weird. off-balance.
because asking means acknowledging. and acknowledging means admitting that he noticed.
his eye twitches. and after five full minutes of warring with himself, of sneaking glances at you like some kind of cornered animal, he finally forces himself to get up. jake clears his throat as he approaches your desk, hands shoved deep into his pockets. he doesn’t understand why this feels so monumental – why his stomach is twisting over something as simple as coffee.
you’re typing away, entirely focused, but the moment he gets close, you pause, sensing his presence.
your head tilts up, meeting his gaze with that same neutral, professional expression. “need something?”
jake opens his mouth. closes it. shifts on his feet.
this should not be hard. he’s faced oral examinations with award-winning physicists grilling him on quantum mechanics. he’s derived entire theorems on celestial dynamics with nothing but a whiteboard and a bad marker.
"hey," he starts, voice coming out a little too stiff, a little too rehearsed.
you hum, still typing. "what’s up?"
jake exhales. this is ridiculous. just say it.
"i was wondering," he begins, slow and deliberate, "if you could maybe—"
he pauses. rethinks. he doesn’t need coffee. he’s perfectly capable of getting it himself. this is a completely unnecessary conversation. maybe he should just—
you finally glance up, raising a brow. "if i could maybe…?"
jake swallows. why is your stare so expectant? god, this is awful.
he squares his shoulders. "if you could maybe—uh—get me a coffee?"
and you? you don’t even react. no smirk. no teasing. no indication that you know this is sending his pride into a tailspin.
“oh,” you say simply. “sure.”
and then – you go right back to typing.
jake waits. waits.
…that’s it? no acknowledgment?
he stares, baffled, as you finish whatever you’re working on before standing, grabbing your phone like this is just another task.
“i’ll be back in a few minutes.”
jake watches you walk away, his brain short-circuiting. he stares.
something in his brain glitches. for a moment, he just stands there, stuck in some kind of existential paradox.
this isn’t how he thought this would go.
not that he’d planned it out – he’s not that irrational – but he was at least expecting… something. a pointed look. a smug remark. some kind of acknowledgement that this was a thing.
because it was, right?
but you just – left. like it was normal. like it was nothing.
jake blinks, still rooted to the spot. his fingers twitch at his sides, his mind racing through a series of half-formed thoughts, none of which are useful.
this should be a relief. no teasing. no drawn-out conversation. no questioning. just a simple "sure" and the problem is solved.
so why does he feel weirdly unsatisfied?
he exhales sharply, running a hand through his hair before dragging himself back to his desk.
fine. whatever. he got what he wanted. he’ll just sit down, work, and forget this happened.
simple. logical – except it’s not.
because now – now he’s waiting.
not actively, of course. he’s working. or at least, he’s trying to work. but for some godforsaken reason, his mind keeps drifting to the sound of approaching footsteps, to the faintest movements in his periphery.
it’s ridiculous. he knows that. he’s not that dependent on routine. it’s just coffee.
when you finally return, setting the cup down on his desk with a quiet thud, he doesn’t mean to react.
but his head snaps up immediately, eyes locking onto the cup before flickering to you, his brain processing entirely too fast for his own good.
same lid. same brand. same order.
how the hell—
"you got the right one," he blurts before he can stop himself.
you blink at him, expression unreadable. "yeah. that’s the one you always drink."
jake stares.
you say it so easily, like it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
like it’s just fact. like he’s the one being weird.
and maybe he is, because something about that – about the casual certainty in your voice – makes his chest feel tight in a way he doesn’t understand.
"right," he mutters, looking away. "of course."
you don’t say anything. just nod, turning back toward your desk.
jake watches you go, fingers wrapping around the cup, the warmth grounding him.
he doesn’t know why this feels significant. but somehow, it does.
you, on the other hand, mask your smile behind your hand, making sure you don’t spare him a glance as you take your seat again, eyes focusing on your screen, but you’re secretly enjoying your little victory.
and maybe your little win seemingly makes your happiness evident because jay seems to have caught on to your little smile and quiet humming as you load more paper into the printer later on.
“what’s got you humming?”
you blink at jay, feigning innocence. "huh?"
jay narrows his eyes like a detective who knows exactly when the suspect is lying. "you’re humming. and smiling. while printing documents. no one’s ever been this happy about office supplies."
you shrug, deliberately casual. "maybe i just like my job."
"oh, sure. and i’m the next ceo of nasa," jay scoffs, crossing his arms. "no, you’re definitely smiling about something else. spill."
you roll your eyes but can’t stop the small grin from creeping back onto your lips. "it’s nothing. just… a small win."
jay’s gaze sharpens with intrigue. "a small win? against who?"
you pause, realizing that if you say it out loud, it becomes real. but you can’t help it – you’re feeling a little smug. "jake."
jay’s eyebrows shoot up so fast you half expect them to launch into orbit. "oh? oh? do tell."
you bite your lip, pretending to be focused on aligning the printer paper. "i think he finally noticed."
jay leans in, practically vibrating with excitement. "noticed what? that you exist? that you’re cute? that you’re literally the only reason he functions? because if so, then this is big news—"
you wave a hand, shushing him. "not that dramatic. just… the coffee. he asked me for it today. like, actually asked."
jay goes still, then blinks. "no."
"yes."
"no." jay looks personally offended that he wasn’t there to witness it. "you’re telling me jake sim – the human calculator who forgets basic human needs – actually acknowledged the loss of his coffee?"
"and that i was the one providing it," you add, feeling very pleased with yourself.
jay lets out a low whistle. "damn. that’s practically a confession in jake language."
you chuckle. "i know, right? and the best part? he was so awkward about it. like, visibly struggling to form a coherent request. it was beautiful."
jay looks like a proud parent. "i knew my plan would work."
you snort. "you had a plan?"
"of course! i told you, jake needs to experience loss to appreciate things. he’s like a tragic space hero who doesn’t realize what he has until it’s gone. but now? now he’s thinking about it. which means he’s thinking about you."
you roll your eyes. "don’t be ridiculous. it was just coffee."
jay gives you a look. "uh-huh. and yet, you’re humming like a disney princess who just got her magical moment."
you huff, turning back to the printer, but the warmth in your chest remains. you won’t admit it to jay, but it does feel like a small win. because for once, jake noticed something about you. and even if it was just coffee, it was your coffee. your absence. your presence. you.
the thought makes your stomach flutter a little, but before you can dwell on it, the door swings open.
and, of course, in perfect comedic timing, jake himself walks in.
you and jay freeze.
jake pauses mid-step, eyes flicking between the two of you, and immediately, you feel caught. not that you were doing anything wrong, but the way jay is grinning like a devil on your shoulder and the way you definitely look suspicious does not help your case.
jake frowns slightly. "am i interrupting something?"
"no," you and jay say in unison – too quickly, too forcefully.
jake’s frown deepens. "…right."
jay, ever the agent of chaos, suddenly smirks. "hey, jake, buddy, pal. how was the coffee this morning?"
your soul leaves your body.
jake blinks, caught off guard. "what?"
jay nods toward you. "the coffee. did it taste better? sweeter, maybe? like the hard-earned fruits of personal growth?"
you shoot jay a look that could incinerate a small planet, but he just grins wider.
jake, meanwhile, looks completely baffled. "it… tasted the same?"
jay sighs dramatically. "ugh, you’re hopeless."
jake looks at you now, confusion clear in his expression. "what’s going on?"
you scramble for an escape. "nothing. jay’s just being weird. as usual."
jake’s eyes narrow slightly, but he doesn’t push further. instead, he just shakes his head, muttering something about how he "doesn’t have time for whatever this is." then, to your surprise, his gaze lingers on you for half a second longer before he turns and leaves.
as soon as the door clicks shut, jay explodes.
"did you see that? he lingered! that was a lingering glance!"
you groan, dragging a hand down your face. "jay. stop."
"oh, no, no, no. this is happening. i can feel it. the great jake sim has been rattled."
you shake your head, but you’re smiling. "don’t you have that meeting with kang soon? are you sure you should be dawdling?"
jay waves a dismissive hand. “pfft. kang can wait. this is much more important.”
you roll your eyes, shoving a stack of papers into his hands. “go. before he chews you out again.”
jay huffs but takes the papers anyway. “fine. but mark my words – this is just the beginning.”
you snort. “of what?”
jay grins, backing toward the door. “of jake sim’s inevitable downfall.”
before you can throw something at him, he slips out of the room with a dramatic twirl, leaving you alone with your thoughts.
you exhale. jay is ridiculous. insufferable. an agent of chaos in the worst way.
but still… your fingers drum against your desk.
jake had lingered. just for a second. just long enough to make you wonder.
you shake your head, clearing the thought. it’s nothing. probably just your imagination.
probably.
five.
jake never really thought about his assistant.
sure, he knew you existed in the same way he knew his office had walls or that gravity kept him tethered to earth. a presence. a constant. background noise.
his research came first. always. anything outside of equations and astrophysics was just static.
which is why, when his inbox suddenly becomes a nightmare of unread emails, cluttered with everything from seminar invites to missed project deadlines, he stares at the screen in horror.
since when did his inbox look like this?
he scrolls. and scrolls. and scrolls.
the last time he checked, his emails were organized. neat little folders, color-coded labels – everything in its place. now, it’s chaos. absolute chaos.
his brows furrow in mild horror and yet again, he gets this feeling, like the earth’s off its axis, like his curated life is suddenly off kilter.
he looks up, and across the room, eyes peeking through his door that is kept ajar. you sit there today, in a navy blue sweater, your hair pushed back neatly, your glasses reflecting the glare off your screen you’re currently frowning at.
was this also something you used to do for him? or did his inbox suddenly decide to get a mind of its own and go batshit crazy on him? no, that doesn’t make sense, unless he was hacked which would definitely be a cause of national concern to a certain extent—
he jolts in his seat, a gasp leaving his lips as you suddenly move away from your desk, standing up with a stack of papers. he positively feels his heart skipping a beat as he realises you’re walking to his door.
sure enough, there’s a knock a second later and if you notice the way his voice cracks when he tells you to come in, you don’t comment on it. instead, you look at him like you meant business.
oh god, you didn’t notice him looking at you, right? technically he wasn’t really staring more so than contemplating—
“dr. sim, the finance department dropped a reminder to submit your financial budget, here’s the budget form,” you hand him the stack of papers you had been carrying, “i’ve filled out the general stuff, you just need to put in the project details and all the technical stuff.”
he flips through the pages and sure enough, you’ve filled in the general details like you mentioned in your neat handwriting. the letters sit right on top of the blank lines and he recognises your penmanship right away. he’s never noticed before, but you do have a nice handwriting.
“oh and about your emails, there seems to be some sort of technical error. i noticed that some of your filters were disabled and the auto-sorting wasn’t functioning properly. it must’ve reset or something when the system updated last week.”
jake blinks at you. “wait. filters?”
you tilt your head. “yeah? you know, the ones that sort your emails automatically? important updates, admin notices, junk mail, things like that?”
jake stares. “i… had those?”
you pause, narrowing your eyes slightly. “yes. you did. i set them up for you.”
“oh.” a beat of silence. jake shifts uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his neck. you, on the other hand, exhale sharply, planting your hands on your hips. here he was, a grown ass man, unaware of his own email settings. but what’s more infuriating to you right now is the way he’s clearly looking at the mess of his inbox with the expression of a child faced with university level physics.
and it's really unfair because your brain actually has the audacity to chant a small ‘cute’ inside your head.
no. no. absolutely not.
you refuse to acknowledge whatever strange, fleeting thought just ran through your brain.
because jake sim is not cute. he’s frustrating. he’s a genius, sure, but in a hopelessly oblivious kind of way. the somehow-can-manage-quantum-equations-but-not-his-own-inbox kind of way. the so deep in his own head that he barely notices when you’re cleaning up the mess he leaves behind, kind of way.
except… he’s noticing now.
you clear your throat, shoving away any ridiculous thoughts. “right. anyway, i can help reset everything, but you’ll need to go through some of these emails yourself. some require your direct response.”
jake tears his eyes away from his screen, blinking at you. “wait, so my emails weren’t always like this?”
you give him a look. the kind that says, oh, you poor, oblivious man.
“no, dr. sim,” you say, tone patient but mildly exasperated. “i used to sort them out for you.”
jake stares. “you did?”
you nod. “yeah. you know, filtering out spam, organizing your schedule, responding to minor inquiries.” all the things that apparently, no one else on this team can do without suffering a minor breakdown.
jake opens his mouth, then closes it. then it opens again. his head tilts slightly. “wait. you did all of that?”
you resist the urge to pinch the bridge of your nose. “dr. sim,” you say, very slowly, “what did you think i was doing all this time?”
jake, to his credit, looks vaguely sheepish. “i don’t know. admin stuff?”
you exhale, looking up at the ceiling like you’re asking the universe for patience.
“your inbox has over five hundred unread emails.”
he visibly recoils. “five hundred?”
“yes. and you have three missed deadlines.”
jake stares, running a hand down his face. “oh my god. i’m going to get fired.”
you shrug. “probably not, but kang will definitely strangle you.”
you take one look at the mild look of panic settling on his face, the ways his lips part open and his eyes fixate upon you like he’s constipated all of a sudden, and you realise that you’re going to have to save him again. so much for making yourself scarce.
“well,” you sigh, dropping your hands, “i can go through it and fix the filters again, but you should probably clear things out manually first. you have a lot of backlog.”
jake slumps back in his chair, groaning. “i don’t have time for this.”
“tough luck. you’re the one who ignored your emails for a week.”
jake groans again, scrubbing a hand over his face. his hair is slightly disheveled now, strands falling over his forehead. you refuse to acknowledge the way your fingers twitch with the urge to push them back. nope. absolutely not.
instead, you cross your arms and tilt your head. "look, dr. sim, i can reset everything, but you need to at least check the important ones. you know, like the ones from kang before he marches in here and reconsiders your employment."
jake peeks at you through his fingers, mumbling something that sounds suspiciously like i should’ve never updated the system.
you sigh. "i'll go through them with you."
his hands drop, eyes snapping to yours. "you will?"
damn it. the hope in his voice makes something in your stomach twist. this isn’t supposed to happen. you’re supposed to be pulling away, making yourself scarce, not signing yourself up to hold his hand through his self-inflicted disaster.
but you sigh again, already regretting it. "yes, but only for today."
jake beams. actually beams. like you've just told him you're personally funding his next research project.
and oh, that is dangerous.
because the realization sneaks up on you, quiet but insidious: he looks really good when he smiles like that.
your brain promptly malfunctions.
jake, oblivious as always, is already turning his chair to face his computer. "okay, okay. what do we start with?"
you stare for a second too long before shaking yourself out of it.
get it together.
right. his emails. that's what you should be focusing on. not the fact that your stupid heart is doing something stupid again.
so you square your shoulders, push away the ridiculous heat rising to your cheeks, and step closer to his desk – because unfortunately, you are nothing if not professional.
even when your chest feels like it’s betraying you.
by the time the sun starts dipping below the horizon, casting a warm orange glow into the office, you realize with a dull sense of horror that you are still here.
still here. still working.
because, of course, jake spent the entire day buried in his research, completely unaware of the absolute mess waiting for him in his inbox. and now, after work hours, you’re forced to stay behind, sorting through the wreckage.
you shoot a glare at the oblivious man, who is hunched over his desk, frowning at his screen as if he’s personally uncovering the secrets of the universe. his sleeves are rolled up, glasses slightly askew, completely absorbed in his work.
annoying. but also, kind of impressive.
you clear your throat, rapping your knuckles on his door. “dr. sim, did you know that your inbox is starting to resemble a warzone?”
jake barely looks up. “mhm.”
“there are emails in here from last year.”
he finally blinks, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. “wait. what?”
you deadpan. “last. year.”
jake stares. “that’s not possible.”
“would you like to see the one from july 2024? it’s an invitation to a seminar. that already happened. that you missed.”
a horrified silence settles between you. jake leans forward, mouth slightly open, and for a second, you think he might actually pass out. “holy shit.”
you snort, shaking your head. then, sighing, you gesture toward his screen. “okay, come on, let’s start deleting the ones that don’t matter. at this rate, your inbox might actually implode.”
jake groans again but does as you say, clicking through emails with the enthusiasm of someone undergoing dental surgery.
an hour later, the two of you are still sitting in his office. you’re perched on the chair across from him, legs crossed as you scroll through his inbox, muttering complaints every now and then (why do you have thirty unread emails from the astronomy board? what is so ‘urgent’ about a faculty brunch?).
jake, on the other hand, is desperately trying to keep up, deleting and archiving whatever you tell him to. he’s drowning in emails and vaguely wondering if he should just… never check his inbox again.
the sky outside has darkened, streaks of orange and pink melting into deep blue. the office feels different at this hour – quieter, softer. there’s a warmth from the sunset filtering through the blinds, casting long shadows across the floor.
you’ve never been alone with jake like this before.
not that it matters. because all you’re doing is working. but still.
you steal a quick glance at him.
he’s different when he’s not hyper-focused on research. a little less untouchable, a little more human. his brows are furrowed as he reads through an email, one hand resting on his chin. his glasses have slipped down again, and without thinking, he pushes them back up with his knuckle.
you look away.
get a grip.
meanwhile, jake is having a bit of a crisis.
because, apparently, you’ve always been this efficient.
like, okay, he knew you were capable. obviously. you’ve been his assistant for months. but watching you now, the way you go through emails like a machine, fingers flying across the keyboard, perfectly organized with your neat little color-coded tabs—
he’s a little bit in awe. and maybe a tiny bit alarmed.
because how the hell did he not realize before that you basically ran his life for him?
the sun is starting to dip, casting a golden hue through the blinds, stretching long shadows over his desk. jake leans back, rubbing his eyes, only to glance at you and—
he sees you. for the first time in three months, he’s actually looking at you.
your sweater hangs slightly off one shoulder, the shirt underneath only slightly wrinkled, your hair a little messier than it was earlier, strands falling out of place.
and you look… exhausted.
not in the dramatic, world-weary way that some of his colleagues do after pulling all-nighters, but in a quieter, more subtle way – like you’ve been running on autopilot for so long that you don’t even notice it anymore.
jake frowns. has it always been like this? have you always been like this?
his gaze flickers back to your screen, where you’re still typing away, making quick work of the disaster that is his inbox. there’s a slight crease between your brows, your lips pressed together in quiet concentration. you’re meticulous, efficient – almost too efficient, and that thought unsettles him in a way he can’t quite explain.
“you should go home,” he says before he even thinks about it.
you glance up, startled. “what?”
“you’ve been here all day,” he says, shifting in his seat. “it’s late.”
you blink at him, then glance at the clock on the corner of your screen. the numbers glow back at you – 7:47 pm.
“oh,” you murmur, tilting your head. “i guess it is.”
jake waits for you to start packing up, but instead, you just roll your shoulders back, crack your knuckles, and go right back to typing.
he stares. “did you – did you not hear me?”
you don’t even look up. “i heard you.”
“then why are you still working?”
you pause at that, finally looking at him. there’s something almost amused in your expression, like really? you’re questioning my work habits?
“i still have emails to sort through,” you say, as if it’s the most obvious thing in the world.
jake presses his lips together. right. of course. because of course you wouldn’t just drop everything and leave, because if you did, then who would make sure his inbox didn’t look like a post-apocalyptic wasteland?
and that thought sits a little too heavily in his chest. it's just that, he doesn’t get it.
he clears his throat, looking away. “still. you don’t have to do it all tonight.”
you shrug. “it’s fine. i don’t mind.”
for some reason, that irritates him more than it should.
jake doesn’t understand why. it’s not like you’re doing anything out of the ordinary. from what he can deduce from your conversation earlier this morning, you’ve always been the one keeping things together, making sure nothing slips through the cracks. that’s your job.
you could probably come back tomorrow and sort through the remaining emails. it’s not like they’re going anywhere.
but for the first time, he wonders – do you ever get tired of it?
his fingers drum against his desk. the golden light from the window glows softer now, settling into deep orange hues. the air between you is quiet, save for the occasional click of your keyboard and the distant hum of the office beyond his door.
and then, without thinking, he says, “i didn’t realize you did all this.”
you pause mid-keystroke, glancing at him. “did all what?”
“this.” he gestures vaguely to his laptop, to the neatly categorized folders, to the once-chaotic inbox now halfway tamed under your careful hands. “you keep everything running. i didn’t realize how much you—” he stops himself, brows furrowing slightly. “—how much you do.”
you blink at him. and for the first time all day, you seem caught off guard.
then, a slow, knowing smile tugs at the corner of your lips. “oh, dr. sim,” you say lightly, tilting your head, “have you been taking me for granted all this time?”
jake bristles, straightening. “that’s not what i meant.”
you laugh, shaking your head. “relax, i’m kidding.”
but something about the way you say it makes his stomach twist.
because maybe you are joking. maybe you don’t actually care that he’s never paid much attention before.
but he cares. and that realization unsettles him more than he’d like to admit.
you turn your attention towards the screen again, biting your lip as you skim through his emails, occasionally frowning like you’re personally offended by his disorganization.
jake watches you for another moment before looking away, tapping his fingers against the desk.
his chest feels… weird. like the earth’s still off its axis. like something’s shifted in a way he doesn’t quite understand.
and for the first time, jake wonders if maybe – just maybe – it has something to do with you.
six.
the only times jake has thanked you have been in passing. like when you hand him a report, his fingers brushing against yours but his gaze still focused on his screen. a clipped "thanks" thrown out as he scrolls through equations and research notes. thoughtless, automatic, routine.
so you don’t expect it this time around.
you don’t think much of it at first.
jake walks in, looking as harried as ever, his hair slightly tousled from the wind outside, one hand holding his laptop, the other gripping his usual coffee. business as usual.
except — there’s a cup of coffee in his hand. no scratch that, there’s two cups of coffee in his hands.
he stops in front of your desk, looking mildly uncomfortable, like he’s second-guessing his own existence. and then, without a word, he sets the second cup in front of you.
you blink. “uh. what’s this?”
jake clears his throat, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. “coffee.”
“no, i know it’s coffee, dr. sim.” you stare at the cup suspiciously. “why is it on my desk?”
he looks at you like you just asked him to solve a quantum mechanics equation without a calculator. “because… i got it for you?”
you squint. “why?”
jake pauses. his jaw tightens. then, with the energy of a man barely holding onto his dignity, he mutters, “because you – helped. with the emails.”
you swear to god, it physically pains him to say it. but holy shit, because not only did the jake sim get his own coffee today, he got one for you – his assistant, for the first time in three months.
you decide to let him off the hook. for now. “well. thanks,” you say, taking a sip, trying not to let the heat rising to your cheeks show.
jake mutters something under his breath that sounds suspiciously like no worries, before retreating to his office.
you watch him go, mildly amused.
“oh-ho-ho, what do we have here?”
you don’t even flinch as jay suddenly appears beside you, arms crossed, sunglasses perched on his head like he’s about to make an investigation.
you sip your coffee. “don’t start.”
jay ignores you. “jake sim. buying coffee. for someone else. this is history in the making.”
you sigh. “jay.”
he leans in dramatically. “do you know how many years i’ve known that man? years, y/n. and not once has he ever walked into a room and thought, ‘huh. let me get someone coffee.’”
you roll your eyes. “it’s not that deep.”
jay gasps. “oh, but it is.” he lowers his voice, like he’s about to tell you a government secret. “listen. the man barely remembers to eat unless someone reminds him. and suddenly he’s bringing you coffee?”
you pause. jay grins, catching the flicker of hesitation on your face. “see? see? something’s happening in that stiff little brain of his.”
you shake your head. “he’s just… acknowledging that i exist. that’s all.”
jay snorts. “oh, my sweet summer child.” he takes a slow sip of his own coffee, eyes twinkling. “first, it’s coffee. next thing you know, he’s showing up at your desk randomly with some dumb excuse just to talk to you.”
you raise a brow. “that’s oddly specific.”
jay grins. “call it experience.”
you roll your eyes, but as you glance toward jake’s office, where he’s staring at his screen, brow furrowed in concentration…and you wonder.
just a little. because hope would be something too dangerous in this situation. you’re still just his assistant, and this is a one time thing because you helped him last night. so you don’t hope. not yet.
and maybe it's a good thing too.
it starts with a joke.
well, technically, it starts with jay’s complete inability to keep his workspace from looking like an archaeological dig site.
you’re standing by his desk, watching as he fumbles through the mess that is his workspace. papers are stacked in precarious towers, there’s a half-eaten granola bar that has somehow been buried under a pile of sticky notes. a coffee cup with a lipstick stain, even though jay does not wear lipstick.
“you live like this?” you ask, eyebrows raised as you survey the mess.
jay, utterly unbothered, leans back in his chair. “organized chaos.” why does everybody around here insist on working in conditions not far from that of a pigsty?
you shake your head, crossing your arms. “you know nasa once had to recalibrate an entire spacecraft because someone forgot to convert metric to imperial?”
jay snorts. “imagine being that guy.”
“i’d simply launch myself into the sun,” you deadpan.
jay cackles. “real talk, though, you think the sun would just vaporize you instantly, or would you have, like, a second of awareness?”
you hum, dramatically thoughtful. “i dunno, but if i ever get fired, i might test it out.”
“technically—”
you blink as a third voice enters the conversation.
jake stands a few feet away, arms crossed, brow furrowed like you just presented an incorrect equation.
you were not expecting him to be here.
“uh—” you freeze, awkwardly shifting. jay’s eyes gleam with amusement.
jake clears his throat. “technically, you wouldn’t be able to launch yourself into the sun.”
silence.
“…what?” you blink, trying to process what is happening.
jake continues, oblivious to your slowly dawning horror. “you’d just end up orbiting around it. earth is already moving at about 30 kilometers per second, so unless you counteract that velocity exactly, you’d just—” he gestures vaguely. “miss.”
you stare. jay lets out a low, entertained whistle.
your face burns. “i—” you struggle to find words, feeling an overwhelming mix of why is he like this and oh my god he really just did that.
your fingers twitch against your arms. you open your mouth. then close it. then open it again—
nope. nothing. no words. just the slow, creeping realization that this guy has actually just fact-checked your joke.
it wasn’t even a good joke.
your face heats. “wow,” you mutter, focusing very hard on the floor. “thanks for the physics lesson.”
jake nods, completely oblivious to the fact that you are currently plotting your own orbital escape.
jay presses his lips together, struggling.
you let out a breath, shaking your head. “anyway. i have work to do.”
and then you walk out. not in a dramatic, stormy way – but in a stiff, awkward, nope, i’m out kind of way.
jake watches you go, confused. “what’s with her?”
jay grins, leaning back in his chair. “dunno, man. maybe she just needs some space.”
jake doesn’t get the joke. nor does his oblivious ass understand why his assistant is suddenly treating him like an afterthought?
of course this buffoon doesn’t understand. all he’s thinking of is last night and the way you had tiredly bid him goodnight before parting ways in front of the building, your figure growing smaller by the second. his offer to drop you to the nearest bus stand dying on his lips the further you walked away.
and this was a pivotal moment for him because jake? he doesn’t offer rides to people.
in fact, he doesn’t even think to do things like that – until last night, when he’d spent an extra two seconds debating whether he should insist, before realizing that no, that would be weird.
so instead, he had done something else.
this morning, after getting his usual coffee, he’d bought yours too. granted, he didn’t know your order, but he’s sure he’s seen you around with a cup of your own around the office, still he doesn’t really know your order. so he gets you a sweeter variation, a stark contrast to his bitter drink, because in his mind, he’s thinking about this in a logical way.
and you had accepted it, for that matter, sipping on the drink like you actually enjoyed it. so he had been right, you did like sweet drinks. noted. noted?
regardless you had reacted, albeit subtly. a blink. a pause. a slightly surprised but polite, “thanks.”
jake had left it at that, feeling oddly accomplished.
and now? now you’re walking away from him like he’s some malfunctioning algorithm, and it’s annoying.
he frowns, turning to jay, who’s still grinning like an idiot. “seriously. did i do something?”
jay hums, dramatically thoughtful. “i dunno, man. maybe she just needs some space.”
jake stares. “you already said that.”
jay just snickers. “yeah. and i’ll keep saying it until you get the joke.”
jake does not, in fact, get the joke.
but for some reason, he wants to. and this realisation is soon going to turn into something that’s going to keep bothering him till he’s forced to actually take note of it.
it happens at precisely 12:48 pm.
jake glances up from his screen when you hover by his desk, clipboard in hand.
“i’m taking an extended lunch today.”
his fingers pause over his keyboard. “…extended?”
you nod. “yeah, probably won’t be back for another hour and a half.”
jake blinks. “that’s… longer than usual.”
“yeah,” you say easily. “something came up. but don’t worry, you don’t have anything scheduled and i’ve completed the reports on my end, so it’s not going to affect work.”
jake doesn’t know why that information bothers him, but it does. his brows furrow slightly. “okay.”
you nod once, then turn to leave.
jake stares at the empty space you just occupied, something tugging at his brain.
why did that exchange feel weird? no, not weird, just… different. off.
his fingers hover over his keyboard, but he doesn’t start typing.
jake doesn’t even realize something is wrong until his stomach twists uncomfortably.
he frowns, checking the time. 2:13 pm. lunch had passed. and he hadn’t eaten.
he blinks at his screen, but the numbers on it blur. his focus has shifted, derailed by something he never thought would be an issue. food.
it’s not like he forgot to eat. okay – maybe he technically did, but that’s beside the point. the real issue here is that he never needed to remember, because you always reminded him.
or, if you noticed he was too caught up in work, you’d just… bring something back for him. something simple, easy to eat at his desk – half the time, he didn’t even ask, and yet there it was. a sandwich. a salad. once, a soup that he never even mentioned liking, but somehow you had known he was in the mood for something warm.
it had become routine.
no, actually, it had become a given. and today? today, you walked in, set your bag down, checked your emails – like normal – but you didn’t say anything.
didn’t ask if he ate. didn’t bring anything back. didn’t even look at him properly before sitting down to do your own thing.
nothing.
jake’s fingers twitch over his desk. his jaw tightens slightly. something about this whole situation sits wrong.
because this isn’t normal.
this morning, he even bought you coffee. he didn’t know your exact order, but he had put in effort. that meant something, right? even if you didn’t react much when he placed it on your desk, he thought – hoped – it at least counted for something.
so why does it feel like it didn’t? and why does that bother him?
he does something drastic. he actually walks up to your desk – the second time already this week – and clears his throat.
“hey um…” a small glance at your id card dangling around your neck, and he feels insanely embarrassed because wow, how the hell does he not remember your name, “y/n?”
you’re not going to lie, you totally saw him stumble right now, and it doesn’t help that he’s looking at you with those big brown eyes again, his hand shoved inside his coat pocket, the other rubbing the back of his head. no! you should be upset at him right now, not fawn over his boyish charms!
you glance up, fingers pausing over your keyboard. “yeah?”
jake hesitates.
he doesn’t actually know what he wants to say. he just knows he wants you to look at him a little less indifferently.
“i…” his voice catches slightly. he clears his throat. “can you, um. get me something to eat?”
your expression flickers – just for a second. not enough for jake to read properly, but enough that it feels like you’re choosing your words before speaking.
then, finally, you ask, “what do you want?”
jake pauses.
because – what do you mean, what does he want?
you always just know. you’ve been working together long enough that you order for him without asking. that’s part of why he never bothers remembering himself – he doesn’t have to.
this is new. this is wrong.
“uh…” jake stalls, grip tightening slightly on his pen. “the usual?”
you blink at him, unimpressed. “what’s the usual?”
jake freezes.
oh. oh, no. what is the usual?
his mind scrambles for an answer, rifling through vague memories of you setting food on his desk, but the details blur together. sometimes it was a sandwich. sometimes something with rice. one time, there was pasta. but were those his actual usuals, or just random things you decided to get him?
did he even have a usual?
jake, for the first time today, has to confront a horrifying fact: he has never actually learned what he eats for lunch.
because you always handled it.
and now you’re sitting there, staring at him, waiting for an answer – an answer he doesn’t have – and suddenly, jake feels something unfamiliar coil in his chest: panic.
he’s never been in this situation before. he’s used to having control, to knowing exactly what he wants and when he wants it. yet, somehow, in this one specific instance – a completely mundane scenario involving food, of all things – he’s at a total loss.
how had he not noticed this before? how had he gone this long without realizing he didn’t actually know what he ate every day? how had he become so reliant on—
jake blinks. his own thoughts slam into him like a freight train. because that’s exactly what’s wrong, isn’t it?
he’s used to you. your reminders. your routines. the way you anticipated things before he even noticed them himself.
and for the first time, it feels like you’re deliberately withholding that from him.
why?
jake swallows, forcing himself to think logically. there has to be a reasonable explanation for this. maybe you were too busy to stop and get him something. maybe you had your own things to deal with today. maybe you just forgot.
but then again – you never forgot.
so what changed?
seven.
it was jay’s idea really.
the whole pulling away subtly but not-so-subtly thing. the make-him-notice-you’re-missing plan. and it was working.
you knew it was working because the moment you walked out of jake’s office after that awkward exchange, you felt his stare linger. the hesitation in his voice, the way his fingers twitched slightly when you asked what he wanted – like the concept of having to ask you for something was completely foreign to him.
that was a win, right? so why did it feel so…
you press your lips together, stirring your drink absently. across from you, jay chews on a fry, watching you with far too much amusement for someone who wasn’t the one actively carrying out this ridiculous scheme.
“you look like you’re thinking too hard,” he comments, popping another fry into his mouth. “which is kinda concerning, considering all you’re doing is eating a sandwich.”
you glare at him. “shut up.”
jay snorts, leaning back against the booth. “what’s got you so conflicted? it’s working, isn’t it?”
you don’t answer right away. because, yes – it is working. you can tell by the way jake hesitated before asking you to get him something to eat, by the way he actually looked at you instead of just expecting you to handle things like always. you made him notice the absence.
“…it feels kinda dumb,” you admit finally, picking at your sandwich. “i mean—think about it. it’s lunch. it shouldn’t be that big of a deal, right?”
jay raises a brow. “you say that, but let me remind you of something. he didn’t know what his usual order was.”
you groan, rubbing a hand over your face. “don’t remind me.”
“no, no, let’s actually sit with that for a second,” jay continues, clearly enjoying himself far too much. “the guy has had you getting his meals for months and never thought to ask what he was eating. that’s not normal, dude.”
“i know,” you mutter.
“so what’s the problem?”
you sigh, rolling your cup between your palms.
“the problem is that it shouldn’t take something like this for him to notice me.” the words feel heavy in your mouth. “it’s stupid, isn’t it? i shouldn’t have to pull away for him to realize how much i do for him. like, why does it have to be some big, strategic thing? shouldn’t he just… care?”
jay quiets at that. for all his jokes and teasing, he’s not oblivious – not like jake.
after a moment, he leans forward, propping his arms on the table. “you’re right,” he says, voice softer than before. “he should care. he should’ve noticed a long time ago.”
your stomach twists.
“but,” jay continues, tapping a finger against his drink, “that doesn’t mean this isn’t necessary. i know it sucks, but think about it – would jake have ever thought about this on his own? would he have ever realized how much he relies on you if you hadn’t started stepping back?”
you hate that the answer is obvious.
“…no,” you mutter.
jay nods. “exactly. he’s used to things just… happening. you’ve made his life so easy that he doesn’t even have to think about it.” he smirks slightly. “and now? now he has to think about it. because it’s not just about lunch. it’s about you.”
you stare at him, fingers tightening around your drink.
you sigh, pressing the rim of your cup to your lips but not drinking. the ice clinks softly inside, melting into the coffee, much like your resolve seems to be melting into uncertainty.
“has he always been like this?” you ask quietly.
jay raises a brow. “like what?”
“with his assistants,” you clarify, glancing at him. “has he always been like… this?” you don’t say oblivious or careless, but jay understands anyway.
he studies you for a moment, his usually amused gaze flickering with something more serious. “i don’t know all the details, if i’m being honest. i never really paid attention to his working relationships.”
you press your lips together, turning your cup in your hands. “but you knew there were others before me.”
jay exhales, dragging a hand through his hair. “yeah,” he admits. “there were others. none of them stuck around for too long, though.”
that makes your stomach twist.
“why not?” you ask, your voice barely above a whisper.
jay hesitates. not because he doesn’t know the answer, but because the answer isn’t his to give.
“jake’s not an easy person to work for,” he finally says, choosing his words carefully. “he’s particular about things, but not in a way that makes sense to most people. he’s not demanding in the usual way – he doesn’t expect people to read his mind, but at the same time… he does. he assumes things will get done. not because he asks, but because that’s how it’s always been for him. he doesn’t really think about the ‘who’ behind it all.”
you swallow hard.
“and the others?”
jay shakes his head. “they got frustrated. some quit because they felt unappreciated, others just decided it wasn’t worth it. no hard feelings, no big fights. just… people coming and going. but you?” he tilts his head at you. “you stuck around.”
you let out a small, humorless laugh. “it’s only been three months, maybe i’ll quit too.”
you won’t. for reasons more than one, the first being that you have student loans to pay. the second…maybe that’s a thought better left for later.
“maybe,” jay says, but his tone isn’t teasing. it’s contemplative. “or maybe you’re different.”
you look up at him then, brows furrowed. “different how?”
jay leans back in his seat, arms crossing over his chest. “you actually care about him.”
the words sit heavy between you.
of course you care. that was never the question. the question was whether or not he cared. whether he even saw you as a person rather than just another name in a long list of people who handled things for him.
you exhale slowly, staring down at the condensation forming on your cup. “that’s stupid, isn’t it?”
jay tilts his head. “what is?”
“that i care about someone who barely notices me.”
there’s no pity in jay’s gaze. no smugness, either. just quiet understanding.
“it’s not stupid,” he says. “but it is a little sad.”
you swallow around the lump in your throat. “why do you think he’s like that?”
jay exhales through his nose. “i think jake has spent so long expecting people to leave that he doesn’t think much about why they stay. or if they do, it’s just a matter of when they’ll go. he doesn’t attach himself to people easily. i don’t know why, exactly, but i have my guesses.”
you nod, understanding that there’s a past here that isn’t yours to pry into. it doesn’t quench your curiosity though, because what really made jake into this oblivious, unintentionally selfish person? you haven’t known him long, but you’ve seen enough.
how he declines invitations to after work hangouts, how he’s never lurking at other people’s desks, cooping himself up in the confines of his own room, doing his own work. how he barely ever leaves that room unless absolutely necessary. it’s just work, work, work for him.
jay watches you for a moment, then leans forward, resting his forearms on the table. “let me ask you something now.”
you blink. “okay?”
he gestures toward you. “why do you look up to him so much?”
you open your mouth, but no words come out.
because the truth is, you do look up to jake. or at least, you used to. maybe, in some ways, you still do.
he’s brilliant, that much is undeniable. he makes decisions with sharp precision, moves through life with a confidence that is enviable. he commands a room without even realizing it, and people naturally gravitate toward him.
and maybe that was part of the reason why you held on for so long. because you wanted to believe that he was someone worth believing in. worth staying for.
but what happens when the person you admire the most doesn’t even see you?
you lower your gaze. “i don’t know.”
jay hums, as if he expected that answer.
“well, maybe it’s time he starts looking up to you,” he says.
the thought sends a strange feeling through your chest.
because what if, after all this time, it wasn’t about you chasing after jake’s attention? what if it was about him realizing that you were someone worth keeping up with?
you exhale, setting your cup down with a quiet clink. “so, what now?”
jay grins, the mischief returning to his eyes. “phase two, obviously.”
you shake your head, laughing under your breath. “you’re ridiculous.”
“trust me, jake’s already starting to notice you y/n,” jay says, taking a sip of his drink. “so? you in?”
you glance down at your phone, at the list of unread emails waiting for you. and you think about jake – his hesitation earlier, the way he had to actually ask you about lunch. how for the first time, he seemed to realize that you weren’t just an extension of his routine.
deep down, you hope he’s right.
and it’s already started – jake is thinking about it. about you.
you just don’t know it yet.
jake had been off all day, and he knew it.
it had started with lunch. or rather, the strange lack of it – the missing familiarity, the offhanded nature of it, the unsettling realization that it hadn’t been waiting for him like usual. and then when you did get him something, it wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t right either. not that he could even say what ‘right’ was anymore. that part gnawed at him the most.
he had spent the better half of the afternoon distracted, shuffling between meetings and emails while the thought sat at the back of his head, growing heavier by the hour. it wasn’t about the food. it was never just about the food.
he leaned back in his office chair, pinching the bridge of his nose.
why was this bothering him so much?
his usual? what even was his usual? how long had he stopped deciding that for himself? at what point had he gotten so used to you taking care of it that he didn’t even remember?
the realization was suffocating.
jake had never considered himself someone who relied on others – not in any way that mattered. he was independent, capable, and self-sufficient. at least, that’s what he had always told himself. but today proved otherwise.
somewhere along the way, he had gotten used to your quiet presence. the way you smoothed things over without him having to ask. the way you knew things before he did, handled them before they became problems, and – somewhere in the middle of all that – became something constant.
and now, the moment that balance wavered, he felt like he was losing his footing.
the evening dragged on, the weight of the day pressing against his temples as he sat at his desk, staring blankly at his computer screen. he should go home. but even the idea of leaving felt exhausting.
then his phone rang.
jake glanced at the caller id. mom.
he hesitated for a second before answering. “hey.”
“jakey,” his mother’s voice was warm but laced with something tired. “i was just checking in. it’s been a while.”
he sighed, rubbing his temple. “yeah, sorry. work’s been crazy.”
there was a pause. a small one, but enough for jake to feel the unspoken words on the other end. he knew that pause.
“you’ve been eating, right?” she asked. “you sound off.”
jake nearly laughed, though there was nothing funny about it. his grip on the phone tightened.
“i’m fine.”
“jake.”
he clenched his jaw. the weight in his chest grew heavier.
how was it that this one conversation, this one question, managed to make everything worse? it wasn’t like he had told her anything. it wasn’t like she knew that something as stupid as lunch had been haunting him all day, or that he was suddenly questioning things he had never thought twice about before.
he exhaled sharply. “mom, i said i’m fine.”
another silence. then, softer, “you always say that.”
jake shut his eyes.
for a second, he was six years old again, sitting at the kitchen table, picking at his food while his mother sat across from him, pretending like everything was fine. like they weren’t waiting for someone who wasn’t coming back.
he barely remembered his father’s face, but he remembered the absence. the lingering silence. the way his mother never cried in front of him, but he knew she wanted to.
“people leave sometimes, jakey,” she had told him once. “even when they don’t mean to.”
jake had spent his whole life pretending that it didn't affect him. that it didn’t shape the way he saw the world, the way he kept people at arm’s length. that it didn’t make him hyper-aware of who stayed and who didn’t.
but now, sitting in his empty office, with the remnants of an unremarkable lunch sitting in the trash, he was starting to think it had affected him more than he ever wanted to admit.
“jake?” his mother’s voice pulled him back.
he swallowed. “yeah, i’m here.”
“i won’t push,” she said gently. “but you know you can talk to me, right?”
he let out a breath. “i know.”
a few more words were exchanged, mostly her telling him to take care of himself before she hung up. jake set his phone down on his desk and stared at it for a long moment.
he didn’t know what was worse – the fact that he felt like he was spiraling over something so insignificant, or the fact that it didn’t feel insignificant at all.
with a heavy sigh, he leaned forward, pressing his forehead against his hands.
what the hell is wrong with me?
eight.
jake is not in a good mood this morning.
it’s evident in the way his jaw is clenched, the way his morning greeting to you sounds even more clipped and indifferent than usual and it’s apparent in the way he slams his door shut behind him.
you’ve seen him like this before – just once – in an intense mood all day, brooding over a particularly complicated issue at work. so you ignore the slight pang in your chest when he barely looks at you before shutting himself off in his room.
you give him space.
you go about your work, responding to emails, organizing the files on his desk, and making sure everything is in order for the meetings he has later. but throughout the day, you can’t help but glance toward his closed office door. there’s a stiffness in your posture whenever you walk past it, an awareness that you’re treading around a storm, waiting for it to pass.
it doesn’t.
by lunchtime, you hesitate before grabbing your own food. jake still hasn’t come out of his office, and you know him well enough to know he probably hasn’t eaten. the memory of the previous day – his offhanded question about lunch, the way he seemed oddly thrown off by you not bringing it – lingers in your mind. maybe that’s all it is, you reason. he just needs to eat.
so you order his usual, the one you’ve memorized without thinking. but when you place it on his desk, he barely glances at it.
“not hungry,” he mutters.
that’s it. no thank you, no acknowledgement. just a dismissal.
it stings more than it should. you don’t push him, simply nodding before stepping back. but something about the way his shoulders are tense, his fingers gripping a pen too tightly, makes you hesitate.
“are you okay?”
it’s a simple question, but it’s a mistake.
jake looks up at you then, and for the first time all day, he really looks at you. his expression is unreadable, his gaze sharp in a way that feels like a blade pressing into something delicate.
and then he scoffs.
“you don’t have to do that.”
your fingers curl around the tray you had got his food in. they clutch at the edges of the plastic, digging into your skin, imprinting a mark physically much like the way jake’s next words do in your chest.
you blink. “do what?”
“act like you care.”
the words hit like a slap. you open your mouth, but nothing comes out.
jake doesn’t stop there. “i don’t need you to hover. i don’t need your pity. i don’t need—” he exhales sharply, dragging a hand through his hair before shaking his head. “just stop.”
you freeze. there’s something deeply frustrating about this moment – because you don’t understand, because you don’t know what’s going on in his head, because you’re just trying to help. but jake is looking at you like your presence alone is suffocating him, like you’re an inconvenience, like he wants to push you as far away as possible.
pity? he thinks you’re pitying him? is your gaze so misconstrued that he’s actually letting himself believe that someone like you could pity him?
but whatever it is that jake wants, it works.
you don’t say anything. you don’t argue, don’t snap back, don’t ask why he’s being an asshole for no reason. because really, what would be the point? you can’t help him, not with whatever impossible problem he’s been staring at all day. you’re not a genius like him, not someone who understands physics or engineering or whatever the hell he’s stressing over.
you’re just his assistant.
you nod once and leave the room, ignoring the way your stomach twists uncomfortably.
the afternoon drags on. you’re quieter than usual, working diligently and keeping to yourself. jake doesn’t seem to notice. or if he does, he doesn’t care.
jay drops by at some point, leaning against your desk with a knowing look. “he’s in a mood today.”
you exhale through your nose. “i noticed.”
jay tilts his head. “you good?”
“i’m fine.” it’s the easy answer, the one that doesn’t require unpacking anything. you don’t want to talk about how frustrating it is, how useless you feel, how much it actually bothers you when you know it shouldn’t.
jay doesn’t press, but he gives you a small nod of understanding before heading to jake’s office. you hear them talking – jay’s voice lighthearted, trying to ease whatever storm jake is caught in. but jake’s replies are short, clipped, his irritation barely restrained. eventually, jay gives up.
by the time evening rolls around, the tension hasn’t lifted.
you’re finishing up paperwork when you hear jake’s office chair scrape against the floor. a moment later, he steps out, his phone pressed to his ear. you don’t look up, but you can hear the strain in his voice, the way it’s unusually tense.
“no, mom, i told you—” a pause. “i don’t know. i haven’t thought about it.”
your pen stills against the paper.
jake exhales sharply. “because i don’t have time for this.” his voice drops lower, something more raw seeping into the cracks. “it doesn’t matter. he made his choice.”
silence.
and then, a barely audible, “i don’t care.”
your chest tightens.
you glance up, just for a second, but the look on jake’s face is unreadable. he’s standing rigid, shoulders tense, his grip on his phone almost painful. whatever his mother is saying, it’s digging under his skin, unearthing something you can’t begin to understand.
you don’t look away fast enough.
jake notices. his eyes flick to yours, and for a split second, something flickers there – something vulnerable, something tired. but then, just as quickly, it’s gone.
he turns on his heel and walks out.
you don’t follow.
jake is still in a bad mood when jay finds him.
he doesn’t know why he agreed to go out for drinks. maybe it was the way jay had looked at him after stopping by the office earlier, or maybe it was the unbearable silence of his apartment that he didn’t want to sit in alone. either way, now he’s here, sitting across from jay and sunghoon at some bar downtown, nursing a whiskey he’s barely taken a sip from.
he’s been fidgeting with his glass for the past fifteen minutes, watching the condensation trail down the sides, listening to jay and sunghoon talk about something he’s barely paying attention to. their voices sound distant, like they’re underwater, and everything around him feels just slightly off-kilter, like he’s caught in a strange in-between where he can’t fully ground himself. he feels like an outsider looking in on his own life, watching himself sit here, going through the motions.
jay nudges him. “you good?”
jake blinks. “yeah.”
sunghoon snorts. “you look like you’re about to throw yourself off a bridge.”
he rolls his eyes, but it’s weak. he takes a sip of his drink, wincing at the burn. “just tired.”
jay doesn’t buy it. “it’s work, isn’t it?”
jake exhales sharply through his nose. that’s the thing—it’s not just work.
it’s the way his day has felt completely off-kilter since this morning. no scratch that, it's been this way this entire week.
it’s the way he couldn’t focus, no matter how hard he tried, the way his own office felt too cold, too empty. it’s the way his lunch tasted like cardboard, even though you had gotten it for him like you always did. the way you had placed it on his desk so carefully, so deliberately, and yet it had felt… wrong. bland. like something was missing, and he couldn’t figure out what.
it’s the way he had snapped at you.
his grip tightens around his glass. he hadn’t meant to. he had been frustrated, overwhelmed, his thoughts eating him alive, and you had just – been there. and he had let his irritation get the best of him. he doesn’t even remember what he said exactly, just the way your face had shifted, the way something in your expression had dimmed before you had looked away and left him alone.
had he hurt you? the thought unsettles him more than he’d like to admit.
“i don’t know, man.” he leans back, staring at the amber liquid in his glass. “people are so fucking unpredictable.”
jay raises an eyebrow. “where’s this coming from?”
jake shakes his head. “just—” he exhales. “you think you know someone, you think they’re a certain way, and then suddenly… they’re not. and you don’t know when it happened, or why, or if it was always going to happen and you were just too blind to see it coming.”
there’s a brief pause. then sunghoon says, “sounds like someone’s got abandonment issues.”
jake scoffs. “that’s not what i—” he stops himself. clenches his jaw. takes another sip of his drink. it burns down his throat, but it doesn’t drown out the thoughts spiraling in his head.
jay is watching him carefully. “you want to talk about it?”
jake doesn’t answer immediately. he should say no. he should shut it down, brush it off, make some joke and move on. but something about tonight, about the weight pressing down on his chest, makes him want to keep talking. so he does.
“my dad left when i was six.”
it’s abrupt. unprompted. but neither jay nor sunghoon say anything, just let him speak.
“one day he was there, the next he wasn’t. no warning. no explanation.” he exhales, shaking his head. “i remember my mom sat me down and told me he wasn’t coming back, and i didn’t get it at first. i thought—maybe he was just on a long trip. maybe he’d call. maybe—”
he swallows hard. “but he never did.”
the words hang heavy in the air. he doesn’t know why he’s saying this. he doesn’t talk about his dad, ever. but something about tonight makes it easier. maybe it’s the alcohol, maybe it’s the exhaustion, maybe it’s the lingering feeling of wrongness from earlier today. maybe it’s the way your face had fallen when he snapped at you. maybe it’s the way his chest has felt empty since then.
jay sighs. “that’s rough, man.”
and jay means it. because in all the years that he’s known jake, he’s never told them up front of his issues. sure, they’ve picked up some hints of it, how he barely talks about his family, how there used to be a picture frame in their old dorm room with only him and his mom, how he sparingly mentioned his family and even then, not a word about his father.
they had wondered, but never pried. some things are better left alone unless ready to be tackled.
sunghoon, uncharacteristically serious, says, “that’s why you’re like this, huh?”
jake frowns. “like what?”
sunghoon shrugs. “like you don’t trust people to stay.”
jake doesn’t respond. because what is there to say? he’s not wrong.
he glances down at his phone, at the unopened messages from his mom. she had called earlier, left a voicemail. he knows what she wants. it’s the anniversary of the day his dad left. she always calls on this day. but he hasn’t called back yet. he doesn’t know if he wants to.
his mind flickers back to you. the way you had looked at him after he snapped. the way you hadn’t said anything, hadn’t fought back, just accepted it and left.
had you expected it from him? had you seen it coming? had he proved you right?
jay’s voice pulls him out of his thoughts. “you ever think that maybe you push people away before they can leave?”
jake stills. something inside him twists. because – he doesn’t. does he?
he thinks about the way you had stayed, despite everything. how you had shown up, day after day, putting up with his moods, his silence, his sharp edges. how you had gotten his lunch, even when he had barely acknowledged you all morning. how you had tried, always tried.
and how he had snapped at you anyway.
he rubs a hand down his face. he suddenly feels exhausted. the weight on his chest has only gotten heavier.
“maybe,” he murmurs, barely audible. “maybe i do.”
neither jay nor sunghoon push further. they just let him sit with it, let him stew in his own thoughts.
jake exhales slowly, the realization sinking in like a stone in his stomach.
he doesn’t know why he feels like he’s already losing something he didn’t even know he wanted to keep.
After your best friend is left heartbroken by the infamous campus legend Jake Sim, you make it your mission to teach him a lesson — the one he won’t forget until he’s practically begging for forgiveness. What starts as a simple plan quickly spirals into chaos, pulling you into a web of complications you never saw coming. Lines begin to blur, intentions get messy, and you realize things aren’t as black and white as they seemed. After all, a bad reputation is a heavy burden to carry on both ends, isn’t it? — CONTINUING FROM THE LAST PART ✦
content tags: tooth rooting miscommunication, jake pmo, enemies to enemies to lover, y/n cries a lot, angst, mid ass slow burn, college au, emotional turmoil, long ass fic, crack, blonde jake, lots of kisses, campus romance (?), fake relationship. NOT PROOFREAD !!
Divider credit: @uzmacchiato
# 6 amor fati
"oh my...is that a freshman?"
"So cute… can’t wait to eat him up."
"hey! stop! can’t you see the poor boy is scared? awwww, is he going to cry?"
Jake hesitantly fixed his hair again, trying not to give attention to the senior girls laughing across from him, or rather laughing at him. His eyes wandered searching for an escape, but wherever he looked, there were only unfamiliar faces and chaos. That one classmate who brought him here was dragged away by a group of seniors as soon as they stepped here and since then he has tried his best to avoid the unnecessary stares and comments. He pulled his hoodie cap further down, trying to shield his face as an uncomfortable feeling settled in his stomach.
Fresh air. He needed fresh air right now.
The pool behind the big ass house felt far more welcoming compared to the suffocating atmosphere inside. There was no one outside, thanks to the mid december chill. He adjusted his jeans and plopped down on the ground, not caring about the dirt. A bunch of texts popped up as soon as he unlocked his phone.
Curious messages from his parents, asking for pictures from the welcoming party and a selca to see what he was wearing. Then he saw messages from Riki, complaining about how much he hated Jake for moving so far away for college, followed by a very expected “Bring me Hot Wheels.” There were also a bunch of pictures of him making silly poses with Layla.
Jake’s eyes burned. He missed home so much. This place, the weather—the people made him feel out of place.
Suddenly he flinched at the sound of footsteps behind him. When he peeked over his shoulder, he discovered someone crouched down, searching the ground for something. Curious, he got up and walked closer.
“Excuse me?” he asked cautiously and person looked up at him.
“I’m sorry!—I dropped my tissue here, and I can’t really find it.”
Your panicked voice only confused Jake further. Why would someone be searching for a tissue outside at this hour, away from the party?
“tissue? but why…?” he asked, eyes scanning over you, trying to spot a stain, maybe spilled juice or something. But you looked completely spotless.
Your panic only intensified as you mumbled, “No, no, you don’t get it—I need the tissue now.”
He scratched his head. “We can go inside, and I can help you find a new one—”
You suddenly clutched both his arms tightly “No, no, you’re not getting it! I need it—na—aa—ACHHOO!”
Clear snot landed on the brand new hoodie his parents had gifted him last Christmas.
Eyes widening in bewilderment “Oh no, no, no… I’m so sorry!” you yelped, quickly backing away only for another sneeze to fight its way out.
“Give me your hoodie, I’ll wash it—ACHHOO—”
Before similar disaster could happen again, Jake immediately pressed his handkerchief against your nose, blocking the impact.
“ACHHOO!” The room filled with whispers of annoyance as you hurriedly adjusted your mask, trying your best to hide your face. Unfortunately these were your classmates and there was no way they couldn't recognise the culprit. “Now miss y/n can you please excuse the class and me from spreading spores at 11 a.m.? I really need to finish this lecture.” Professor Min sounded as insensitive as ever. You tried to choke out a faint apology before lowering your head. What a pathetic state of life.
After enduring a few more insults and causing unintentional disturbances, the class finally ended, releasing a sense of relief wash over you. You walked out, clutching a familiar spongebob themed umbrella in your hand. You needed to return this to Jake, and most importantly, explain everything to him.
So what the deal was off? As promised there were no texts, no calls, nothing from Jake since last night. You should have been out shopping for new clothes, getting a hair spa, maybe even planning a vacation with your girlfriends. Instead, you were stuck in one place, unable to move on from this whole lotta mess situation without talking to him.
So what if he treated you like shit? You had it coming after everything you pulled on him. Bad reputation, my ass. Nothing is real. But your feelings for Jake? Those were very very very much real. And if you had to face them the hard way, then so be it. Taking a deep breath, you entered the campus library, the only place you were sure you would find him. Your confidence wavered the moment when despite of looking around you couldn’t find that starking bolnde bed hair. Jake wasn't there.
But when one door closes, another opens right?You turned and started walking toward the basketball court.
Just like you imagined he wasn’t there either. But you didn’t let that thought discourage you when you noticed his laptop open and his belongings scattered nearby. That meant he was somwhere around here. You carefully stepped over his things and sat down right in front of the laptop screen. He was working on some marine engineering project. Your eyes drifted over the books, then to his handwritten notes. Woah that’s some ugly ahh handwriting—
“I didn’t think you were this shameless to show up even after all this.”
You jolted on your feet, the umbrella slipping from your grip in the process “Evelyn…” Had they made up? Did he tell her about the whole fake relationship? Were they together now—like, actually together? The radar system in your brain was severly damaged.
Evelyn looked you up and down like she was window shopping then scoffed “touching someone else’s stuff like that, what the fuck is your problem?” You stammered, tongue struggling to form a proper sentence. “I—I just want to talk to Jake—”
“Well he doesn’t want anything to do with you. I hope I made that pretty clear.” Evelyn raised a finger and shoved your shoulder lightly. “Now get the fuck out unless you want him to hate you even more.”
No. Never.
You didn’t even realize you were shaking as you turned and rushed out of the court.
There was a lot going on inside Jake’s mind. Why was he so salty about you hugging Heeseung? Just why? He had never thought about you like that. But the flowers? Oh shut it was just because he felt guilty. And when he treated your wound? Anyone who cares about someone would do that, right?
Oh…right.
He did care about you. Well again in his defence that just happens automatically when you’re around a particular person for a long time. Yes that was it. This was just another case of attachment to someone who had caused him trouble after trouble over the past months. He never should have paid so much attention to you in the first place.
Jake stared down at his hands as the water kept running over them, the skin on his fingertips turning slightly wrinkly under the pressure.
“Dude you need help with that.”
He came back to reality at Soobin’s voice who was staring down at the open zipper of his pants.
“Yeah, suck it” Jake growled, quickly zipping them up.
The moment he entered the court he noticed his worn out old spongebob umbrella lying beside his laptop. His heart nearly leaped out of his rib cage and he bolted toward the exit, whipping his head left and right, just in case he can catch the familiar sight of your single braid, or even the cherry colored top you always wore.
“I’m so pathetic… fuck,” you sniffled, rubbing the back of your palm over your eyes again and again, trying to wipe away the tears before they could stain your cheeks. The tofu sandwich you were forcing down your throat, half out of hunger and half out of self pity tasted as shit as your life lately.
“Uhh… Y/n?”
You took a shaky breath and looked up, only to find Sunghoon crouched in front of you, concern written all over his face. He scratched his head unsure of what to say before slowly sitting down beside you. You scooted a little to make space for him. After a long minute of silence he finally spoke “are you....and Jake… fighting?”
You shook your head slowly “we uhhh…he’s mad at me.”
“oh...like mad mad?”
“Yeah.”
Silence fell again as Sunghoon absentmindedly fiddled with your Kuromi keychain. “You know…Jake isn’t really what everyone makes him out to be…”
You stopped chewing and slowly turned to look at him. He stared ahead eyes distant and searching for the right words “sure he can be an asshole sometimes, making promises and not keeping them. But I don’t really blame him. He loves his space.” Sunghoon sighed, letting go of your keychain before turning to face you “But that’s the problem. Everyone else loves Jake’s space too”
“I met him here right in this place when he used to eat lunch all alone. Don’t worry, he looked less pathetic than you,”
“Back then Jake missed home so much that he would force himself into groups that didn’t even want him there. Yeah Jake being a pushover doesn’t really sound real does it?”
You stayed quiet while listening.
“But I guess everything changed when some jerks got jealous because their unloyal girlfriends started finding him cute. And that’s how the whole ‘Jake is a womanizer’ thing started.”
You pulled your knees closer to your chest, trying to piece everything together.
“And Jake never once minded that title. Sure it did some bad thing his image but it also made him popular. People from different departments started approaching him wanting to be friends, and he never said no.”
You nodded slowly unsure of what to say. Your entire life's carefully built rule — stay out of trouble and never get involved with a guy like that — crumbled instantly as you realized you had never really known Jake at all.
So what if you did not know Sim Jake at all? You weren’t going to give up. You were going to relearn him and tell him exactly what you needed to in his language.
“And as I was saying, Ja—”
“Sunghoon,” you cut him off, determination settling in your voice. “I need your help.” Sunghoon stared at you for a moment before breaking into a wide grin “atta girl.”
# 7 gbogh
“They locked you inside the art department, Sadie was the reason for your injured finger, and now you’re telling me Evelyn kicked you out when you went to talk to Jake?!”
Chaerin tried her best to stay composed while listing the damage done to you though it was very clear she was mentally calculating the damage she was about to do to certain girls from the engineering department. You shook your head “Chaerin no… listen it was my fault too—”
Chisa and Jurin immediately grabbed her hands as she hissed, “Either Evelyn is getting killed or I’m staying celibate my whole life.”
“Oh we all know the first one sounds more possible—AHH, FUCK!” Chisa screamed when Chaerin yanked her freshly silk pressed hair.
You clutched both sides of your head still unsure how Sunghoon was supposed to help you. Speaking of which you hesitantly glanced toward their table, the one you had been avoiding looking at because seeing Jake would completely shatter your composure. Still...one look wouldn’t hurt right?
When you took a careful glance you discovered the chair empty where he usually sat. Huh? Was he skipping lunch? Afterwards your eyes met Sunghoon’s. He immediately started making weird gibberish hand signs, signaling you to check your phone. You unlocked the device that had been on silent since morning and saw a bunch of texts from him.
Today
after classes
you’re going grocery shopping.
??? I don’t need groceries though.
Just do what I’m telling you!!
Go to the Family Mart nearest to our college.
You’re weird.
Evelyn is having Jake for lunch btw.
FUCK YOU.
You shot him one last glare before slamming your phone down. Across the room, Sunghoon giggled, catching Jungwon’s attention “?” Sunghoon just shook his head muttering a quiet, “You’ll see.”
“Family Mart… near college… uhhhh….oh!”
You finally spotted the store Sunghoon was talking about. It wasn’t that hard to find as the location was within walking distance from the dorms. The bell chimed as you stepped inside. Since it was a weekday the mart was mildly crowded. Kids ran around with lollipops in their hands, their moms complained about the quality of potatoes, and a group of elderly women bombarded the young cashier with overly personal questions like when they were planning to get married.
Ignoring all of it you made your way to the snack aisle.
Why the hell did Sunghoon send you here? Did you make a mistake asking him for help? I mean he was Jake’s friend at the end of the day…trying to calm your overactive mind, you reached for a familiar packet of potato chips.
At the exact same time one of the kids who had been running around earlier grabbed it too. The two of you stared at each other with visible irritation. You forced a sweet smile “uhhh this is very unhealthy. I don’t think you should be eating this young ma—”
“Shut up, hag.”
WHAT? Aw hell no.
You tightened your grip on the packet, the plastic crinkling under your fingers as you tried your best not to lose it. “Excuse me?? That’s so rude.”
“And you’re too old to fight over chips with a kid.”
Okay, screw this kid and his mo—wait, no. Kids like this get their audacity from their dads. Yes, that’s it. Hope the dad steps on a lego block.
With one final tug you snatched the packet away easily from his comparatively loose grip. He stared at you in disbelief mixed with frustration.
“Aww, are you going to cry? Aww–well that’s what happens when you challenge grown ups you little shi—”
“Here, take this.”
You nearly jumped out of your skin almost knocking the entire aisle over as the exact reason Park Sunghoon had sent you to this mart appeared out of nowhere like some biblically accurate angel. The kid’s face lit up instantly as he took another packet of the same chips from Jake’s hand. He stuck his tongue out at you before running off. And just like that fate had you standing there, face to face with Jake.
Jake completely ignored your shocked expression as he began picking out more snacks, leaving you battling your inner demons.
“Jake, hi!” you exclaimed, crouching down and grabbing the exact same snack he was picking. His ignorance continued as he stood up, dumped everything into his cart, then walked right past you. You trailed behind him like a lost duck struggling to hold the snack packets in your hands since you didn’t even bother to get a cart. “Are you okay? I didn’t see you at lunch today! Did you skip it?” you rambled as he placed his groceries at the counter.
Still no answer.
Jake didn’t even spare you a glance. God, am I that ugly?
“Uhh… what are you having for dinner by the way????”
By now the cashier had started giving you weird looks, which you ignored completely cuz this was way more important. Jake picked up his packed groceries and started walking towards the exit. You quickly dumped the chips on the counter and followed him, ignoring the cashier yelling behind you.
Soon enough you found him sitting on a bench near the mart, his groceries resting beside him. You sat down on the other end silently praying he wouldn’t get up and leave. And he didn’t. Instead, he grabbed a packet of chips and tore it open, crinkling plastic being the only sound cutting through the awkward silence. You fiddled with the hem of your top, unsure how to end this painfully one sided conversation.
“Jake…I’m sorry.”
The words finally left your mouth after a long moment. No response as usual came from the other side. But you didn’t stop.
“I wasn’t really thinking before I spoke that day. I was just frustrated… and–and you’re right, it is my fault. Since day one, it’s always been my fault…”
You did prepare a whole apology in your head, but right now with him sitting beside you, only his grocery bag giving you the mercy of not letting him see your ashamed, embarrassed face — it all felt too personal.
“I guess I felt a little entitled when you asked me to be your fake girlfriend because you’re right. No one’s ever really chosen me for anything. My first boyfriend well he kind of dated me because of peer pressure. Of course never said it out loud but sometimes...you just know”
Your voice faltered a bit “But with you… even though it was fake and even though there was nothing between us...I felt chosen. I know that sounds pathetic, and I—I know I shouldn’t even be approaching you after what I did—” You felt trickle of warm tears on your cheeks again “but I’m sorry. I’m sorry, Jake, I—”
Something dropped onto your lap.
You blinked, picking it up. Your blurry gaze slowly became clear. A small bracelet. The ones that came free with a certain brand of potato chips for kids. You had them plenty in your childhood. You turned to Jake and found him casually finishing off the crumbs from the same packet, completely unfazed.
Then he stood up, wiping his hands on his jeans then glanced at you over his shoulder.
“Apology not accepted. Do something better.”
Jake waited no second before casually walking out of the area, an all too familiar smile lingering on his face, completely unnoticed by you.
For a moment you just sat there pissed, annoyed and frustrated as hell and definitely ready to strangle him if you ran fast enough, yet a small laugh escaped your lips “ahhh… he’s such an asshole,” you murmured softly, slipping the bracelet around your wrist.
The idea of chasing a guy was far from the rules of ideal relationship advice 101 you and Chaerin wrote in the back of your history notebook at the age of eleven. Yes it was practically blasphemous, but at this stage of having a hopeless crush on ahem Jake Sim felt far more damaging to your health and mental peace.
Sunghoon groaned as you proudly held up a cute oat milk packet, a small ribbon tied around it along with a chibi version of a grumpy Jake that you had drawn yourself. “Cute, right?”
Sunghoon facepalmed. “Jake is allergic to oat milk.”
Your smile dropped instantly “what? I thought every athlete drinks that???”
Erm apparently everyone did, except Jake. You pouted at your hard work before sadly placing it on top of a vending machine. May some poor soul who craves oatmilk finds it.
“Circles by Post Malone…” you scanned through the large collection of Post Malone albums at a CD store that you found in google maps after hours of searching. You noticed jake often quietly mumbling lyrics under his breath clearly he was a front row level fan.
“You’re coming home with me,” you smiled, finally spotting the album you wanted.
“I can’t believe I’m doing this, God…” Chaerin muttered as she handed you a heart shaped paper cutouts. You carefully pasted them one by one onto the khaki wrapping paper you were using for the album trying to make it look more presentable. “Chae, my baby, the love of my life, I hope you get dicked down by Jay again.” Chaerin shot you a deadpan look which immediately shut you up and forced you to focus on your work again.
“Why are you so late—and what the fuck is that??! Jake isn’t into big-ass books by the way!” Sunghoon whisper yelled the moment you rushed inside the library, already half an hour late from the original meeting time. You panted scooting closer to him “that’s not a book” sunghoon rolled his eyes and pointed toward a section “I just saw him go in there.” You took a deep breath and started walking slowly toward your destiny. But your steps halted the moment you heard a familiar laugh.
No way.
You carefully peeked as your heart dropped. Jake and Evelyn were sitting on the library floor. She was pointing at something in his hands as he tried to shield it. They were sitting way too close for your liking and you couldn’t even see Jake’s face clearly, but the way Evelyn leaned into him, her hands wrapped around his arm....
Your grip on the album tightened, nails pressing through the paper wrapping.
Jake must’ve heard the crinkling sound. But when he looked up, you were already gone.
Sunghoon flinched the moment you threw the album at him. It made a loud noise, sliding towards him in a careless manner “you forgot to mention he’s having a good time with her.”
“Her? Who—?! Eve… Evelyn???” he mouthed, as you felt your throat tighten. Sunghoon picked up the album, name slightly visible beneath the torn wrapping. He sighed “Y/n… Jake already has this album. It’s literally displayed on his study table…”
Oh. Another disappointment. You scoffed at your useless tries. You really couldn’t do anything right, could you?
“right...well i have a class now. I should go,” you muttered, already turning your back to him.“The fuck am I supposed to do with this?” Sunghoon called out. You raised your hand without turning back.
“Just throw it out.”
Plan failed.
Chaerin let out a long disappointed sigh as she stared at your message. Poor girl she is never catching a break. She was just about to turn off her phone when another notification popped up from way too familiar name. Her throat went dry as “Jay 🩷” appeared at the top of her chat list after months. With shaky fingers she opened it.
I’m sorry for reaching out like this
but I really need your help right now.
Can you come over?
She chewed on her bottom lip and glanced at the time. 5 p.m. It’s not like this was her first time visiting his room but the last time she went there they ended up—FUCK NO. ABSOLUTELY NOT. Chaerin shook her head, trying to push away the memories of what had happened after she ended up there. “It’s okay… sometimes history doesn’t repeat itself…” she whispered to herself typing a small ‘ok’ before hitting send.
Jay paced frantically around his room. Fuck. He actually did it. After five nights of contemplating, overthinking and torturing himself with worst possible outcomes he had finally texted Chaerin. “Okay, calm down… she’s just coming to help. Nothing else should happen.” The words of consolation felt too weak already. At some point the doorbell rang, making him jump. He unconsciously fixed his hair before walking to the door.
“Hi…”
Chaerin stood there her hair slightly messy but still neatly styled, usual brown leopard print glasses resting on her nose. Jay took a breath and stepped aside silently inviting her in. Chaerin’s eyes immediately landed on the mess on his bed,
hair color packets, brushes, and various hair care products scattered everywhere.
Resting his hands on his hips Jay rehearsed what he had practiced minutes before her arrival “I’m meeting my family this weekend… and they’ll kill me if I don’t dye my hair back to a normal colour.” He gestured toward his platinum undercut. She paused for a second. God….she loved that haircut on him—
“Listen, you don’t have to do this if you feel uncomfortable. Actually, I—I texted you impulsively. I just remembered you once saying you did a hairstyling project in eighth grade, and how your dad wanted you to take over the salon, and how your brother sold your favorite shampoo to buy a limited edition of death note set…”
Jay exhaled deeply after rambling, leaving Chaerin completely stunned. When had she told him all that? Sure they were close once, but she didn’t remember ever sharing that much.“No, I’m completely okay!” she replied quickly offering him a small smile. “so what color are we doing?”
The bathroom soon filled with giggles and soft splashes of water as Chaerin deliberately poked behind Jay’s ear with the brush.“ow—that tickles!” he laughed, trying to cover his ears while she threw her head back, laughing freely. They waited for the color to set before washing it out. As much as Chaerin had expected this meeting to be awkward, surprisingly it wasn’t. They fell into their places and It just felt like two old friends catching up after a long time.
While washing her gaze lingered on Jay’s face, his crescent shaped eyes when he smiled, the faint dimples forming at the corners of his lips. Ex Friends. Yeah maybe That’s what they were and she had promised herself not to cross that line again.
Chaerin focused on the hand shower letting the warm water rinse away the new brown dye. Her fingers gently worked through his hair, messaging his scalp. Jay relaxed against the bathtub.
“hey Jay…”
“hmm?”
“When did I tell you about my eighth grade hairstyling gig?”
He let out a soft laugh, turning his head slightly. “For someone majoring in engineering with math as your main subject, you sure have a bad memory…” then he turned toward her fully, splashing a bit of water in her direction. She yelped, backing away.
“At that party silly” he continued, smiling unconsciously as he walked down the memory lane “when we both got drunk, you told me about your dream of becoming hairstylist for jungkook and kept playing with my hair saying it looked like some ugly kombucha orange color. I was so confused—like, what the fuck does that even mean?”
Chaerin laughed along with him as the memory slowly resurfaced. She crouched down closer to his level. Jay looked almost boyish now excited as he elaborated “and then you said you wanted to fix my hair. You basically forced me to show you my entire hair color collection—and let’s not forget, you called every single one of them ugly.”
She covered her face, laughing.
“And then,” he continued, softer now, “you grabbed my hair and said platinum would look so much better and then…”
He paused suddenly.
“Then?” chaerin prompted, smiling faintly.
But Jay couldn’t continue. His words got stuck somewhere between his throat and his heartbeat which was suddenly too loud in his ears. The bathroom felt too close only two breathes synching together. Chaerin notices the flush slowly growing from his neck to his cheeks and eventually his ears. She frowned slightly “and then? What happened after that Jay?”
Jay looked into her eyes, pretty lashes behind the thick glasses. Suddenly he reached forward, grabbed her arms and pulled her into the tub. She barely had time to gasp.
“Then you grabbed my hair like this…” he murmured, his fingers gently tugging at her already half undone ponytail. Chaerin's breath hitched.
“And then… you painted my hair platinum silver” His voice dropped to a whisper, before she could process anything he leaned in and pressed his lips against hers.
You stared hard at the application form in front of you.
“A field trip? And that too architecture and engineering departments collaborating?????? This feels like a planned murder,” Chisa huffed as she finished filling in her details. “Oh, come on! This is such a sweet moment for Y/n to finally show pda with her boyfriend,” Jurin teased, winking at your direction. You let out a whin “ohhhh shut ittttt, he's not even my boyfriend…”
“I’m manifesting for you baby.” jurin blew a kiss.
“I think I’m gonna dump Evelyn’s body here,” Chaerin said casually, pointing at the river on the campsite map attached to the form making both Chisa and Jurin burst out laughing. Your eyes drifted across the room landing on Jake who was busy discussing something with Jay, most probably about the upcoming match with Sunshine City College.
“I’m more worried about insects and mosquitoes, though…” Chisa made a disgusted face then pointed at Chaerin’s neck “speaking of which—the fuck kind of evolutionary insect bruised you up this bad?”
“girl that’s not an insect, that’s Jay.”
The three of you froze mid action, slowly turning to stare at Chaerin. Her cheeks flushed bright red as she cleared her throat and took a bite of her hotdog.
“I told y’all,” Chisa threw her hands up dramatically “this bitch cannot survive celibacy!”
“Jake’s birthday is two weeks away.”
You gaped at Sunghoon then repeated his words in your head. Jake’s birthday. JAKE’S BIRTHDAY. Your eyes widened with a sudden spark of hope as you sat up straight. Right now you and Sunghoon were sitting in a random café, because of course discussing your goal in Jake's proximity would completely ruin the plan.
“All of us—I mean, you know the boys, we’re planning to surprise him. And we need someone who can make proper home cooked meals. Usually Jay does the cooking but he messes up at least one dish,” Sunghoon said, finishing his coffee before crossing his arms. “But the problem is, you’ll have to stay undercover the whole day—or even the whole week. We cannot let him know you’re involved. That’s what will make it the biggest surprise.”
You nodded eagerly quickly pulling out your phone to note down important points about the plan.
The two of you spent rest of the afternoon discussing details, completely unaware of a certain figure capturing pictures from afar.
Operation Jake’s Birthday was officially in motion. With the help of Jungwon and Sunoo you gathered information about his favorite foods. Yes, Professor Min still embarrassed you in front of the entire class for falling asleep mid lecture, but what else were you supposed to do? Staying up all night to design his birthday banner and plan decorations took time.
You did your best to not make Jake uncomfortable with your hopeless stares as much as you could. I mean I don't think he's that eager to see me anyways. You concluded your own theory often catching him ignoring you even if both of you were standing at an approachable distance from each other. That shit hurt so bad. But hey pain is a part of growth after all. You cannot just expect Jake to magically fall for you after the level of weird stuffs you pulled at him.
“I feel like a criminal for ditching you,” Chaerin muttered as she finished touching up her makeup. You smiled softly and shook your head “It’s okay, Chae. You’ve done enough….go enjoy your date tonight.” She squeezed your hand tightly before pulling you into a light hug.
“Text me if something goes wrong, yeah?”
“Yeah.”
“Balloons… wrappers… paper cups and plates… what else…” you muttered while scanning the small shop. You were out buying decorations since Jake’s birthday was just a few days away now. You hadn’t seen him since last wednesday after jungwon told you he basically locked himself up in his room to finish the final parts of his assignment — and while it helped you stay focused, you missed him more than you wanted to ever admit.
Everything on your list was checked. You waited while the cashier prepared your bill, eyes wandering around the shop…then you looked outside, through the see of people at the crossing, high school students returning home together in a flock, the troubled traffic guard, street food shops just setting up their cart taking in glow of last sunrays of the day, and finally stopped at the store across the road.
It looked like some usual high end clothing store. But the red shirt displayed under warm yellow lighting caught your attention instantly. After paying you crossed the street, failing to contain your curiosity.
It looked even better up close. The small logo on the left side practically screamed expensive. You glanced at the price tag naturally and shrieked. 169 bomboclat dollars.
Soon you sank in disappointment. If only it were a little cheaper…maybe…Your heart ached at the thought of Jake wearing it. Why is capitalism even a thing?
“Found you again.”
You jumped as a hand landed on your shoulder. Heeseung! He scanned you up and down, lips curling into a small smile when he noticed the decorations peeking out of your bag. “Shopping for a friend?”
You shook your head “for Jake.” His smile faltered for a split second before he followed your gaze toward the shirt “out of your budget?”
“I mean wayyyy out of my budget.”
Before you could react he grabbed your hand and started dragging you inside ignoring your little protests “Heeseung what the fuck?! Are you crazy—wait!”
Within minutes both of you were standing at the counter. Shirt neatly packed in a gift box, with a note that read: From Y/n. You tried your best to snatch heeseung's card away, but he shot you a look that made you step back immediately, a pout forming on your lips. Heeseung stared at you for a moment then sighed, patting your head. “Fine. Pay whatever you can—I’ll cover the rest.”
The two of you walked out laughing about how annoyed the store staffs looked while you were arguing over the bill.
“Do you think Jake will be mad if he finds out?” Heeseung asked pointing at the note that now read From 'Y/N and Heeseung'. You clicked your tongue “let him stay mad. I know he’ll wear it. You have no idea what a softie he actually is....bro literally buys chips that has little gifts inside” you laughed raising your wrist to show him the familiar beaded bracelet.
Heeseung smiled warmly his gaze lingering from your wrist to your face. “Yeah…it’s pretty.”
You went quiet for a moment before speaking again. “Thank you Heeseung….I mean I just don’t know how you always show up when I need help the most!— It’s almost like you’re my guardian angel....what you’re laughing?! I’m not joking!” He covered his mouth trying not to attract too much attention, then flicked your forehead “see when your head is empty you say nonsense like this.”
“asshole get away from me!”
# 8 mixed up
“The field trip is a crucial part of your syllabus as well as this semester …” the dean's voice echoed through the big hall filled with restless engineering and architecture students.
Jake yawned, words blurring into noise. He hadn’t been getting proper sleep lately. Assignment had drained him and even after submitting everything he felt uneasy for some reason. Probably the all nighters finally catching up to him. And to make it worse the guys kept gathering in the living room at midnight, whispering about something—and kicking him out whenever he tried to join.
It felt like everyone has taken a challenge of ragebaiting him and he indeed was raging inside.
“Jake Sim, 4th semester, ID number 100902, engineering department.”
His fatigue disappeared soon, attention snapping back into attention as the dean announced his government name from the dais with a very serious look. What's happening? Whispers filled the hall as others started looking at jake while whispering.
“please meet me in my office after your classes.”
“Sunoo no wait!” you yelled as he nearly poured the wrong batter into the bowl. He gave you a sheepish smile and corrected himself immediately. Behind you a whirlwind of chaos unfolded as Sunghoon and Jay kept bickering about the banner placement. Not far away from them Chaerin helped Jungwon to blow up the balloons and lastly Chisa and Jurin tried their best to help you in the kitchen.
The cake was ready and you were icing it carefully. Your mind raced with unfamiliar emotions. God, i hope he likes it.
You kept double checking everything, asking Sunghoon about other potential allergies, preferences, anything. It was extremely exhausting but warm. Everyone had skipped their classes to help you. You wanted to invite Heeseung too but he had a boxing match today. Soon your eyes flicked to the clock. 5:30 p.m. only half an hour more till Jake comes back. You couldn’t wait to see his reaction.
“I’m sorry…what?” Jake’s voice came out hollow as his trembling fingers scrolled through a particular segment of the project he submitted three days ago. It stared right back at him through the dean’s laptop screen. Something was horribly wrong.
“Jake,” the dean sighed, folding his arms “you are one of our very talented students and no doubt your academic performance has been excellent since the first semester. But this is unacceptable.”
Jake couldn’t speak. The information on the screen wasn’t what he remembered writing.
“Even a high school student could tell the amount of ai usage here,” the dean continued. “You’re aware of Decelis rules right? Unsupervised ai usage for assignments and exams is strictly prohibited. I don’t know why you’d risk something like this, especially for such an important project.”
It felt like needles were piercing his skin. This couldn’t be real. He hadn’t used ai at all, not even once. Everything had been his own research from authentic books and verfied sites which he checked numerous times before putting the statistics in.
“We are unfortunately bounded by rules and have to deduct a portion of your credits, I hope you think twice before committing such atrocities like this again. You’re dismissed.”
His head felt too light when he came out of the office. The hallways was suffocating, as expected everyone was staring at his pale face and shaky hands. No stop. Dont look at me. Please go away. He clenched his teeth but before he could proceed any further, a hand grabbed his, pulling him in a nearby empty classroom.
“Jake, I know this isn’t the right time but…I know who messed with your project.” Evelyn's voice felt like some kind of distant noise.
A very weird feeling settled in the pit of his stomach as he gathered energy to respond back “what?”
“It’s Y/n.” Evelyn stated firmly. The confidence in her voice knocked the remaining air out of his lungs.
“I saw her messing with your stuffs weeks ago when you were doing your assignment in the basketball court.”
His body stiffened realising exact which day Evelyn was talking about. The spongebob umbrella laying beside his laptop. He remembered everything all too well .“I don’t know if you’ll believe me,” Evelyn continued, her voice dripping with venom, “but she’s evil jake...she's not done ruining your life. I think we both know she’s been behind everything weird that has happened to you this semester.”
The room felt too cold to his liking as Jake tried his best to stand still. The sheer thought of you messing up with his assignments just wasn't making any sense. But whatever information Evelyn provided, pointed at no one but you being the reason for this damage.
“I don’t know what’s going on between you two, but look!” she shoved her phone in front of him “she is now going for two men at once after she is done with you! And not surprised one of them is your friend!” Blurry but clear enough to see there were pictures taken from a distance of you and Sunghoon laughing together. Jake hurriedly snatched the phone from her hands and swiped — the next one was outside a newly opened Ralph and lauren store. You and Heeseung holding hands as he was pulling you inside the store.
“See?” Evelyn muttered. “Going after two guys at once of course with a privileged background. Not surprising at all! typical small town behavior.” Jake couldn't hear the rest. None of Evelyn’s words reached him and his cloudy state of mind. His fingers tightened around the phone.
“Did he forget his way…or what…” Chisa yawned followed by Jurin. Both of them were slumped on the couch. Sunoo had fallen asleep, head resting on Sunghoon’s shoulder as the older guy called Jake for the fifth time — each one going straight to voicemail. Jay and Chaerin exchanged worried looks, and you felt your stomach twisting uncomfortably. It was almost 9 p.m but Jake still wasn’t here. Did he somehow find out you were here…? Is that why he wasn’t coming?
The sound of the apartment door unlocking caught everyone’s attention. Jurin shoved Chisa awake before she could fully pass out and Sunghoon quickly helped you light the candles while a half asleep Sunoo carefully flipped off the switches.
The room was instantly filled with a warm yellow glow from fairy lights and flickering candles. You held the cake, waiting and after what it felt like waiting for an eternity, Jake finally stepped in.
Right then Jay and Jungwon popped the party crackers, colorful confetti bursting into the air with a loud snap.
“Happy birthday Jakeeeee!” everyone shouted in unison, waiting for his reaction.
But nothing came.
“Turn the lights on.”
You turned to Sunghoon, who looked just as confused beside you. Why did Jake sound like that? He hesitated and stepped forward “bro look uppp! See who’s here—”
“Don’t make me repeat myself, Hoon.”
Sensing things were escalating Jungwon immediately turned the lights on. Your throat went dry when you saw Jake’s face. He looked empty and dreaded. Did something happen?
“Where were you on 6th September?”
You flinched. Nearly two months into being a professional troublemaker in jake's life but his voice had never sounded so distant. So cold.
“Jake, what’s going on—” Jay stepped forward but Jake cut him off.
“Y/n I’m asking you. Where the hell were you on 6th September?!”
You flinched at his sudden yell. After quickly doing a mental math, you gathered the courage to answer “I—I attended Professor Min’s class, and then I…” you trailed off. Right, then you were searching for him to return his umbrella.
“I… went to the basketball court to return your umbrella, but you weren’t there, so I—”
Jake let out a sharp, mocking laugh. “So you edited out a whole paragraph of my assignment and replaced it with some ai bullshit!”
Huh?
“What the fuck are you talking about?” you heard Chaerin’s footsteps approaching as stepped closer. Jake pinched the bridge of his nose. “Let me be honest with you Y/n....I don’t know why you came into my life, but I do know you’ve brought nothing but problems and misery.”
What's happening?
Sunghoon quickly took the cake from your hands realising you were shaking and set it aside. “Jake, you really need to start giving context before I beat the shit out of you,” he snapped, clearly irritated. The ground beneath your feet felt like it was moving slowly. What was he even talking about? Replacing his assignment with ai?
“Oh yeah?” Jake scoffed “Now you want to beat me for her? Why though? Because secretly both of you are fucking?” he spit out and instantly Sunghoon’s fist collided with his face. “Sunghoon no!” you screamed grabbing him as Jake lunged forward to hit back only to be held back by Jay. Everything in your head blurred together as you dragged Sunghoon afar. Sunoo and Jungwon tried to calm him down as he breathed heavily.
You ignored Chisa who tried to stop you with a worried expression before walking back toward Jake.
You inhaled deeply, bracing yourself for whatever impact was coming.
“Jake let’s talk outside.”
“I don’t think you’re in any position to command me y/n” he stayed stubborn. Fine. You let out the breath you had been holding for so long. “I did not edit your assignment. And before you point fingers at me, remember Evelyn was there the whole time. Even before I entered the court.”
He raised his eyebrows, face morphing into something purely influenced by ignorance “yeah that's your defence mechanism??? Putting the blame on Evelyn isn't going to solve the issue you created from your own fucked up feelings against me—”
Fucked up feelings? Against him? putting blame on Evelyn?
“SO WHAT?!” you screamed finally at your breaking point. “You want to act all righteous and mighty even though you never once saw me editing your assignment with your own eyes?!”
Jake felt a pang in his chest, as every single person in that room witnessed everything you had been holding back spill out.
“If you don’t want to believe me, then don’t! But goddammit Jake you—you are so cruel....both you and evelyn can go to hell for all I care! And fine—I’ll never show my face again! I hope you don’t either you ungrateful shit! I hope I fall and die in a ditch before expressing my feelings for you!” With trembling hands you tore the bracelet off your wrist, elastic band snapping in the hurried process and you threw it at him, beads scattered instantly across the floor. You could not afford to waste any seconds after that and stormed out of room number 15 of the boys’ dormitory with Chaerin, Chisa, and Jurin rushing after you.
Jake stood there, a pit of silence and emptiness feeling his senses. His eyes fell on the broken bracelet near his feet then slowly he looked around. The entire apartment was decorated exactly how he had always wanted birthdays to look as a child. As for his parents fancy dinners had always mattered more than something like this.
He then looked at Jungwon and Sunoo who seemed just as shaken. “Happy birthday,” Jungwon muttered quietly before slipping out with a clearly displeased Sunoo. Now it was just him, Jay and Sunghoon who looked like he was gonna jump him anytime if he turns around. Jay waited for him to speak but when he said nothing, he stepped closer and placed a hand on his shoulder
“Stop favoring your heart and start using your brain before it's too late”
“I hate him, I hate him, I hate him so much oughhhh I feel like mixing rat poison in his food!” you cried out, voice muffled by the pillow pressed tightly against your face. Chaerin tried calming you down in every possible way, but she knew it was useless. After fifteen minutes of yelling and cursing Jake, you finally lifted the pillow and threw it across the room. “Chae…”
She crawled closer at the sound of your hoarse voice. “Mm-hmm?”
You swallowed, lowering your gaze as your fingers absentmindedly scratched at the bedsheets. “W-what is the punishment for using ai in assignments…? will—will they fail him?”
Oh, you poor girl. Chaerin shook her head gently as she tried to tie your messy hair into a bun. “If it were a regular student, maybe. But since it’s the department topper…..I don’t think so.”
You didn’t know what kind of comfort that brought to your already bruised heart, but you clutched her sleeve anyway.
“…Am I a disappointment to feminism?”
Chaerin cupped your jaw, forcing you to look at her. “No, you’re not, Y/n. You can dislike and like a person at the same time. And NO one in this world has the right to shame you for that” You immediately scooted away from her. “I don’t like him.”
“Not even a bit?”
“No. Not at all.”
She laughed softly and lay down, her head resting on your lap. “Then why did you cook his favorite food? go out of your comfort zone to plan his birthday? and write him—”
“That’s just because… I… because I, uh…”
you started, ready to argue, but no matter how hard you searched for an answer, your mind came up blank. Chaerin propped herself up on her elbow, looking at you knowingly. “See?”
“Not my fault! I want to know too why I’m doing all this even though I hate him… so much…” The anger in your voice slowly faded by the end of your sentence. Chaerin took your hand then placed it over your heart.
“You’re looking for answers in the wrong place, baby.”
Wrong place huh?
Your heartbeat against your palm felt fast, tired from running, worn out from being wrongly accused. So much for liking a dumbass. Jake didn’t trust you. In fact, he never even tried to open the door of his heart to let you in. You were doing everything alone like a complete clown trying to impress someone who didn’t even want to be impressed. There had been so many signs. So many chances to give up. To realize that maybe you just didn’t belong in a world where Jake would ever look at you the way you looked at him. You couldn’t even remember the last time he had truly looked at you.
All you remembered now was that cold, distant expression, pushing you away every darn time you tried to get closer. It was about damn time mission relearning Jake should be aborted.
# 9 intentions
The apartment felt too empty after Sunghoon and Jay finished cleaning everything up. Jake had locked himself in his room after taking a shower. The only sounds he could hear were the faint clatter of utensils from outside, probably Jay putting food away and the ticking of the analog wall clock on his wall. A few minutes ago he had received a text from his computer science major friend felix
I’m trying to glaze our sports instructor for the CCTV footage.
But he’s acting like a total bitch.
Don’t worry bro. I’ll avenge your credit points.
And he knew felix had enough influence to actually get the footage — legally or not.
See? That part wasn’t hard. What was hard was taking back everything he had said just a few hours ago. His grip tightened around the small note he had found inside the gift box alongside the bright red Ralph Lauren shirt now resting on his study table. He had already read it five times. Slowly he lifted it up to eye level again.
His eyes burned as the pressure finally gave way. Fresh, warm tears spilled out almost in no time. God, he didn’t deserve it. He didn’t deserve your attention, your effort, your time. He didn’t deserve Sunghoon, the first person he had truly grown close to after joining this shit ass college. He didn’t deserve Jay, who always showed up whenever he was in trouble. He didn’t even deserve Riki, who had texted him happy birthday with a video of him and Layla wearing birthday caps and yet Jake still hadn’t found the time to reply.
Soft knocks interrupted his sniffles as he slowly sat up.
“Open up.” Sunghoon’s rough voice came from outside. Without saying anything Jake dragged himself to the door and opened it. Sunghoon stood there, eyes just as red rimmed. He probably cried in his room but he would never admit it to jake by the way.
Without a word, Sunghoon pushed past and walked in, then plopped down on the bed. He patted the empty space beside him. Jake followed and sat quietly.
“I’m not paying for your rhinoplasty by the way” Sunghoon muttered after a long silence resulting in Jake letting out a weak snicker “your weak-ass punch did nothing chill.” Sunghoon kicked him lightly in the shin “don’t rile me up fucker.”
Jake sighed while rubbing the back of his neck. “I’m sorry.”
Sunghoon raised an eyebrow “you’re apologizing to the wrong person.”
Jake swallowed, staring straight ahead. Yeah. He knew that. But he wasn’t sure if the person he should apologize to would even want to see him anymore.
“…Mhm. Pass the apology to her, then.”
Sunghoon shot up, startling him and grabbed his shoulder “Jake, my guy—get your shit straight.”
“I am straight.”
“Your brain starts lagging every time you see Y/n.”
Jake pulled himself out of Sunghoon’s grip and groaned “No it doesn’t! It’s just—there’s never been any normal start between us at all!—”
“And??” Sunghoon cut him off sharply “that girl did so much just to give you a normal start. Do you have any idea?!”
Jake fell silent. The words hit like a punch to the gut “…yeah. And I hate myself for it.”
“As you should, asshole.” Sunghoon glared at him, but his expression softened when he noticed that familiar kicked out look on Jake’s face, the same one he had seen three years ago when Jake used to sit alone on the bleachers during lunch. “What are you thinking Jake?” he asked quietly.
Jake avoided his gaze. “I… don’t know hoon....I don’t know what I’m thinking....what I'm feeling…”
Sunghoon crouched down in front of him “Oh, really? You don’t?” then without warning, he reached under Jake’s bed and pulled out something. A Post Malone album. Similar to the one displayed nicely on his desk, but this one was wrapped in khaki paper, decorated with small paper hearts.
“…Then what the fuck is this doing here? Cuz last time I took it here I remember keeping it in the waste storage boxes to throw it out later!”
Jake couldn’t answer. Sunghoon stood up again then walked to his study table. He yanked open the drawer and pulled out a small piece of paper — a chibi doodle of a grumpy Jake. The fading sticky glue was still noticeable behind it, clear it had been nicely ripped from something. Or better from a certain oatmilk package. "Oh we sure are gonna ignore this one right?"
Then he strode back, grabbed Jake’s wrist, and pulled up his sleeve. A beaded bracelet, very much identical to the one you had torn and thrown earlier was there around his wrist. “And this too?? Did Y/n know these bracelets came in pairs?”
Sunghoon exhaled sharply before continuing, “Why did you even get mad at the idea that I might be hooking up with her? Or fine—let’s be respectful—what if I was hitting on Y/n?”
Jake pressed his lips together ignoring the feeling he was trying to suppress gnaw at his heart. “I don’t really care.”
Sunghoon let out a dry chuckle “Oh really? You don’t?”
“No. I don’t.”
Silence settled between them again as Jake slowly pulled his hand back from his friend's grip. Sunghoon stood still for a moment before speaking again, quieter this time.
“I think we both know what that means, Jake.” Jake said nothing. His fingers brushed over the bracelet on his wrist as he realized how brutally Sunghoon had stripped his feelings bare.
You adjusted your airpods unconsciously, realizing the amount students were staring at you, turning their heads, whispering, and giggling to their friends weren’t just a coincidence. You looked down at your clothes, checking if you had worn it inside out or if your jeans were unzipped. But everything was perfectly fine. After taking your usual seat in the classroom, you noticed even more eyes on you, making it unbearable. Within a minute, you felt a tap on your shoulder.
You removed one airpod and turned around —only to find Heeseung looking at you with a worried expression. You forced a small smile amd he shifted beside you subtly shielding you from the stares.
“You okay?”
“mm hmm… don’t worry,” you sighed and flipped a random notebook to distract yourself. Heeseung took the bundle pages from your hand while shutting it “you want me to beat those people up?”
You let out a frustrated huff “I mean–I don’t even know why they’re staring at me like that…”
Heeseung frowned for a moment “yeah, ignore those dumbasses—”
“Hi, Y/n!”
Both of you flinched as a group of girls from your class suddenly appeared in front of you “uh… hi?”
“Did you really do it??” one of them asked, making you even more confused.
“…Do what?”
They started giggling among themselves. Beside you, Heeseung tensed. He grabbed your hand trying get your attention “Y/n let’s skip this class—”
“You know…hommie hopping between Sunghoon and Jake!”
“And here I thought Jake was the biggest slut”
They burst out laughing.
Your blood ran cold and you turned to Heeseung with a horrified expression. He only shook his head and mouthed 'Let’s get OUT.'
You know what they say about bad reputations. They always catch up. And when they do, they strip your sense of 'self' away, your peace along with whatever little strength you have left.
You stared blankly at the college forum. A picture of you and Sunghoon was posted with a bold caption: “New slut on campus.”
You didn’t know what to think or what to say anymore. Everything inside you was building up, pressure rising with every passing second, threatening to explode into something ugly. “The fuck are you looking at?” Chisa snapped at a group of juniors staring at your table. You clutched your head which was already starting to hurt despite of skipping all lectures since morning.
“She needs her campus pr privileges revoked. This is literally quiet literally a violation of privacy,” Chaerin snarled, pointing at the small ‘by Sadie’ under the post.
“Look who shamelessly showed up…”
Your skin prickled as Sadie and Yunjin approached your table, wearing priceless expressions and victory of their final blow.
“Yeah Sadie, learned that shit from you. True inspiration,” Jurin shot back instantly, wiping the smirk off Sadie’s face.
“Watch your tone, or the three of you will wake up to the same kind of judgment tomorrow.” She hissed to which Chaerin stood up abruptly, her chair crashing to the floor due to the impact and nearby students fell silent. “uh huh? Is that it???” she mocked and before Yunjin could come up with another attack in Sadie's defense, Chaerin grabbed the container of spaghetti Chisa had been slurping from just minutes ago— then threw it straight at Sadie.
The whole cafeteria instantly broke out with gasps and whispers. You tried to pull Chaerin back, terrified as Sadie who was now shaking, gooey red spaghetti sauce dripping down her perfectly styled pink blow dried hair, shot the most sinister look at your table. Yunjin lunged at Chaerin to avenge her, but before her hands could even touch the targeted girl, Chisa grabbed a chunk of yunjin's hair and yanked her back “hoe really thinks her authority works here....it’s a democracy bitch!”
Chaos broke out instantly. Some students screamed, others started chanting 'fight fight!', while the rest pulled out their phones to record. You felt your head spinning when you spotted professors and staff rushing in. It’s a mess. It’s a whole fucking mess—From the corner of your eyes you saw Sadie charging straight at you with her claws out, looking no less terrifying than the red demon from insidious.
Suddenly warmth wrapped around your wrist. “What the fu—”
Sadie’s mortified face, Chisa dragging Yunjin, the upside down cafeteria including screams of students mixed with professors yelling —Everything blurred within seconds as the hand dragged you far far away. No direction or whatsoever, you were just running. Your heart hammered less from the run, but from the strands of blonde hair peeking out from under his hoodie.
Soon you found yourself inside a cramped space between lockers. Pants and gasps filled the small area as you leaned against the cold metal for support. Jake’s hand was still interlaced with yours which you slowly pulled away after realisation. Outside, the dean’s voice echoed faintly “Suspend everyone who was in the cafeteria!”
For seven long minutes neither of you spoke, just trying to catch your breath and avoiding each other’s gaze. But eventually you had no choice. As you looked up, Jake’s sunken eyes met yours. He swallowed hard to hydrate his dry throat “you… okay?”
You nodded not even having the energy to speak. Silence fell again and you suddenly became aware of how close you were — his uneven breaths brushed against your ear and the height difference made your face was nearly level with his chest, the thin silver chain he always wore dangling in front of you. “I should go,” you whispered, your voice smaller than ever. You tried to move but his hand grabbed your wrist again.
“Y/n I—that day, I was—”
“It’s okay Jake,” you replied shortly, shutting him up.
He stared at you for a moment then shook his head “it’s not okay.”
You clenched your jaws. Of course as always he was right. It was infact not okay at ALL. Nothing like this should have ever escalated but guess what? Your staurn being weak was finally catching up to you.
“Jake… let’s just forget anything ever happened,” you whispered, ignoring the lump in your throat. He stiffened for a moment then scoffed “you said you wanted to start fresh with me so how can we just forget—?” You looked up at him through your wet lashes, “yeah… because YOU said you wished we met differently!”
Jake shook his head “but this is not how I—”
“Then what the fuck do you want?!” you yelled, hitting his chest. He flinched even though your noticeably small palm made little to no impact then grabbed your wrist “chill—why do you have to be so violent all the time?”
“CHILL?!” you screamed again and he immediately covered your mouth, glancing outside to check if anyone heard. Tears welled up in your eyes as his hand slowly dropped.
“Jake how—how can I be calm after everything?” your voice trembled. “Think practically for once. From the beginning it was just me. It was always me chasing you, bothering you, approaching you with half baked assumptions… and yeah, maybe I should’ve seen this coming…”
You inhaled deeply, feeling your lungs running out of air “but I tried….I—I tried to mend our relatio—I mean fix whatever 'ship' was between us...and this is what I get for not giving up”
You hit his chest again, softer this time “Jake I’m tired…” You looked up searching his face to see if he had anything to say. But nothing came out. Was his heart made of stone? Did he feel nothing at all?
He slowly stepped back, your wrist slipping from his grasp and your back hit the lockers again.
“I’m sorry… I just—I wasn’t thinking. I shouldn’t have accused you without proof…” he whispered.
Proof.
And he still needed physical evidence to believe you would never do that to him. Ha! What a joke you made out of yourself. It was really just you and your feelings against the whole world, and jake belonged to that world. A hollow laugh escaped your lips as you contemplated to meet his eyes for almost twenty minutes “you don’t trust me, do you Jake…?”
He opened his mouth “no no I do—I just—”
“You don’t trust me. My opinions, my feelings and you’re ashamed of me—”
He grabbed your shoulders and shook you slightly, voice turning hoarse. “Watch what you’re saying...I never said I’m ashamed of you!”
You harshly removed his hands away “That’s the problem Jake! You never say anything at all! So of course my thoughts will fill the gap with everything I ever speculated from your silence!”
“If you’re not ashamed of me, then why are we hiding here like criminals?!”
Jake ran a hand through his hair “You’re getting it wrong—they—”
“They?!” you cut him off shortly “I don’t want to hear about them! Say what’s in your mind. Say it!”
You finished in one sentence and breathed heavily for fresh set of oxygen. He stared at you for few seconds then gently tucked a strand of hair behind your ear.
“Y/n… I think…”
Your heart thumped loudly and you fiddled nervously with your fingers. Is this it??? Was he finally going to—
“I think Sunghoon likes you and I don’t want to get in between you two… so I just wanted to clear things that...I don’t hold any grudges against you… or him.”
Eh?
Ehh???
EHHHH?????
Your face morphed into something very distant and distraught “Sunghoon what now?”
Jake nodded “yeah I know it sounds crazy, but….I think he’s bothered after witnessing us getting stuck again and again in some crazy positions—” He gulped, glancing up and down “I—I mean in life.”
You took a deep breath. What on God’s green earth was Jake even saying? Was he using even a single brain cell he used while studying?
“I think… I think we need to stay away from each other, as MUCH as we can” you whispered knowing you weren’t crazy for wanting that. Jake only nodded in response “yeah… let’s just try not to run into each other without any reason.”
Right. And that was exactly why Jake had very chalantly dragged you here to this vampire coup kinda space. In his defense he just wanted to save you from the mess that was probably still going on inside the cafeteria and to confess Sunghoon’s feelings.
Confess Sunghoon’s feelings…right....not his. Of course no.
He didn’t feel anything. Not at all.
“I still can’t believe birds are chirping and the sun is shining after that mess we survived yesterday,” Chaerin groaned, burying her face into your shoulder. You ignored her and focused on your books.
“You still haven’t told me where you disappeared, by the way.”
You scrunched your nose, trying to come up with a convincing lie “told you—I got scared and ran into the bathroom.”
Chaerin stared at you intently before clicking her tongue “I don’t know…..something about your testimony is not fucking convincing me.”
You shrugged “just stating facts.”
“Yeah, right. Also why are you ignoring Jake again?”
“I’m NOT???” Even if you tried, the desperation to suppress your emotions was obvious in your voice “and even if I am, what’s the problem? I don’t think I can sacrifice my major for something as trivial as Jake.”
“Funny how you say that when I can clearly see the tension—”
“Chaerin, stop. There’s genuinely nothing between us. Not anymore.”
Your best friend sighed, finally giving up as she lay back on your bed “we’re going shopping this weekend. You coming?”
You shook your head “assignments.”
A common class was arranged for the departments participating in the field trip, and the moment you realized that meant none other than just a bunch of grown engineering and architecture students crammed into one classroom, including the a very specific person you swore you weren’t trying to avoid.
You could practically hear the saxophone blaring in your ears.
Since the cafeteria mess happened for the first time in decelis — the principal and deans had let everyone off with just a few guardian calls and warnings. But you knew for Sadie, Evelyn, and the rest of that group, it wasn’t over yet. You had also noticed things seemed better between Chaerin and Jay. She now sat with him during the joint classes, and even though it got a little lonely sometimes you weren’t about to hold your best friend back for your own comfort. Still, you found yourself missing Chisa and Jurin a little more these days, considering they weren’t even from your department to begin with.
Too bad Heeseung wasn’t participating either, he was busy with his boxing gigs and practices as usual. That left you with Jungwon and Sunoo, who stuck together, and Sunghoon, who occasionally sat with you….and sometimes with a certain blonde student who preferred the very last row.
And now, as you stared at Sunghoon doodling absolute nonsense on your notebook, you couldn’t help but wonder what had even made Jake think about such bullshit. God, you wanted to ask Sunghoon about it so badly. But then again, getting involved in more mess sounded far worse than just staying confused.
“I hope this trip will be memorable for our two most loved departments,” an unfamiliar professor concluded her speech, probably a new recruit for the trip. You stretched your neck, trying to ease the stiffness.
“You need help?” Sunghoon asked glancing at your exhausted state after days of barely sleeping. You shook your head, forcing a tight lipped smile “no….I’m okay.”
“Damn, you look rough as hell.”
Jake flinched at the familiar deep voice. Felix gave him a casual salute before slipping into the seat beside him “about the footage, I’m still trying—”
“It’s okay, Felix. I…I don’t need it anymore,” he sighed, gaze unconsciously fixing on your back, which was unbeknownst to you slightly slouched against Sunghoon’s shoulder. He tried to ignore the pang in his chest. Whatever.
“But bro, your credit points—” Felix pouted. Jake let out a small chuckle “I can still score well in the field trip research and finals…” making the other guy mumble something along the lines of “I don’t know how you people manage this,” before getting completely lost in his own thoughts.
“Excuse me… uhm?”
The nineteen year old looked up and instinctively leaned back a little “yes….can I help you?”
There was no way his eyes were deceiving him at 8 a.m. on a class day. Standing right in front of him was the same girl who had sneezed a few days ago and, very unfortunately left clear snots on his brand new hoodie.“Are you okay now?” he asked, a bit cautiously, glancing at his current shirt as your cheeks turned pink.
“Y-yeah…” How embarrassing. You bit your lip and pulled out his belonging you had been meaning to return ever since that day. God, this guy had been hard to find. You were a freshman too but at least you had friends. It seemed like no one in his department even knew him — or maybe they were just discovering him for the first time whenever you asked about him.
“Thank you for that day,” you said, avoiding eye contact as you held out the properly washed and dried handkerchief, the letter ‘J’ neatly stitched in one corner. He took it back and scratching his brown hair awkwardly “you could’ve just kept it…”
What??? Did he think you couldn’t afford a handkerchief or something?...
But you were incapable of carrying one—
Shut the fuck up author.
“I’m really sorry for causing you trouble that day,” you added, this time more clearly while bending down to give him a small apologetic bow. “I’m Y/n from the architecture department by the way!”
An unnecessarily cute smile spread across his face, and you could practically feel the nervous giddiness radiating off him.
“No need to apologize, Y-Y/n… I’m Ja—”
“All architecture students are requested to assemble in the auditorium… I repeat, all architecture students…”
You mentally groaned at the sound of your dean’s voice echoing through the corridor “nice meeting you uhh I should go.” You gave him a quick wave before turning away.
Jake raised his hand to wave back, but you were already gone by then.
“…Bye...y/n.”
# 10 the heart wants what it wants
“No way what—” you gasped in horror, staring at the full sleeved outfits you were planning to pack for the trip. They were ruined with very noticeable holes staring back at you from almost every piece. “Are you fucking kidding me???? Even after paying a bloody amount of fees Decelis dorms have rats in the closet?” you cried immediately yanking every piece of clothing out of your wardrobe and throwing them onto your bed.
Except you were a little wrong. There weren’t any rats in Decelis. They were in your own house, ehich, unfortunately you had failed to notice while packing your winter clothes.
You glanced at the clock — almost 11:30 p.m. Chaerin was out shopping with the girls and you were pretty sure they had wrapped up by now. Calling them for your emergency would be pointless. You just needed some basic clothes for the three day trip. You hesitated for a moment then dialed Sunghoon’s number. He picked up within a few rings.
“At your service ma’am”
You could hear a few familiar voices in the background, but you ignored them and spoke frantically. “Sunghoon, can you accompany me to the mall???? There’s a huge emergency.”
He immediately sensed your panic “wait hold on—”
A few seconds passed before he spoke again. “Is it okay if I bring—”
“Yes, it’s okay! You can bring whoever you want!!” you nearly yelled, already slipping into a pair of jeans and a thin top, not even paying attention to whatever Sunghoon said next before hanging up.
And you wished so badly that you could take back your words. The weather was awful and the top you were wearing did absolutely nothing except sit on you like a useless decoration. Your phone was at 12%, and right beside you stood a very unaffected Jake with Sunghoon, of course. Even when you tried not to look, you kept stealing glances at him.
Ughhh what am I supposed to do??? He looks mad fine in that maroon leather jacket, alright?!
You hugged yourself tightly despite having just argued with Sunghoon about how you weren’t cold at all. From the corner of your eye, you could see him giving you a pitiful look.
You heard the faint rustle of leather shifting beside you and gulped. No matter what happens...you are not going to accept Jake’s offer if he tried to give you his jacket. Not at all. Even if you freeze to death right here.
You glanced at him again, only to find him pulling the jacket closer around himself and buttoning it all the way up to his neck.
Your ears burned hot. Whatever asshole.
You quickly marched up to Sunghoon who was walking a little ahead, completely missing the way Jake’s gloved hands had subtly moved, almost like he had been about to reach out for you. He let out a quiet breath when your presence disappeared from beside him, and slipped his hands back into his pockets.
Looking at the clearly pissed staffs who were definitely not expecting a uni student to go shopping at nearly 11:50 a.m., just ten minutes before closing — you realized you didn’t have the luxury to pick and choose. You grabbed whatever full sleeved, warm clothes you could find on the racks and started mentally estimating the total. You looked around trying to find where the other two boys had gone, only to spot them hanging out near a rack of oversized tees.
You sighed. At least things were better between Jake and Sunghoon. Otherwise the guilt of being the reason for their friendship breaking apart would’ve eaten you alive for the rest of your college life.
“Uh….ma’am, I don’t think these are your size…”
You flinched, not realizing a staff member had been watching you inspect the pile of clothes you had picked. She studied them for a moment, then grabbed a few more items from the rack and handed them to you with a bright smile.“You can try these in the trial room!”
And thank God you did. Because every single piece you had chosen was completely the wrong size. You almost cried in relief when you tried on the clothes the staff had picked. God bless that sweet girl.
Along with basic tops and tees, she had also included a baby pink dress with frills and tiny pearls. Too girly for your taste but it wouldn’t hurt to try right?
You slipped it on and froze. Wow.
Maybe you should start wearing dresses more often. It fit you perfectly. You turned slightly, only to notice the zipper was still open, exposing your bare back. Ugh.
You tried reaching behind, attempting to pull it up yourself, silently praying you wouldn’t ruin the dress.
“Ack!” you yelped in frustration when the zipper refused to budge.
“excuse me?” you called out, hoping the staff was nearby “I need a bit of help here!”
No one responded. You waited for another fifteen minutes and were just about to give up with an expression already turning sour, when the trial room door suddenly opened.
You sighed in relief, still craning your neck awkwardly to look at the zipper “uhm—sorry to bother again, I just need—AHHWHATDAFUCK!”
Your sentence ended in a sharp screech when you saw who was standing behind you in the mirror. Jake bit his lower lip, clearly trying to look anywhere but your bare back as he stammered, “T-the staffs are cleaning up…and there was no one around, y—you were calling—uhhh”
“Well then hurry up idiot now that you’re here!” you panicked, ignoring the sudden heat pooling in your stomach.
He nodded quickly, placing one hand lightly on your shoulder while the other reached for the zipper. Through the refelection you noticed his gaze wavering, shakily tracing the expanse of your back before he startled and looked up. You mentally facepalmed when your eyes met his in the reflection.
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to look—the chain is stuck—”
“And who set this system up?! Look at the chain if that helps you!” you snapped again.
He swallowed and looked down again. After a few more minutes of struggling and his rough finger pads occasionally brushing against your back, sending unwanted goosebumps down your spine — Jake finally managed to pull the zipper up. Both of you let out a breath of relief. Then his eyes lifted again, scanning your reflection. You forgot for a moment, that Jake was even inside the trial room.
The dress looked….perfect. Yeah. You were definitely keeping this.
You noticed his lips moving behind you and turned slightly “you saying something?”
He shook his head quickly. “Nah… it’s nothing.”
After giving yourself one last look and checking for any damage, you pushed Jake out of the room and locked the door behind you.
“Fuckfuckfuckfuck…” you whispered, sliding down against the door and covering your face.
“Fucking sexy.”
His ass wasn’t slick at all. You definitely heard what he whispered and a part of you wanted to hear it again. Too bad he was a fucking pussy. A knock came from outside, Sunghoon’s voice reminding you that the poor staffs probably wanted to go home. You checked your reflection one last time, trying to calm yourself down before facing Jake again and then you stepped out.
The walk back to the dorm wasn’t as awkward as you thought it would be except for the fact that your stomach kept rumbling, constantly reminding you that you skipped dinner. You wanted to go back and order something but Sunghoon protested, insisting he knew a nearby ramen place that stayed open until almost 3 a.m. Ignoring your protests he grabbed your arm and dragged you in the direction of the shop, with Jake trailing behind.
And honestly you were so glad you listened to him. The moment warm smell of the spicy soup hit you, your hunger spiked. The shop was small, almost like a pocket version of Decelis cafeteria, barely able to fit ten people at once. And at this hour it was completely empty.
The owner looked more than happy to see customers, probably not expecting to make any money this late.
As you relaxed into the small wooden chair, your eyes drifted toward Jake. He was looking at something on his phone, smiling to himself.
There was something about the way the corner of his lips curled when he smiled. It felt familiar. Maybe because you had noticed it before but never paid much attention to? considering he barely smiled back when you two were busy pissing each other off.
You cleared your throat. I mean he still pisses me off.
Your train of thought didn’t get to reach its destination before the owner arrived with three bowls of perfectly cooked katsu ramen. And in no time you dove headfirst into the soupy madness of noodles and vegetables. While eating you noticed Sunghoon quietly picking out spring onions from his bowl and dropping them into yours. You snickered when he met your eyes and soon both of you were giggling.
Across the table Jake tightened his grip on his chopsticks, then picked up a few pieces of chicken katsu and dropped them into your bowl.
Both you and Sunghoon looked up at him, mouths slightly open, waiting for an explanation. He shrugged “I don’t like katsu…”
Sunghoon immediately kicked him under the table “did you hit your head or something??? You literally said you wanted to eat katsu ramen!”
Jake licked his lips, ignoring your questioning look and turned to Sunghoon “ well I just decided I don’t like katsu anymore”
“Please log out.”
“Ahhhh, I’m so full,” you yawned after devouring an entire bowl including the spring onions from Sunghoon and the katsu pieces from Jake. The chilly weather reminded you that you still had to walk back to the dorm. Thankfully it wasn’t that far from the ramen shop.
“Sunghoon you just introduced me to a gem. I’m bringing the girls here next time!” you said doing small excited jumps. Sunghoon chuckled “sure.”
He stared at you for a moment then suddenly stepped closer and grabbed your jaw gently, lowering his voice “there’s something near your eye.”
You paused confused, as Sunghoon’s broad figure hovered so close, his fingers brushing lightly near your eye. Maybe your mascara had smudged a bit, you weren’t really sure. After a few seconds, he pulled back only to trip slightly in the process, making both of you burst into laughter.
Jake bit his tongue trying to stop himself from screaming or doing something he would only regret while watching sunghoon hovering over you, his back facing him. Sunghoon kissing the girl he claimed he might be interested in? Not okay. Sunghoon touching you like that? Definitely not okay.
He can’t.
Why?
He just can’t.
Why? Because he’s a coward who can’t admit his own feelings? Or is it because he was extremely jealous and radiating off black aura realising he never got to kiss you within a normal circumstance.
Jake was acting weird. Like, very weird.
You chewed on a protein bar as you continued packing your clothes. The bus was leaving early at 7 a.m. tomorrow, and since the destination was far you decided not to waste time on your phone tonight and just sleep early. But deciding something and actually putting that into action were two completely different things. You kept tossing and turning, the incidents from the past few days crowding your mind. You and Jake had barely interacted — it felt like time had rewound itself to when you only knew him as someone with a bad reputation, and he probably wasn’t even aware of your existence.
You placed your palm over your chest, feeling your heart beat steadily.
Chaerin did say something about listening to your heart a few days ago. You almost forgot about it.
Nope. There was nothing your heart had to say.
You squeezed your eyes shut and forced yourself to sleep. Within ten minutes, your body finally relaxed under the covers.
# 11 moonstruck
“I can’t believe they’re making us travel at 7 in the morning… ugh,” Chaerin groaned, her face still puffy and voice laced with sleepiness. You laughed while pinching her cheeks as you tried to help her sit up properly on the bus seat. Outside, the view slowly shifted, from tall skyscrapers to wide stretches of greenery, with the occasional factories passing by. The gentle jerks of the bus made you drowsy, and you rested your head against the window.
After almost an hour and a half of traveling, three buses packed with students from both departments finally reached their destination.
The decade old heritage building, subject of this trip's research stood tall just a few minutes away, within walking distance of the accommodation everyone was staying in. After the professors finished handing out room keys, Chaerin grabbed your hand.
“Y/n…me and Jay—we’re staying together…”
You gave her a sly smile “oh ho…?”
But instead of smiling back she looked worried. You noticed it immediately and patted her back. “It’s okay Chaerin. I’m not sad about you leaving me alone—I’ll have the room all to myself anyway.”
She tightened her grip on your hand “uhm… but his roommate—”
“Oh, don’t worry they can stay with m—wait, what?” You went quiet. How did you forget about that detail? Panic creeped inside you as you whispered, “Who is his roommate?”
“Sunghoon,” Chaerin replied almost instantly. You let out a breath of relief. Okay then, sharing a room with a guy wasn’t exactly something you had mentally prepared for, but it was just Sunghoon after all—
“But Sunghoon is sharing a room with Sunoo and Jungwon… which leaves you with Jake.”
Chaerin’s words cut through your thoughts, and your brain immediately stopped working then did a complete reboot.
Everything felt unreal like some crazy new york bestselling author’s bullshit until you and Jake were really standing in the doorway of a single room with your respective luggage.
“See, I’m not doing that ‘you take the bed and I’ll sleep on the couch’ shit,” you rambled, shoving Jake aside as you entered. Partly because you wanted to claim the better side of the bed and partly cause you didn’t want him to see your tomato red face. Jake followed silently as you continued, “Bathroom usage should be no more than twenty minutes—and that includes showering and shitting—what the fuck, hey! that’s my side!”
You gasped as you saw Jake already dumping his duffel bag and stretching out on the side of the bed you had clearly intended for yourself. He shrugged “first come, first serve.”
Insufferable prick.
You tossed your bag onto a nearby beanbag and stormed into the en suite bathroom. Just before shutting the door you peeked your head out and shot him a dead glare “and since I’m the first one to use the bathroom I won’t be coming out for an hour.”
“What the fuck—?! That’s not fair, what?!” He sat up straight for the first time, making direct eye contact.
You stuck your tongue out. “First come, first serve right back at you.”
Since it was the very first day there wasn’t much scheduled — just self exploration and students hanging out. The actual research would begin the next day. You were in the middle of sorting your outfits when a notification popped up in the group chat.
Professor Han: Mandatory physical activities for students will take place in five minutes.
Please wrap up and come outside.
Are you kidding me? It was nearly 3 p.m. Who in their right mind even does physical activities at this ungodly hour? You huffed while slipping into a pair of trousers and a white baby tee. Since Jake was still in the bathroom, you changed in the room and decided to head out before him.
The sun was slowly softening, air turning breezy. You noticed people already forming groups and jogged over where jay sunghoon chaerin was chatting. After catching up and you ranting to Chaerin about Jake stealing your side of the bed, everyone soon found themselves gathered in front of two large cardboard boxes. Professor Han stood at the front with a mic, alongside a few other assistant professors.
“Since this is a conjoined trip, we believe team bonding is very important before anything else.”
A wave of groans and sighs rippled through the crowd, clearly reflecting the ongoing tension between architecture and engineering departments.
Ignoring that, “So, we’ve decided to pair everyone up using a lottery system!” Professor Kim announced. That earned actual curses from the students. “No bad words!”
“First line, please come forward one by one and pick a random slip from either of these boxes. Announce your partner’s name, and they must stand beside you but—” Professor Han paused for effect making sure he had everyone’s attention.
“—here’s a twist.”
The crowd leaned in.
“If you don’t like the partner you get you can exchange them with someone you do like!”
That instantly caused an uproar this time of relief. At least no one would be stuck with someone they didn’t want. The lottery began. Some got their friends, some exchanged and some were left awkwardly unmatched. And then finally it was your turn. You walked forward and picked a slip without much thought. The name slipped out of your mouth before your brain could fully process it.
“Jake Sim, engineering department.”
You heard few girls snickering behind you.
Without missing a beat you spoke again, “I want to exchange my partner with Park Sunghoon!”
You ignored Sunghoon’s confused expression, doing everything in your power to not look at Jake, who stood somewhere behind him.
“What the fuck was that?” Sunghoon whisper yelled. You crossed your arms and ignored the tug in your chest. “Just doing what he wanted.”
“Quiet! No commotion… next one, please come up,” Professor Han continued. One by one, everyone got their partners. And then it was Jake’s turn. He was wearing a cap so you couldn’t clearly see his expression. He picked up a slip, stared at it for a moment then looked up.
“Evelyn Jung, engineering department.”
Your arms dropped to your sides. The composure you had been holding onto shattered instantly. He’s going to exchange his partner right? Right???
Jake said nothing as Evelyn with her bubbly energy skipped over to him in no time, immediately starting a conversation. And to your absolute demise you saw the corner of Jake’s lips curling upward.
Fuck him. Fuck both of them. You were so done.
The warm up session began with everyone helping their partners with stretching, sit-ups, and a few breathing exercises.
“So what the fuck was that?” Sunghoon asked again, pressing your feet down as you did a set of sit ups. “No idea,” you replied kicking him slightly when you felt his grip weakening. “Ouch! Okay, damn!” he winced then glanced toward Jake and Evelyn, who were doing the same exercise not too far away.
“Is Jake going insane after that assignment incident?? The mf said he doesn’t like katsu anymore, and now he just accepted Evelyn as his partner?!” Sunghoon sounded like he didn’t believe a single word coming out of his own mouth. You exhaled sharply. Enough of Jake, Jake, Jake, and Jake. He could go fuck himself with a dildo named Evelyn—
“augh!”
Some students paused nearby at the sound of Evelyn’s voice. Even though you didn’t want to look you still glanced over at the commotion.
“Jake—it hurts!” she winced, pointing at her ankle which looked completely fine. Jake gently rubbed the spot “sorry I might’ve put too much pressure...” She shook her head in denial muttering how weak she felt nowadays then suddenly leaned forward — her lips barely grazed his cheek.
You saw red. You kicked Sunghoon again, freeing your feet, and stood up abruptly.
“Wha—woman what the fuck happens to you from time to time?!” Sunghoon groaned. You ignored him already walking back toward the accommodation. “Tell Professor Han I don’t feel well.”
And for a long time you didn’t. You stayed curled up covering yourself, biting your lips until they nearly bled as your mind filled with a storm of thoughts. By the time Jake entered the room tired and sweaty you were already fast asleep. He crouched down beside your bed, his thumb gently brushing away the dried tears still clinging to your face “why are you always in distress when I’m not looking…”
Your lips moved slightly making him pause before leaning in closer to catch your faint whisper.
“Jake you piece of shit….I hope you get chlamydia…”
Day one of the field trip began with you waking up tucked under the duvet, your voice groggy and your face puffy. You sat up quickly realizing you had slept through the entire night like a baby. Frantically searching for your phone your eyes drifted to the empty space beside you. Seems like someone didn’t come back last night. He was probably with Evelyn.
You sighed, already tired of Jake being the first thought after you opened your eyes, and decided to freshen up. It was officially research day.
After joining everyone for breakfast in the buffet area and successfully avoiding Jake, who seemed to be avoiding you too, you chatted with the others as if nothing was wrong.
“You’re acting weird again,” Sunghoon whispered casually picking spring onions off his plate and dropping them onto yours. You munched on a piece of toasted bread and shot a glare at Jake’s back, where he stood talking to Jay.
“Well I was born with it. Deal with it cause If you’re going to get romantically involved with a person you should like them as a whole.”
Sunghoon scrunched his face in disgust “why the hell would I get involved with you?”
“Exactly—why the fuck would you?!” you snapped “So go ahead and shove that idea into your friend’s thick skull!” and stuffed a piece of bread into Sunghoon’s mouth which hung open in shock.
“Look at these marvelous old money designs! Oh how beautifully they balance with the mechanical structures without hindering the engineering of the base!” The assistant professor walked ahead followed by a group of students including you. Other groups trailed behind different faculty members each being guided through the heritage building. “Oh—and did you know these bricks weigh nearly ten kilos? My my….how did they carve such fine designs…”
Yeah. You couldn’t wait to dig up a brick tonight and smash it on your roommate’s head. Suddenly you were shoved aside as a swaying figure of Evelyn appeared in front of you “Sorry my leg is injured,” she faked a smile before walking up to the professor and whispering something. After she finished, the professor clapped to get everyone’s attention.
“Our lovely student, Miss Evelyn has proposed a plan to take some beautiful photos of the building for later research purposes in pairs! So why don’t we follow the same pairing process we used yesterday?”
And just like that you wished you could dig up two bricks. Because murdering Jake wouldn’t be enough. Evelyn had to go too.
When you were six, there was this strange shaman lady who used to live next door. She would always look at you like something was terribly wrong and tell your mother that your planets were not aligned. While growing up you never really thought of her again until now, at this moment when you just finished drawing out a slip and read the name, the same damn name again, you truly believed your planets were at this point crashing with each other.
“Jake Sim, engineering department,” you called out in a robotic voice. Then you looked up at the crowd.
“I would like to exchange my partner. Park Sunghoon come out.”
“Okay what is your deal actually?” Chaerin smacked your hands as you tried to focus your phone camera on a plain white pillar.
“I want to go home,” you replied almost instantly. She nodded “yes, we all do, but—”
“No, you don’t!” You swatted her hand away, clearly irritated. Chaerin followed your clearly distracted and distressed stare, beyond the plain white pillar and spotted Evelyn taking pictures of Jake while he was busy scribbling something in his notebook. She sighed then grabbed your hands again. “Y/n why are you pushing him away like this when the universe is literally trying to make it work?”
Your mind was still burning from getting paired with Jake for the second time only to exchange him for Sunghoon — and practically hand him over to Evelyn with pink ribbons yet AGAIN. You snapped “I hope the universe fucking blows up tomorrow.”
Chaerin quickly stepped in front of you blocking your view before you could throw hands at the nearby girls who heard your comment while giving you looks. Then she crossed her arms.
“The more you push him away the more you’re going to get hurt,” she said firmly. “If you really want him gone say it to his face. Say you want no trouble and want to graduate without being in his presence. Say you’re done with everything—Right. To. His. Face.”
You clenched your jaw. Like hell you weren’t going to do that. Oh you definietly would. You just needed a little time. Just a little.
As the day ended with a few more lectures, note taking, and you actively avoiding the sight of Jake and Evelyn working together — you found yourself lying on the hotel bed completely exhausted and sweating, even in the chilly November weather. Too tired to even scoot away from Jake who seemed equally worn out. You shifted slightly trying to find a comfortable position under the air conditioner when his hand lightly brushed against yours.
You shot up “how scandalous!”
Jake rolled his eyes “never expected you to have such big words in your dictionary.”
“Not my fault you’re uneducated,” you huffed, tossing the pillows and duvet off the bed that were bothering you. Jake turned to the other side facing the window while you also turned the opposite way, staring hard at the beige wall.
He wasn't even gonna bicker with you now? Wow....well good for you. At least that saved you some time and your mental peace. You bit the inside of your cheek trying not to make a sound as a sob threatened to escape your throat.
Want him gone? How could you want him gone when your stupid heart refused to even accept that this was real? Sure you never wanted trouble. But things were far past that now. Why was Jake making you feel so confused? One moment he pulled you close like nothing had ever happened. The next you were left feeling tossed aside. God—you had even thrown off the duvet. Now there was nothing to muffle your tears or even cover yourself.
“Y/n?”
You heard Jake’s voice, softer this time. And though you wanted to answer, nothing really came out. See, this was your problem. Of course Jake would keep tossing you around if you couldn’t even stand up for yourself.
“Are you asleep?” he asked again.
You opened your mouth to answer but then felt arms encircling your waist and pulling you back, that instantly shut you up. Your back hit with jake's chest, warmth radiating off it. And as you tried your best to not wiggle you felt his breathe on your earlobs. "I'm sorry it's too cold...I'm so sorry...Just let me stay like this for a while..."
His sleepy voice faded into quiet breaths, then soft snores. You let out a careful breath and slowly relaxed into his hold.
Avoiding Jake at this point felt easier than avoiding Professor Min’s eyes. Why the hell was that hag even here? He called the two of you aside during breakfast, eyeing both you and Jake carefully. “I’ve noticed some ongoing tension between you two….not to mention the rumors about you sharing the same room are circulating among the teachers.”
You waited impatiently as he went on about how he shouldn’t catch you doing anything unethical with him blah, blah, blah.
You gulped. Does Jake remember what happened last night?
You glanced at him and found him looking somewhere else completely unfazed. Does he not remember anything at all? The answer had already been clear that morning when you woke up, tucked neatly under the duvet again, while Jake’s side of the bed was spotless, like no one had ever slept there except you. Why was he doing this?
“Y/n, Jake I’m talking to you.”
You snapped back to reality as Professor Min held out a fishing rod toward you both. “You two should go fishing. Consider it bonding time”
What now??? He can’t be serious right????
What shocked you even more was Jake casually taking the fishing rod without any protest, muttering a quiet “thank you.”
He turned and walked away, as you followed behind.
“Jake!—wait—you’re not actually serious about the fishing thing, right?! We have tons of paperwork!” you called out to him as he walked a few meters ahead. He didn’t turn back “There’s still time to think….and if you don’t want to come with me then don’t. I’ll just find another partner.”
Another partner??? What??? He couldn’t possibly mean Evelyn….right?
You let out a frustrated sigh and stomped past him, your steps heavy against the green field even if they barely made a mark.
Day two of the trip officially ended with a lot of note taking and observation. Fortunately everyone worked individually this time saving you from the emotional turmoil of being paired with Jake again. You scrubbed yourself harshly in the shower, tired, irritated, and somewhere close to feeling like dying. This trip was supposed to be your final push to move on. Seems like you were just stuck in the same place forever. That’s it. You slammed the handheld shower back into place and grabbed your towel.
You were going to move on. That was it. No more excuses and accepting anything from Jake.
After skipping dinner for two days straight you couldn’t risk it anymore. You needed fill your stomach before something else went wrong again.
“Slow down oh my God,” Chaerin muttered. You ignored her stuffing your mouth with whatever was on your plate. Sunghoon quickly held out a glass of water when you choked but immediately stopped when you shot him a glare.
“Are you trying to kill yourself or the chicken?” he muttered under his breath witnessing you stabbing the piece of meat repeatedly. Jake was nowhere to be seen. Not like you cared. He was a grown adult, it was his responsibility to eat on time. But your heart dropped when you overheard Jay telling Sunghoon that they hadn’t seen Jake since the afternoon. You slowed down, chewing more carefully, trying to come up with logical reasons. He’d come back eventually. He always did.
Beside you Chaerin noticed your uneasiness and nudged your shoulder. “Y/n did Jake say anyth—”
“Don’t involve me with him anymore,” you cut her off coldly, wiping your mouth with a tissue. Yeah you weren’t getting tangled in this shit again.
Back in the room you went through your usual skincare routine and flopped onto the bed, wishing yourself a very heartfelt goodnight. But even after tossing and turning across the entire bed sleep refused to come. Your hand instinctively reached for your phone.
11:30 pm.
It was pitch black outside, except for the dim lights near the entrance. Where the fuck was Jake? After five minutes of thinking and another five minutes of cursing yourself, you finally slipped on your hoodie and walked out of the room.
As you stepped out of the accommodation, you dialed his number. As expected it went straight to voicemail. He should honestly throw that phone away if he wasn’t even going to use it for its actual purpose. You shivered. The cold felt harsher now that you were out in the open, surrounded by vast, empty fields. From this distance, the site and the accommodation looked like tiny ants. You kept walking. What started as irritation slowly turned into worry. You dialed Jake’s number again but it was no use. A frustrated groan escaped your lips. When was the last time you saw him? Where could he even be—You forced yourself to calm down.
Think. And then it hit you. The image of him taking the fishing rod from Professor Min flashed across your mind.
The small lake behind the heritage building! You retraced your steps toward the old building. Your lungs burned craving warmth, as the air grew even colder near the lake. You turned on your phone’s flashlight.
“Jake?” you called, turning your head frantically. “Jake?!” eventually yelling louder.
What the fuck. You coughed, your throat dry from running and panting. Then you walked further. Slowly your vision adjusted. An old wooden bridge stretched across the lake. And there a hazy figure sat at the edge, shivering, alone, holding a fishing rod.
Fucking hell.
“JAKE!” you screamed with everything you had. The figure looked up. Soon jake's blurry figure stood up a little wobbly, maybe because he was sitting there for long. He dropped the fishing rod on the bridge and started running towards you. After a while his face became visible and you realised the reason he seemed blurry was not because of the weather but because of your own eyes tearing up. You quickly wiped your tears before he could get any closer.
“What are you doing here?” he asked, slightly breathless, clearly not expecting anyone to come looking for him. You clicked your tongue. You wanted to push him straight into the lake. Commit firstndegree murder right there and be done with it. But your trembling hands and racing mind just needed to see him safe.
“It’s almost midnight ” you muttered looking down, fidgeting with your fingers. Jake ran a hand through his hair and nodded. “I know….go back. It’s late—”
“What about you?” you cut in. He stepped back slightly. “You don’t have to worry about me.”
Oof. The same fucking conversation. You crossed your arms and finally looked up, your embarrassment, your shame, everything gone. You didn’t care if he saw you like this anymore, all ugly, devastated, hurt and confused.
“Nothing really matters to you except your own feelings, does it?”
Jake clenched his fists “I didn’t mean it like that, I was just—”
“Yeah, you were just out here fulfilling your duty as an obedient student right?” you snapped. “Leaving everyone worried sick!”
Your head rang with every word. Jake frowned. “No one’s worried Y/n, I texted Professor Min before coming here. I also let Hoon and the others know.”
Oh. So it was just you acting like a fucking madwoman.
“What about me then Jake…?”
Your voice cracked and you didn’t have the strength to repeat it. Jake opened his mouth to respond, but nothing came out. His mind refused to cooperate.
“Everyone gets an explanation while I’m left stranded here like always…” you whispered just loud enough for him to hear. He reached for your cold hands. “I’m sorry I thought you wouldn’t…”
“Wouldn’t what?”
He bit his lower lip “wouldn’t want to associate with me anymore.”
Yeah right. Thank fucking God he reminded you of that dumb excuse you’d been hiding yourself behind. “Yeah??? Would wanting to make a difference?” you snapped. “You didn’t even take me seriously when I wanted you for myself.”
The words slipped out through gritted teeth. Jake bit the inside of his cheek. He knew he needed to let go of whatever he was holding back—but he just couldn’t.
“Why would you even want me—”
“Yeah, right—I don’t anymore idiot!” you cut him off. “Go fuck yourself! I don’t care if you freeze to death and fall into the river—I don’t care if I never see you again! I don’t!” You shoved his shoulder mid sob.
Something slipped from his clenched fist and fell to the ground.
Under the faint yellow glow of a nearby lamppost you noticed it...a bracelet. Brown beads strung together. You recognized it instantly. The beads were arranged unevenly, clearly fixed after being broken.
Jake bent down to pick it up but you were faster. You grabbed it and noticed the white elastic string—the same one you had snapped weeks ago. Another wave of tears blurred your vision.
“W—what is that…?”
Jake reached out to take it back, but you stepped away.
“Y/n give it back. The beads are still not—”
“It’s mine,” you said, shaking your head.
“I never said it wasn’t yours—it just needs fixing—”
“Damn it Jake I said it’s mine! Stop bothering me!” You pushed him again, this time hard enough for him to stumble back. Jake inhaled sharply. And then walked toward you in long strides. You tried to move but it was pointless. He grabbed your arms and pulled you toward him. You yelped as jake squished your cheeks, forcing you to look up at him.
“Stop acting like a brat,” he hissed, struggling to keep his composure.
Brat? Oh, he wanted to call you a brat right now? Fine. You will show him what a real brat looked like.
You took a sharp breath and threw the bracelet into the lake. A small splash echoed in the silence.
You stood there, breathing heavily, as Jake’s hands slowly fell away from your face. He stared at the water. You didn’t even know why you did that but you were done. Completely done.You turned to walk away but froze mid step when a louder splash cut through the air.
What the fuck—No. No this can’t be—
“JAKE!” you screamed, running toward the edge of the lake.
You shrieked as icy lake water splashed onto you, the reality crashing in — titanic level of shit was going to unfold if you didn’t pull Jake out right now. “Motherfucker I will strangle you if you don’t come out this instant!” you yelled. But he disappeared under the water. No…what?
“Jake…?” you called again. But no response came. Your heart dropped to your ass. Soon you muttered a quick prayer, rolled up your pants, and stepped into the lake. The freezing water bit into your skin turning it numb almost instantly but you were way past caring about that.
“Jake!” you screamed again. Before you could take another step a hand grabbed your leg. You screamed as you slipped into the water.
After what felt like forever, almost twenty minutes of struggling you finally managed to drag Jake’s coughing body out of the lake.
Your strength gave out immediately. Both of you collapsed onto the grass, soaked and shivering. Jake looked like he was about to pass out.
Panic surged through you as you pulled his upper body onto your lap and began pressing your hands against his chest, trying to help him breathe.
“J–Jake can you hear me?? Are you okay?” you whispered, leaning closer to his face. He gave a weak nod. Then slowly lifted his left hand. The bracelet tangled around his fingers.
And through ragged breaths he managed to choke out a faint yes.
You felt an invisible weight lift off your shoulders the moment you heard his voice. Jake tried to sit up, gripping your arms, but you didn’t let him. You clutched his soaked shirt and buried your face against his rising chest.
“Why would you do that?!”
He didn’t reply. You bit your lip hard until it almost bled. “You’re so fucking dumb…so so fucking dumb…”
Jake’s fingers moved gently moving your tangled dripping hair to see your face and he sighed “why would you throw it, dumbass…?”
“Does that thing mean more to you than me?” you snapped looking up at him, eyes red from crying, a tear streaked face, and a very ungraceful runny nose. Jake exhaled slowly.
“I don’t know…”
“Then what the fuck do you know—”
“I just knew I had to pick it up,” he cut in. “Otherwise I’d lose it forever… and I don’t want to lose it.” He looked straight into your eyes. You pressed your lips together holding back another sob then tugged his arm.“Let’s go back…”
He didn’t say anything else and he stood up with your help. And the two of you walked back slowly, close enough for your hands to stay intertwined, toward the faint light of the accommodation.
No words were exchanged but somewhere deep inside, your heart knew something still needed to be said.
The last day of the trip started with both you and Jake getting scolded and grounded by almost every professor after someone snitched about seeing you two wandering the halls at midnight looking like swamp zombies.
Thankfully Jake seemed fine after a long sleep. You made a mental note to have a proper conversation with him once you are back in Decelis.
“Thank you, everyone, for participating in this field trip. Every student here did an excellent job in their research…including the ones indulging in unethical activities…”
You rolled your eyes discreetly at Professor Min’s words. He can go to hell for all you care. You just wanted to get back to the dorm
“...And now, for the most anticipated announcement I received from the principal last night—the date for this year’s gala has been finalized. It will take place on the 7th of October that is few weeks from now.”
The crowd erupted into cheers and whistles. Wait what? Chaerin grabbed your arms, practically bouncing. “Oh my God!!! Y/n!!! Finally the gala week!”
But…your talk with Jake?
“I wish all students good luck for their semester ending exams next month. Enjoy your gala,” Professor Min concluded. And just like that everyone scattered to pack their bags and rush toward the buses. You glanced at Jake. Sunghoon was already bombarding him with something talking nonstop. Jake looked up, as your eyes met with his. And you immediately looked away. Fuck your heart still wasn’t ready to face him. Fine. You’d talk to him. No matter what, hefore the gala. You had to.
# 12 billet-doux
“You’re not coming?? Bitch your grandma is coming,” Chaerin scoffed after you gave her the weakest excuse imaginable for skipping the gala next Saturday. She wasn’t having it.
“Y/n, be fucking for real. How long are you going to lock yourself up and waste your youth?”
No shit your youth was currently busy running after someone who seemed very occupied this week. Jake was elected by his classmates to be the face of the department this gala and that made him almost untouchable (not like he was not anyways). He was constantly surrounded by seniors, being briefed on responsibilities, and all that formal bullshit. And every time you wanted to get up and pull him aside for a little chat you would get bombarded by your classmate who still thought you were two timing with him and sunghoon. Everything was so fucking tiring but you were not giving up until you were seeing the end of it.
“Y/nnnnn!” Chaerin whined again.
You sighed “fine. I’ll go...I guess.”
The girl infront of you stopped spinning on your study chair and jumped. “REALLY??? Oh my God! We need to go shopping this is so happening fina—”
You cut her off the moment she said shopping and walked to your wardrobe.
You cut her off hearing the shopping part and walked towards your wardrobe. "I don’t think i need to buy anything chae...i already got....this one!" You pulled out the same pink dress with frills and pearls you bought before trip and chaerin's mouth hung opened. "Where and when did you buy this gorgeous dress???"
You blushed a little and scratched your neck "well it's a long story"
Jake had been zoning out a lot these days. Well it wasn’t exactly his fault. His head felt light all the time like he was stuck somewhere else but now, at least he knew what he had to do. He stared at the bracelet he had retrieved from the lake that night, the voices of seniors and professors fading into a blur in the background. He needed to return what was yours to begin with.
“Yo.”He looked up to see Sunghoon sliding into the seat beside him.“You…coming for practice later right?” Sunghoon asked but his eyes quickly fell on the bracelet in Jake’s hand. A smirk spread across his face. “Still not giving up? I thought you were done with your feelings.” Jake sighed and slipped the bracelet back into his pocket. “Yeah Hoon. I’m done giving two fucks about waiting.” He leaned back slightly, that familiar smugness returning on his face “I’m going after your crush so watch out.”
Sunghoon blinked “Excuse me???? Hey—Jake! Where are you going—Jake!”
You sat still as Chaerin applied highlighter to your cheekbones. It was already past 7 p.m., which meant the gala would start any moment. You exhaled slowly. It was tonight or never. You needed to talk to jake no matter who comes in between you won't fucking back up.
“Chae, sit down. Let me do yours too” you said, giggling as you made her switch places with you in front of the mirror. By the time you and Chaerin joined Chisa, Jurin, and Heeseung, it was almost 8 p.m. The campus looked something straight out of barbie charm school shit, leaving the freshmen and sophomores who hadn’t experienced the gala before completely starstruck.
“I can’t believe we almost lost this gorgeous ritual because some weirdos gave each other concussions!” Chisa exclaimed, already posing for a selfie as Jurin joined her.
You spotted Sunoo and Jungwon, who immediately dragged you toward the main area. Everywhere you looked it was just gorgeous women with their partners and professors looking dazzling once in a while. Sunoo kept asking you how the field trip joined and as you guys chatted jay ran up to chaerin and kissed her cheeks. Chisa and Jurin elbowed each other silently and you snickered, noticing how red Chaerin had turned. You were so glad she got her happy ending.
A question was stuck inside your throat since evening but you refrained to ask it to others knowing no one could’ve answer that. You knew jake wouldn’t be with his friends.He had more important responsibilities as the department representative.
You felt someone poke your shoulder. Turning around you found a very much awestruck Heeseung staring at the food stalls like he had just discovered heaven.
“We need to try them before they run out,” he said lightly shaking your shoulders. You giggled and followed him. You felt eyes on you when heeseung put his arms around your shoulder. Jobless people probably whispering how greedy you were to go for yet another guy while you were playing jake and sunghoon. But at this moment you were long past the line of giving a fuck. Heeseung and you stopped infront of a cozy stall selling various kinds of tanghulu.
While waiting your phone buzzed suddenly. You turned it on only to find a text from Jake.
Basketball court.
Within 5 mins.
We need to talk.
Your chest tightened.
“Heeseung I have somewhere to go,” you said quickly shoving the payment into his hand.
“Wait—what? At least take a bite—” he held the tanghulu stick up to your lips. You leaned in and took a quick bite, unable to resist his confused expression and the sweet smell from the syrup. Then you ran.
“Ouch—sorry!” Someone bumped into Heeseung right after you disappeared from his sight, causing your half eaten tanghulu to fall to the ground.
“Oh my God, I’m—I’m so sorry!” the girl panicked. Heeseung shook his head trying to convince that it wasn't even his portion to the poor girl who was panicking at this moment. “no no it’s okay…it wasn’t even mine—”
But before he could finish speaking the girl asked for an extra tanghulu to the shopkeeper and turned at him “these new contact lenses I’m wearing are fucking useless.”
Heeseung blinked unsure how to respond. His eyes drifted across her face and stopped on a fading bruise above her eyebrow. Without thinking, he crouched slightly and touched the spot gently. The girl flinched and stepped back. He immediately pulled his hand away. “Shit, I’m sorry! Did someone hurt you??”
She gave a sheepish smile and shook her head. “No….I just do boxing gigs sometimes.”
His eyes widened. “Really? Me too!”
She grabbed the fresh tanghulu and turned back to him, smiling brighter this time.
“Oh my, we should totally exchange numbers! Also—this is for you, as an apology for dropping yours.”
She held it out.“oh I’m Rina by the way! You??”
“Can you ring my phone once? It was just here…” Jake asked as he pushed through the crowd to Soobin, his hands digging through his pockets again and again. Soobin nodded and pulled out his phone to call jake's number.
Jake exhaled and glanced around. The campus was packed — hallways overflowing, everyone dressed up, almost unrecognizable. It felt suffocating. He just wanted this whole gala to end so he could finally find you and talk. His gaze drifted to a group of girls staring at him with heart eyes. One of them was wearing a baby pink bodycon dress.
His mind wandered. What were you wearing?How did you do your makeup today? Did you use that same glittery gloss…or something new? Damn it—he wanted to see you so badly. He came back to reality when Soobin tapped his shoulder “someone picked it up and said they found it in the basketball court.”
Shit he must’ve left it there earlier when he went to clear his head.
He really needed to start using his phone more often.
“Thanks Soob. Gotta go,” Jake muttered, patting his shoulder before heading towards the court.
Your heels echoed through the decorated hallways, spaces that had looked so plain just days ago, now transformed into something almost unreal. You couldn't help but feel a little anxious, it's been a while since you last saw jake, and everything related to him had turned such a sensitive topic to you. The corridor leading to the basketball court was nearly empty just a few bored guards lingering around. Everyone else was inside main hall, lost in the gala.
As you approached, you noticed the door slightly ajar. Maybe he was already there. You swallowed hard, trying to hydrate your sandpaper equivalent throat and clenched your fist while your steps fastened. Your heartbeat pounded in your ears when you stood in front of the door. The light spilling from inside felt almost like a portal. You closed your eyes.
You had to face him. No running this time. Taking a deep breath, you pushed the door open and stepped inside.
The court was empty just as you expected. Hoops standing tall, a few basketballs rolling lazily across the floor. Everything was in it's position but something inside you churned uncomfortably.
Infront of you was jake standing still, you recognised his fading blonde and stiff composure. And then your eyes fell Evelyn, the red gown glowed on her tanned skin, her hands were encircled around jake's torso, engulfing him in a hug as she made a direct eyecontact with you. A sickening smile spread on her lips.
Before you could process anything, she rose on her toes and pressed her lips against Jake’s.
You stumbled back, your heels hitting the floor hard.
“What the fuck—?” Jake shoved her away instantly.
His head turned at you next but you were beyond any headspace to deal with whatever you just witnessed happening in front of your own eyes. You turned back quick and started running.
Ignoring the sound of Jake's footsteps chasing after you.
“Evelyn what are you doing here?”
Jake was both surprised and irritated as he saw her inside the court, his phone in her grip. She adjusted her gown and smiled “oh hi Jake! I was just passing by and heard a phone ringing…I recognized your ringtone so…”
Jake didn’t waste a second before snatching his phone back. The fact that his unlocked phone had been in her hands irritated him more than he expected. He was ready to leave but Evelyn grabbed his arm.
“J–Jake! Can we talk?”
He frowned scanning her expression. “No. I have to go I—”
“Jake I’ve waited for this moment for so long…” her voice trembled. “I don’t care what happened in the past—I still really like you. No… I think I love you.” Her grip tightened around his arm. Jake clenched his jaw clearly irritated “you can’t just 'think' you love someone Evelyn” he said flatly “and I didn’t expect you to be this dumb—to not get the hint that I do not feel the same.”
Her lips quivered. “But… I did so much for you!”
“And?” Jake replied. “Did I ask you to do any of that shit?”
A flicker of anger crossed her face “really? You're fucking rejecting me for that rat y/n!?—the—the one who made you lose your credit points by replacing the foundation of marin engineering part in your assignment!”
Jake’s expression changed instantly from confused to something disgusted. He grabbed her wrist and pulled it off his arm harshly.
“I’m sorry? Come again?” he stepped closer. “Say that again.”
Evelyn faltered under his gaze.
“Evelyn Jung,” he continued, voice low, “I think we both know Y/n would never do something like that. And I never told anyone which part of my assignment got replaced.”
A bead of sweat rolled down her neck.“T–that doesn’t prove anything!” she stammered. “Who else would do that to you? Me?! Ha! That’s ridiculous!”
Jake scoffed.
“I don’t care, Evelyn. But take this as a fair and last warning—don’t ever interfere in my academics or personal life again.” He paused a bit before continuing “and that includes Y/n too”
She gasped. Then suddenly hugged him.
“Jake, I admit it—I did everything!” she cried. “But it was out of love! I didn’t think it would affect you this much—”Jake stiffened, trying to push her away, already annoyed at the thought of her makeup staining his shirt. But then she stopped crying, her gaze shifted past him. Before he could follow her gaze, she rose on her toes.
The sharp scent of some cheap drugstore lipstick hit him as her lips pressed against his.
Jake pushed her away instantly. And then he heard clear sharp sound of heels against the floor. He looked up just in time to see a glimpse of a flowing pink dress disappearing through the door.
He knew that dress very well.
“Shit.”
You ran ran and ran, trying to erase everything you had seen in the last fifteen minutes. The bruises on your feet caused by the heels you borrowed from Chisa, dug deeper with every step, but you didn’t have the energy to care. Your vision blurred as you rushed past the glowing lights of the gala, past the loud laughing crowd, past the decorated halls and rooms of Decelis. Soon you found yourself in front of the same bleacher where you cried for the first time after jake avoided you like plague.
You collapsed onto the cold seat, hugging yourself tightly against the chilly air. Goosebumps rose on your skin when you slipped the heels off your feet and saw the deep ugly blisters.
Your gaze dropped to your hands. The acrylic nail on your pinky was barely holding on. Your carefully styled hair had turned into something close to a bird’s nest.
Look at you! such a poor state. And here you were thinking you’d finally make a move on Jake.
Ha! Where the hell did you get that kind of audacity from? How could you even think of standing in front of him like this when Evelyn, with her perfect face, perfect bun, perfect red dress on her perfect figure, had been in his arms? “Ack! I’m so pathetic…” you sobbed, covering your face and curling into yourself, trying to disappear from this cruel place filled with equally cruel people. Everything hit harder than ever. At the end of the day you were still nobody. Still the unchosen one.
“Wahhh…m-mom…” another wave of sobs broke out of your chest as you looked up at the star claded night sky. Why am I such a crybaby?! You rubbed your eyes harshly, knowing your makeup was long ruined anyway.
“Y/n?”
You sprinted up to your feet at the familiar voice.
“I’m sorry Jake! Look away—I look like a mess!” you cried, backing away as your lips trembled uncontrollably. Jake quickly closed the distance between you.
“Go! Goddammit Jake just go! I don’t want you to see me like this—I don’tffh”
Your words got muffled as he pulled you into his arms, pressing you firmly against his chest.
“Fine,” he whispered softly. “I’ll close my eyes. I won’t look at you.”
You let out a frustrated cry, tears spilling all over again, and slowly looked up. He really had his eyes shut tight, as his lips quivered. “But i won't let you go”
You stared intensely at his face. It's a shame Jake got tangled up with you, he really was that beautiful how you remembered your classmates describing him since first year. Up close he almost looked unreal. How could he just hold you like this? You were sure your tears bled on his ironed shirt. You were so pissed. “W-why Jake…?” you whispered, forcing yourself to stay steady in his hold. “Why won’t you just let me go…?”
He shook his head slightly and buried his face in the crook of your neck.
“I can’t,” he murmured “and I don’t want to let you go…”
"But why?!" You hissed, smacking on his chest lightly as your lips wobbled again "look at me...! I'm the prime example of I became what I once hated...I'm such a mess...and sadie probably got new contents to write about me in the forum..." you let out a sigh then grabbed his jaw making him face you. His eyes were still closed.
“Look at me Jake… you might want to reconsider this.” you mumbled as his eyes finally opened. He stared into your tired, red rimmed eyes then looked up at your eyebrows, your sniffling, flushed red nose, your pouty lips, the gloss long gone and your full cheeks. Then slowly one of his hand came up as he wiped a rolling tear gently from your eyes, thumb caressing your cheek.
“You’re still as beautiful as the night I first saw you… behind Jackson hyung’s house.”
Your heart leaped. Jackson…? That senior who had already graduated? But—but that was years ago! You didn’t even know Jake back then.…or did you? He chuckled softly at your stunned expression and planted a loud kiss on your forehead.
“Even that night you looked like a mess, nose all red searching for a damn tissue outside in the cold....you really think I could resent you after you sneezed and your snot fell on my hoodie....I never met a girl so upright disrespectful at the very first meeting....but I guess I felt happy that finally I found someone real among the sea of pretentious people around me”
Your eyes widened. Oh. OH.
Jake's blonde hair was instantly replaced by a dark brown hair as a very baby faced, thick glasses on nose, awkward looking freshman's face floated in front of you. Everything different except the same darn smile.
That's him! You remembered him! How could you even forget the guy you embarrased yourself in front of, right after attending the first ever college party???
“T–that was… you?” Your voice came out small laced with very much shock, and Jake laughed. For the first time in a while you saw him really laugh. You didn't know what happened but the sorm inside you instantly softened into pitter patter of rain.
“Oh my gosh—Jake! This is so embarrassing—” you whined, bumping your forehead lightly against his chest, arms still trapped at your sides because of how tightly he was holding you. “Leave me alone, Jake! I told you to never show me your face again—you’re such an asshole.”
Jake squished your cheeks, forcing you to look up despite your attempts to resist. Your breath hitched at the seriousness in his expression.“Shut the fuck up and take that back. Right now.”
“I won’t! No matter what happens I won’t!” you protested, shaking your head stubbornly, nearly knocking into his nose. Jake turned you around and pinned you gently against the nearest pillar.
“You won’t huh?” he raised an eyebrow. Before you could react, he pressed a quick smooch on your lips.“Wha—?!” you gasped, your legs kicking lightly against his, but that almost did nothing as Jake didn’t even budge.
“Take it back.”
You bit your lip and denied profusely again. “Not happening.”
His hand slipped from your jaw to your hair as he gently tugged them. Then he captured your mouth in a slow kiss. You who promised yourself to not give into his dirty as ever tricks felt your knees buckle when his another hand caressed your hips over the thin material of your dress.
“Still no…?” Jake asked softly, his breath uneven as his eyes flickered between your glistening lips and your dazed expression.
“Huh?” you murmured, completely lost and off track. Jake let out a quiet laugh, then pressed his lips on yours again, this time pausing between kisses to whisper against your lips,
“Take it back…that you don’t want to see me. Because we know damn well you do.”
And there it was. The hard pill you refused to swallow. You were caught red handed.
“What if I said I do…” you whispered glancing down at the frills of your dress before daring to look back up. A soft smile formed on Jake’s lips.
“then I'd like to let you know the feeling is mutual.”
You stepped back slightly, overwhelmed. “I—Jake right now I'm not really the person you want to associate yourself with...I got this whole image of playing you and Sunghoon and heeseung and—and—”
Jake pulled you back toward him, intertwining your hands.
“Do I look like I give a fuck?”
“But you did enough to hurt me before…” you whispered, your voice breaking again. Jake’s expression softened instantly. He pulled you into another hug—this time gentler.
“I’m sorry baby…you should’ve just left me to drown in that lake—Ouch!” he winced when you elbowed his ribs.
Both of you stayed in that position a while. Then you pulled away. Your eyes fell on his shirt, now stained with tears and snot and your eyes widened “oh my god I’m so sorry!” you muttered trying to wipe it off. Jake caught your wrists “It’s okay. Let’s get you cleaned up first.”
Walking back to the dorm with Jake beside you felt different.
Your bruised feet still hurt, heels still unforgiving, but it didn’t matter as much anymore. A fuzzy warmth spread through your chest as his fingers slipped into yours, intertwining naturally. The night was still young. And so were both of you.
“Wanna know how I got my reputation?”
“Jake, I will break your face.”
# 13 all that's left behind
Your eyes fluttered open at the familiar sound of your alarm. Yawning, you fumbled around blindly, trying to find your phone and shut it off. But instead, your hand landed on something soft. You yelped while squirming slightly, still half asleep, and failed to notice the arm draped around your waist— until the warmth of a palm resting against your bare stomach registered. You froze. Slowly, you turned your head and came face to face with Jake.
For a second, you were convinced this was just another one of your ridiculous hallucinations. But when his soft snores grew louder, loud enough to almost make you smack him, you sucked in the scream that threatened to escape.
Jake Sim was cuddling you. Limbs tangled, bodies pressed close. And then everything from last night came rushing back. He walked you back to your dorm. Helped you wash up, ordered food, let chaerin know you were back because you felt sick. And after tucking you in like he always did, you asked him to stay. Barely even conscious, just mumbling in your sleep.
And yet he stayed.
Heat rushed to your face as the realization settled in. This wasn’t a dream. This was very, very much real. Carefully, you searched around and finally found your phone. A few messages from Chaerin and the girls lit up your screen, along with a selfie from Heeseung showing off a new friend he had apparently made. But what caught your attention was the flood of notifications from the college forum.
A sense of dread crept into your chest. What now...? You swallowed hard and tapped on it.
What goes down inside the basketball court.
Under the title two videos were attached that looked very much like cctv footages. You clicked on the first one with shaky fingers and gasped as you realized what it was. Evelyn crouched over a laptop—Jake’s laptop to be precise—typing something frantically. You skipped to the next video and almost lost it. It was footage from last night, right before you found Evelyn all over Jake. With very clear audio of her and Jake having a fairly civil conversation, until she suddenly decided to act like a freak.
Your heart pounded as you scrolled through the ridiculous amount of comments. People were going batshit crazy under the post.
“I can’t believe I’m witnessing this in real time,” Chaerin almost cried tears of joy as a very defeated and furious looking Evelyn, along with Sadie and her little group of minions, were summoned to the principal’s office, not long after the post becoming viral and everyone began confessing how they had been wronged by them.
The sun was indeed shining, and the birds seemed louder than ever that day.
You had never looked forward to a college day like this before. Life felt a little easier after the college forum was finally shut down and every bad reputation disappeared along with it. Sure, people still talked shit, gossiped, and spread rumors, but it all stayed within their little circles. Not that you cared anymore. Your attention had shifted to something entirely different and that's how to stay composed while Jake behaved like an absolute slut in front of you with is infuriating smirk that never left his face whenever you were around him—ugh, he was just as annoying as ever.
But at least he was yours. Well…not in like literal sense, since he hadn’t asked you out yet. But he would eventually right?…Right??
You cleared your throat softly when he plopped down on an empty chair, right beside you in the library. Even though you and Jake had come to a mutual understanding that whatever was going on between you two was definitely more than just some aftermath of collateral damage—you still needed time to process everything.
You clicked your tongue when he started kicking your legs lightly under the table, staring at you intently. Was Jake always this clingy? No no—it’s not like you weren’t enjoying the attention—Suddenly he kicked you harder, making you gasp “what are you?! A dog???” you hissed, kicking him back with full force. Jake giggled and scooted closer. “You refusing to look at me is very entertaining, not gonna lie.”
Fucking hell he was still irritating as fuck. You rolled your eyes and tried to focus on the paragraph in front of you.
“Whatever, I’m busy.”
He leaned in, his lips brushing close to your ear as he whispered “Ruff, ruff.”
Your cheeks burned bright red. You stood up immediately, gathering your things, trying your best to ignore the stupid smirk you wanted to wipe off his face so badly. The dynamic between you and Jake wasn’t something that changed overnight. Or maybe it did just a little. You weren’t going to deny that. But it still felt weird. Six months ago, Jake himself felt like a completely different person to you and yet some invisible string kept tugging at your heart.
What was Jake to you, anyway? A lover? Nah that sounded too soon and too cliché. You liked him a lot. But he hadn’t really made any move apart from stealing kisses from you every now and then, ignoring your weak protests and pouts.…Okay, fine. You were done pretending you didn't liked that at all.
“C–Chaerin… uhm… if I like someone… and the feeling is mutual… do they automatically become my… something…?” You stared at her as she flipped through her notes. “Not necessarily,” chaerin replied casually. “People date, then they ask each other out, and then if they still like each other, they get into a relationship… and then, I guess, they get married.”
So many steps and you were on none of them.
You and Jake weren’t dating. Neither of you had asked the other out.
“Should I… do it…?” you whispered to yourself, staring at the ceiling only to yelp when Chaerin smacked your head.
“I will bury Jake’s body five feet underground if you ask him out. Let him do the job.”
You pouted. Jake didn’t seem like someone who cared about all that stuff anyway.
“Oh, by the way,” Chaerin added, “I heard from Jay that Jake’s been doing a lot of packing. Are you guys, like, skipping straight to the honeymoon phase or what?” She smirked.
You sat up straight. “A lot of packing…?” He didn’t tell you anything about that.
Chaerin noticed your expression, and her smirk slowly faded.
“Y/n… don’t tell me I’m the first person you’re hearing this from… no way.”
As much as you hated to admit it—you nodded slowly.
“Why would he be packing near the sem finals unless he’s getting transferred—oh” Chaerin stopped mid sentence, finally noticing the dread on your face. “He can’t possibly be getting transferred right now… right?” you asked quietly, not even sure if you were asking her or yourself. Was that why he hadn’t asked you out yet? Because he was leaving? Was he really going to go away?
A very much half naked Jake, fresh out of the shower and wearing only sweatpants, eyed you up and down, on his gaming chair before screeching, “What are you doing here?!” He hugged himself defensively. You rolled your eyes and threw a pillow at him. “Jake Sim, why didn’t you tell me you were moving away?”
“Move awa—what?—oh.” He paused mid sentence, finally realizing why you were there as you pointed at the big suitcase standing near his desk. He smiled goofily and crossed his arms, his muscles flexing in just the right way, making your throat go dry.
“Aww, Y/n, I thought I would surprise you—owh!” he yelped when you threw the Post Malone album from his desk at him this time.
“Go fuck yourself,” you muttered, jumping off the chair, annoyed at how he still managed to look that good while getting on your nerves.
“Y/n wait.” Jake closed the distance between you and pulled you into his arms. You nearly froze when your hand brushed against his bare chest as out of habit he squished your cheeks and forced you to look up at him. “Stop running away dimwit.” You tried your best to ignore the feeling of his heartbeat against yours and whined, “Let me go Jake, since you were planning to ditch me anyway.” He stared at your puckered lips before quickly pressing a smooch to them. You let out a weak scream and started tickling his ribs to break free.
“Ahhh! Stop—stop, Y/n fu@@£#£@£!!” Jake dissolved into gibberish, making you laugh as the two of you tumbled onto his bed.
“I’m not leaving you baby,” he breathed out between laughs, making you fluster all over again.“Then why did you pack that big suitcase?” you pouted. He pinched your nose lightly. “I’m visiting my family in Brisbane for a week…”He sat up and rubbed the back of his neck. “Layla’s sick, and Mom, Dad, and Riki missed me…so I figured I’d visit them before finals week starts.”
Oh. So that was it. You groaned inwardly, completely embarrassed for overthinking everything. Covering your face, you hid under Jake’s duvet, making him chuckle.
“Don’t talk to me. I’m embarrassed!”
The day Jake left for Brisbane, you couldn’t see him off at the airport because of stupid Professor Min who held everyone back for extra classes. You spent the entire lecture silently praying for that man’s downfall so intensely that Heeseung had to double check you weren’t literally emitting smoke from your ears.
“Finally the last week as a sophomore student,” Chisa huffed slamming her fist onto the bundle of notes in front of her. You and Chaerin were slumped against each other, laughing as Jurin tried to mimic Evelyn’s expression from the time she was dragged into the principal’s office. Honestly, you weren’t even sure what happened to Evelyn and Sadie after that. Not that you cared. Someone from your class did mention that they got suspended, but that was about it.
Right now though, you were waiting for some kind of update from Jake. The last text you received from him was hours ago, right after he landed at Brisbane Airport. He was probably tired, busy with his family. Ugh…it felt so wrong to feel this way. But damn it you missed him more than you thought you would.
“Holy fuck!—every one of these is limited edition!”
Jake laughed at Riki’s reaction as the younger boy stared at the set of Hot Wheels he had brought from korea with stars in his. In his arms, Layla, the cream border collie, clung to him, refusing to detach herself from the moment he stepped into his parents’ house. Now, sitting inside Riki’s room, Jake was being bombarded with questions about his second year shenanigans, and he couldn’t help but laugh as he told him everything that had happened.
Riki whined and smacked Jake’s arm. “Then why didn’t you bring your girlfriend with you?”
Jake wiggled his eyebrows. “Girlfriend? Y/n isn’t my girlfriend though…”
Then he paused. Right. Y/n wasn’t his girlfriend…so what the hell was she to him?
Riki looked completely bewildered at his brother's response and shook his head. “Get out. I can’t believe you’re my brother.”
You swore you were going absolutely insane. The thought of being nothing to Jake irritated you more the longer you dwelled on it. He texted you occasionally, sending pictures of his neighborhood, Layla, his high schooler brother Riki, and sometimes half baked thirst trap coded selfies that made you question your sanity. He wanted you dead. That had to be the only explanation.
Fine. You were done pondering. If Jake wasn’t going to ask you out, you were going to do it yourself—no matter how much Chaerin cursed you or preached about how guys were supposed to make the first move. You were done pretending you didn’t want Jake Sim all to yourself.
Jake pondered, laying on his bed in his childhood room, staring at the ceiling. The bed felt a bit cramped now as it's been years since he grew out of his teenage body. The Spider Man posters around his room along with his medals and trophies that were displayed on the wall from his school days made him feel oddly nostalgic — but right now, he couldn’t care less.
Why hadn’t he asked you out yet? He was so fucking stupid. God knew what you were thinking right now. All week, he’d kept himself busy spending time with his family, sending you occasional updates. You sent him pictures back too, Sunghoon and Jay bickering as always, brunch outings with the girls, even a sticker of Professor Min with horns drawn on his head that made him laugh.
God, he couldn’t wait to go back and hold you again.
“You’re acting weird,” Riki whispered, catching Jake mid thought as he imagined your face. Jake laughed. “How?”
Riki made a face and shrugged “I don’t know…I have this classmate named Rei who does this exact thing when I look at her—I mean, she’s cuter than you, but still, hyung….stop.”
Jake was finally coming back today, and you made sure no lecture and no professor min could stop you from picking him up at the airport. You and Sunghoon arrived right on time, and as your stupid heart did its usual stupid thing at the thought of seeing Jake again after so long, you couldn’t help but bounce a little when you spotted him walking toward you with his suitcase and that big smile. But then you noticed his hair and paused.
His blonde was gone, replaced by a soft shade of brown that made him look exactly like the same guy you’d bumped into years ago and gifted your snot to on your very first meeting—
Author can we stop bringing that up?
He ran straight to Sunghoon and pulled him into a warm hug. “Ahem.” Sunghoon cleared his throat and stepped aside, sensing the very obvious tension between you and Jake as your eyes met with his. It took only a second before Jake lunged toward you with his arms wide open, and you squealed, jumping straight into them.
Sunghoon chuckled to himself recalling how you were ranting in the cab just few minutes ago about the concept of pda being so cringe.
After helping Jake unpack his luggage in his room, Sunghoon headed out to grab ramen from the same place the three of you had eaten at a month ago. Before leaving, he made sure to ask Jake if he was still in his 'I don’t like katsu' phase. Thankfully, this time Jake had no excuse to keep up the act.
The moment Sunghoon disappeared from your sight, you turned to Jake. He had an equally endearing expression playing on his face as both of you were soon on his bed, kissing each other and giggling. Jake's hands lovingly caressed your back as he pulled away between your very needy kisses.
"Y/n, I need to tell you something right now."
You whined, too dazed in euphoria to even comprehend Jake's words, and leaned in to chase his lips again, but Jake grabbed your jaw firmly, keeping you in place.
"Y/n Y/l/n."
You paused after hearing your government name from his mouth for the first time and noticed how serious he looked. Your stomach flipped as you looked into his eyes. Jake took a deep breath and opened his mouth.
"I'm ready to share all the manga links I have from illegal websites with you..."
You chuckled. "Uh huh? That was it?—"
He pressed his index finger to your lips, shutting you up oh so gently. "I am also ready to give you the drive link of all the pirated movies I have downloaded..." You nodded with a smile, staring at a very flustered and adorable Jake, taking in the sight because you knew he was serious with everything he said when he had that look on his face.
"I am uhh...right now I don’t have anything else to offer, but in the future I will for sure. For the time being, I just wanted to ask..."
"Uh huh?"
"Shut up, you make me nervous," he whined, pressing his face into the crook of your neck as your body shook with laughter. He looked up again, his serious face softly morphing into something genuine. "Y/n, will...will you uhh...can we visit my parents the next time—no, that's not what I meant to say!—"
Jake started groaning again, but this time you cupped his cheeks and planted a quick kiss on his cheek. "Yes, I would...but before that, would you go out with me, Jake?"
Jake shrieked. "That was my line! Oh my god, that's it. I'm ending it all! Fuckkkkk."
You cackled at his reaction as he kicked his legs. A very visible pout formed on his lips making you almost melt into a puddle.
"Why—why would you—"Jake genuinely felt like jumping out the window. Fuck his stupid body and mind for becoming absolutely uncooperative when it came to you. He bit the inside of his cheek and pulled you impossibly closer. "If I say no, then what?"
You raised your eyebrows. "Say it, I dare you."
That stupid smug look was back on Jake's lips as he wiggled his shoulders. "No Y/n, I will absolutely not go out with y—"
You climbed on top of Jake without any warning and kissed him hard. His words died in his mouth the moment your tongue licked his lower lip, eliciting a low grunt. Holy shit. Even after fighting for dominance, Jake couldn’t keep up. His hands helplessly grabbed your hips, trying to ground you from doing anything that would make Jake the junior awake—though he wasn't sure if that wasn't already happening from the way you were almost devouring him.
"Fuck..." you almost moaned, pulling back and discovering Jake's stunned expression, lost in an entirely different dimension from the wild ride he had just hopped on. "Still no?" You mumbled against his lips, too shy to look into his eyes, and Jake let out a laugh mixed with a whine. "Allat for just saying no...I wonder what will happen if I say yes..."
He sat up a little, lips planting small kisses along your jaw, and panted, "I don't have any health insurance done here Y/n."
You giggled, smacking his chest, and chased his lips again.
Suddenly the door flew open as a very petrified looking Sunghoon screamed making you and Jake almost fall off the bed.
"You horny fuckers couldn't even wait! UGHHHH MY POOR EYES!"
Long story short, Jake did end up saying yes to you — because what else could he have done? You had become more than just a habit in his life, and he was very much against the idea of letting you slip away now.
Finals came and went like a whirlwind of chaos, but this time, unlike before, you had Jake beside you while studying. He helped you with your subjects as much as he could, and you realized his knowledge went far beyond just textbooks. It was a shame that the curtain of ignorance, built in the name of his bad reputation had kept you from seeing how ridiculous that whole concept truly was.
Decelis forum was back up again, but this time with certain limitations and consequences. And no, Sadie wasn’t part of the pr team anymore—in fact, she wasn’t in any clubs at all. There was a new girl named Rina. Heeseung had introduced you to the sweet junior just a few days ago.
At the end of the day, you couldn’t really care less about people spreading rumors about you, or Jake, or anyone in your group. Not when you had Jake beside you. And that mattered far more than holding onto any stupid reputation.
After your best friend is left heartbroken by the infamous campus legend Jake Sim, you make it your mission to teach him a lesson — the one he won’t forget until he’s practically begging for forgiveness. What starts as a simple plan quickly spirals into chaos, pulling you into a web of complications you never saw coming. Lines begin to blur, intentions get messy, and you realize things aren’t as black and white as they seemed. After all, a bad reputation is a heavy burden to carry on both ends, isn’t it?
content tags: tooth rooting miscommunication, enemies to enemies, y/n is the bitch we all aspire to be, angst, mid ass slow burn, college au, emotional turmoil, long ass fic, crack, blonde jake, campus romance (?), fake relationship, heejake if you squint.
# 1 shots
You and Chaerin had been inseparable for as long as you could remember, or at least that was the version of the story you held onto.
Same neighborhood which turned into same classrooms, same whispered gossip during lectures, same shared lunches when neither of you liked what your mothers packed. High school came and went with the same confidence that you would always orbit each other, and even now, in college, despite being in different courses, you still found your way back to the samecramped dorm room at the end of the day.
Sisters, practically. That's what everyone said, and for a long time, you believed it too. Which was why the shift felt so wrong when you finally discovered it.
"Chae, I told you..." Your voice faltered, as you stared at the two green glass bottles sitting on your desk like unwelcome guests. "I jus-no. Stop."
The room smelled faintly of graphite and eraser shavings, your half-finished architecture sheets spread across the desk in uneven layers. Lines and measurements blurred together demanding your attention in a way alcohol never could.
Behind you, Chaerin let out a soft, impatient sigh.
“Come on,” she groaned, dragging the word out as if coaxing a child. "It's just soju. You're acting like I brought poison."
You pressed your pencil down harder than necessary, it's tip snapping against the paper. The small, sharp sound echoed louder than your unsaid thoughts and hesitation "That's not the point," you muttered, not turning around. "I have to finish this. It's due tomorrow, Chae."
"And you will," she replied too easily. "After you relax a little."
You finally looked at her. She was sprawled across your bed, one leg dangling off the edge, her hair falling messily around her shoulders. There was a dullness to her eyes that hadn't been there before, a restless kind of energy, like she was always chasing something just out of reach.It unsettled you.
"I don't need to relax," you said, softer this time.
Chaerin clicked her tongue, sitting up with a suddenness that made you flinch. She grabbed one of the bottles, twisting the cap open with practiced ease "that's exactly your problem," she said, pouring the clear liquid into two mismatched cups. "always stuck in your head. Always working, always worrying...touche"
"I'm not-"
"You are."
You fell quiet.
For a second, neither of you spoke. The air shifted, subtle but heavy enough to feel. She held out one of the cups toward you. "Just one, please?" she said, her voice softening again, almost pleading now. "Drink with me."
You stared at the cup, then at her.
And that was the problem, wasn't it?
Chaerin wasn't just anyone. She wasn't a classmate you could brush off or a senior you could politely refuse. She was the person who knew exactly what your regular orders were, who could read your mood from the way you shut a door, who used to pull you out of crowds the moment you looked overwhelmed.
She knew you.
Which was why this — this insistence felt SO wrong.
"You know I don't like it," you said quietly. Her hand faltered for the briefest moment. Then she laughed, light and dismissive, "You've barely even tried," she said. "How would you know?" Your fingers curled slightly against your palm."I have," you insisted. "That one time, remember? With the seniors? I didn't even want to be there."
"Yeah, and you survived," she shot back. "See? Not a big deal."
"It was a big deal to me." The words slipped out before you could soften them. Chaerin's expression flickered as something unreadable passing through her eyes, but it was gone just as quickly. She leaned back again, taking a sip from her own cup instead "You're overthinking it," she murmured.
Maybe you were. Or maybe you weren't. Because this wasn't just about the soju. It hadn't been for months after that party. You could still remember the way she had bounced into your room that evening, excitement practically spilling out of her. Some rich kids from college were throwing it.
One of those infamous monthly parties everyone seemed to talk about in hushed, intrigued tones. You did warn her, just enough to let her know it wasn't your scene. Those places weren't as harmless as people made them out to be. That free flowing alcohol and dim lights and strangers with too much money and too little consequence rarely led to anything good.She had laughed it off
"chill y/n," she had said back then too.
She had wanted you to come with her. And you hadn't. You lied about going home for the weekend, packing a bag just to make it believable. You remembered the way she had pouted and tried to convince you one last time before leaving.
And you remembered the feeling of relief when the door finally closed behind her.
You weren't trying to control a grown girl like her and act like some strict parental figure. But something about that party had felt off. And when she came back, something about her felt off too. At first, it was small things. A new tone in her voice, certain impatience that hadn't been there before. Late nights that turned into early mornings. New people, new habits, new laughter that didn't quite sound like hers. You tried to ignore it.
Until ignoring it wasn't enough anymore. Now, sitting in your dorm room with unfinished assignments and a cup of soju being pushed into your hand, you couldn't pretend you didn't see the change or worse feel it.
"Chae," you said again, more carefully this time. "Why are you pushing this so much?"
She didn't answer immediately, instead, she took another sip, her gaze drifting somewhere past you, like she was looking at something you couldn't.
"It's just a drink," she said finally. But it didn't feel like just a drink.
Not when she looked at you like that....like—like she needed you to say yes. Not when it felt like saying no was slowly putting a distance between you that you didn't know how tocross anymore.
Your eyes dropped to the cup in her hand, then to the bottle on your desk, for a fleeting moment, a bitter thought crossed your mind.
You were tired of blaming the booze and over the top drunk horny adults for Chaerin's change, because certainty you knew Jake Sim deserved the full blame.
Okay hold on, rewind.
Whoooooo the hell was Jake Sim?
God, how badly you wished life worked in a way where you could just ask that one question and move on without facing any consequences. But nothing about Jake Sim was ever that simple. See he was well a reputation if you had to define him in the most brutally honest way possible. He was your typical upper class, introverted disaster with an ego that reached places even his money probably couldn't. The kind of guy people either obsessively adored or instinctively avoided and you had always been very comfortable being inthe second category.
A "community dick," was the most accurate description you could come up with after overhearing your classmates gush about his toenails and ball hair for what felt like the fiftieth time in one week.
bizarrely enough you never understood the obsession when you occasionally spotted him in the canteen, surrounded by his loud, obnoxious friends who seemed allergic to basic etiquette. Their laughter carried across the room, sharp and intrusive, making you instinctively shrink into your seat.
You had always silently thanked whatever higher power was looking out for you that Jake Sim was nowhere near your academic orbit. Different major, building and thankfully different world.
Perfect.
Except life, apparently, had a twisted sense of humor because while he stayed far away from you, he didn't stay away from Chaerin. Same department. Same classes. Same daily proximity. Bad news.
What confused you more was how Chaerin herself used to talk shit about him, ranting about his attitude, his arrogance, the way people bent over backwards for him like he was something divine energy. She gave you every unnecessary detail about him, every petty observation, every eye roll translated into words.
And then–It just... stopped.
Or worse, it flipped. Somewhere along the way, the same Chaerin who couldn't stand him started orbiting him instead. Watching his friend group like he had become something important and something she couldn't afford to lose sight of.
"Ah, fuck this shit."
The frustration finally spilled over and before you could second guess yourself, you grabbed the bottle from the desk and tilted it back, the sharp, burning liquid sliding down your throat in one reckless gulp. It burned god, it burned so good but you didn't stop until the bottle was nearly half empty.
"Girl-slow *hiccup* down-" Chaerin's words slurred together, as she tried to sit up straighter. Too late.
You wiped your mouth with the back of your hand, blinking away the sting in your eyes. The room felt warmer now, heavier, like the air itself had thickened."See..." Chaerin muttered, her words dragging, uneven. "I know *hiccup* you might hate me... for this one..."You frowned, irritation flaring instantly "Oh my god, just say it already," your adrenaline snapped. "You've said that line like fifteen times today." Your patience was hanging by a thread. At this point, smashing the bottle on her head felt like a reasonable option.
"Okay... wait..." she mumbled, blinking slowly as if trying to catch her thoughts mid-air. "Uh... where was I...? Right... right... so, I know you–*hiccup* no, fuck–I know you will-"
Your grip tightened around the bottle.
This was it.
Whatever it was, you were done waiting.
"Jaaay*hiccup*ke—kissed me..." she slurred, the name stumbling out of her mouth, "... then... uh... we kinda had sex."
Your hand froze mid-air and so did everything else, your thoughts, your breath, the room itself felt suffocating.
"What?" you repeated, the word coming out flat,almost disbelieving. Then, because your brain refused to process it any other way, you let out a sharp, incredulous laugh "Oh, you mean you got drunk and slipped on his dick?" your tone dripping with disbelief. Chaerin shot upright, offended despite her state. "No-wait-I-I did ride him *hiccup* how di-OWH!" Her words were cut off by a loud crash.
The bottle left your hand before you even realized it, flying straight out the open window. The sound of it shattering echoed faintly from below."Y/n, bitch!" Chaerin scrambled toward the window, panic cutting through her haze as she leaned out, trying to see if you had just accidentally committed manslaughter.
"What the fuck-Y/n!"
You clicked your tongue, leaning back against the desk like nothing had happened "I know there's more to your story," you said coldly. "Go on."
Her eyes widened.
Gotcha! Did she really think she could drop something like that and leave it half-finished? Not to you. Never to you.
"Chae," you added, your voice quieter but sharper, "don't make me smash the second bottle on your head."
She swallowed. "Okay... so..." she began, fidgeting with her fingers. "We did it... and then... when I woke up *hiccup* I texted him..." Her voice wavered. And just like that, something in your chest tightened.
The bottle slipped from your fingers, forgotten. Oh no. You knew that tone. You knew those pauses. Before she could say another word, you crossed the room in seconds, stepping over scattered cushions and pulling her into your arms. She broke instantly, her body collapsing against yours as sobs wracked through her.
"Y/n..." she choked out. "He-he said he doesn't want to keep any connection with me anymore... it was just a one-time thing..."
Her words shattered between hiccups and tears, each one hitting harder than the last. You closed your eyes, exhaling slowly as you held her tighter, your hand coming up to cradle the back of her head. Of course it was this. You guided her gently toward the bed, sitting her down as you wiped her tears with your thumb, your movements careful. "Hey... hey..." you murmured softly. "easy..."
She clung to you like a coala.
"Is this why you've been drowning yourself in all these weird drinks?" you asked, your voice quieter now, softer. She nodded barely but it was enough. Enough for everything to click into place.
God.
A part of you wanted to scream and to say
'I told you so'
To remind her of every warning, every concern she had brushed off. To curse Jake Sim and every rumor that followed his name, because clearly none of it had been exaggerated. But you didn't. Because right now, she wasn't the girl who ignored your warnings, She was just your Chaerin hurting, and crying in your arms. And that mattered more than that stupid shit assed Jake with bad reputation.
The following week passed as you giving nastiest side eyes to jake while chaerin ignored both you and that group of monkeys like plague. You did not insist her to have forced conversations because poor girl needed time to re-collect her thoughts.
You carried it with you everywhere, through lecture halls, crowded corridors, even the quiet corners of the campus where you usually found peace. It sat heavy in your chest, simmering just beneath the surface, most evident in the way your eyes instinctively narrowed every time you spotted him. Jake Sim.
If looks could kill, he would have been long gone.
Chaerin, slipped in and out of spaces quietly, conversations cut short, laughter nonexistent. You didn't push her. As much as it irritated you watching her shrink into herself like that youunderstood. She needed time. Time to think, to process, to gather whatever pieces of herself had been shaken loose But that didn't mean you let him off easy.
Because while Chaerin withdrew, you sharpened. Jake, continued living like nothing had changed. His routine, as far as you could gather from Chaerin's previous backbitching sagas, overheard conversations and casual observations, was almost annoyingly consistent.
Jake's life was simple. Wake up late. Ignore half the messages in his group chat and the other half from girls he had probably promised something to. Drag himself to classes and somehow still remain the topper of the entire engineering department. Afternoons were reserved for his friends, loud and carefree in the canteen or on the basketball court. Evenings drifted between the library, the gym, and video calls with his brother Riki, except now there was one small disruption in that perfectly curated routine.
Your sharp unrelenting gaze burning holes through his thick ass head.
"Yo, she totally wants you."
Sunghoon snickered laced with amusement as he passed the basketball to Sunoo. The two of them moved with practiced ease, laughter slipping between them, just another joke. "Everyone wants him," Jay muttered under his breath, wiping sweat from his forehead as he tried and failed to snatch the ball from Jungwon. "What's so surprising about that?"
Sunghoon scoffed, clicking his tongue. "Ugh, this time it's different—Sunoo here!"
Jake barely reacted. He sat on the edge of the court, phone in hand, scrolling lazily through pictures of layla, his dog that riki spammed that morning.
"Bro, I think you should ask her–oh shit..." The ball slipped from Sunghoon's hand with a loud thud. The rhythm of the game faltered because the sharp, unmistakable click of your heels had cut through the court like a warning. The air shifted as you approached, the boys' chatter dying down into something uncertain. You stopped right in front of him. "Mr. Park is asking for Sim Jake."
Your voice was calm but your eyes, however, never left his face.
"Why?" Jake asked, not even bothering to look up from his phone. Your lips pressed into a thin line "well, I didn't feel like entertaining your nonsense," you shrugged "So I skipped the part where I ask him Why"
Jay let out an irritated huff from behind you. "You're not even from our department. What the hell?"
Ignoring him completely you repeated "Mr. Park Soohyun is expecting Sim Jake in the sports office," tone blunt now. That got his attention.
Jake finally stood, slipping his phone into his pocket. He still didn't look at you, not even once, as if your presence alone wasn't worth the effort. "I'll be back," he said, tossing the ball toward Sunghoon. Then he walked past you.
And you followed. Not a word exchanged, just the sound of your footsteps trailing behind him.
The hallway should have been crowded at this hour. Between lectures and practice sessions, it was usually filled with noise — But today, it felt... off. A few students lingered here and there, one slumped against the wall, scrolling endlessly on their phone, another sprawled across the bleachers with a book covering their face, half- asleep. The rest of the corridor stretched ahead, unusually empty. And in the middle of it you followed a few steps behind Jake.
Your eyes, almost against your will, traced the line of his broad shoulders, then drifted upward to the messy blond strands of his hair. Then lower, the thin fabric of his shirt clung to his back, damp with sweat, outlining the flex of muscle beneath it with every step he took. Your felt your throat drying as your gaze lingered a second too long.
What the fuck.
You blinked hard, snapping yourself out of it.
Have you actually just lost it?
Absolutely not. You dragged your eyes away, jaw tightening. This was not the time to notice things like that. You had a purpose. A very important, very justified purpose. And it definitely did not involve... whatever the fuck was that.
The sports office came into view at the far end of the hallway, tucked into a corner, door standing plain and unassuming, but you knew better. Mr. Park usually kept it locked ever since that incident with the stolen baseball bats. No one really talked about it much anymore, but the habit stuck. Except today It wasn't locked. Jake slowed down slightly, stopping just short of the door. You watched him inhale, before he pushed it open and stepped inside.
For a split second, it almost looked like he forgot you were there.
"Good afternoon, Mr. Park..." His voice echoed faintly from inside.Silence answered.
"Mr. Park?" he tried again, a little louder this time. "....is there anyone–"
Click.
The sound was small, almost insignificant. But Jake froze.
His head snapped toward the door just as it shut completely, the lock sliding into place with a finality that made your chest tighten with something dangerously close to satisfaction.
"What the fuck?!" His voice sharpened instantly, his fist hitting the door hard. "Hey-open this!"
Outside, you leaned back slightly, your breath uneven, adrenaline rushing through you in waves. A bead of sweat slid down your neck, but you barely noticed. Because you were smiling. "Stay there and think about what you did asshole!" you called out, your voice carrying just enough to reach him through the door.
There was a brief pause, then the banging got louder. "Are you fucking serious right now?!" Jake's voice came through, muffled but furious as he shoved against the door, trying the handle again. "Open the damn door!" You bit back a laugh. He pushed harder, kicked once, then again, frustration bleeding into every movement. The rattling of the handle, the dull thud of his shoulder against the wood, it all blended into a chaotic rhythm behind you.And then your laughter slipped out anyway. You turned on your heel, the sharp click-clack of your shoes cutting through the hallway as you walked away, each step lighter than the last.Behind you, the banging continued.Jake Sim wasn't in control anymore and oh— He was soooo pissed.
"Students, it is unfortunate to note that the sports equipment robbery is still ongoing..."
Mr. Park's voice echoed across the cafeteria, cutting through the usual lunchtime chatter. You barely reacted, too focused on finishing the last piece of chicken nugget on your plate, chewing slowly taking your sweet time.
"People really have nothing better to do than rob sports equipment?" Chisa huffed, clearly annoyed, as she stretched her hand toward Jurin for her compact powder. "I mean... maybe that's what fills their bank accounts," Chaerin muttered absentmindedly. You glanced at her. She still seemed distant, less than before, but not quite herself yet. There was a softness to her voice now, like she was slowly returning but hadn't fully found her footing. Still, it was progress. And that was enough to make you smile, even if only faintly.
"Speaking of which," Jurin chimed in, pointing her chopsticks toward a certain table across the cafeteria, "I've only ever seen that group use the equipment anyway."
You didn't turn. You didn't need to.
Your heart, however, betrayed you — pounding just a little faster, as if it already knew exactly which group she was referring to. You kept your gaze steady, deliberately choosing not to look back. Instead, your eyes drifted toward Chaerin again. And just as you expected she was already looking at them. At him.
Her eyes lingered, slightly glossy, emotions flickering across her face in a way that made your jaw tighten.
You bit the inside of your lip. No.
You weren't letting this go. Not yet.
Not until Jake Sim was on his knees begging, apologizing, breaking the way he made her break. Only then would you consider letting it rest.
"Uh... earth to Jake Sim?" Jake's train of thought snapped abruptly, his brows furrowing as the overly high-pitched voice cut through his focus.
"Can you stop ignoring Evelyn?" the girl snapped, crossing her arms. "You were the one who promised to take her to the museum!"
Jake huffed, clearly caught off guard. Now who the hell had he promised that to?
Sunghoon cackled beside him, the sound only worsening the dull throb forming in Jake's head "Jake and a museum?" he slapped his thighs, laughter still rolling out "tell Evelyn to just print a cardboard cutout of him if that helps!"
The girl let out an irritated noise, clearly unimpressed, before turning on her heel and storming away.
Jake sighed, dragging a hand down his face as a string of curses slipped under his breath. Why was Decelis filled with such abnormal examples of humanity?
The rest of the week dragged on painfully slow as Jake buried himself in his studies, preparing for the upcoming midterms with an intensity that left little room for anything else. Notes, lectures, assignments, he drowned in them all, using the workload as a distraction. Occasionally, his phone would buzz with messages from Sunghoon and Jay usually something about clubs recruiting volunteers for their so called "public service"week.
Apparently, it offered extra credits. Not that Jake cared. His grades had always been flawless, consistent enough that he never had to worry about bonus points. Weekends, for him, were sacred and reserved for uninterrupted sleep and the occasional gaming session. And as far as he was concerned, this weekend would be no different.
Or at least, that's what he thought.
Until his phone started going off. One call. Then another. Then another. Followed by a flood of messages.
Jake frowned, pulling his phone from his pocket. He usually kept it on silent, but for some reason he hadn't that day. And now, past 1 p.m, his screen was filled with an absurd number of missed calls. All from Sunghoon.
"What the hell...?" He finally answered, voice hoarse and clearly irritated.
"Bro, what the fuck?!" Sunghoon's horrified voice exploded through the speaker, loud enough to make Jake pull the phone slightly away from his ear. "Check the college website right now!" Jake blinked, still trying to process the urgency.
"What are you talking about-"
"The volunteering list is out!" Sunghoon cut him off, his tone bordering on hysteria. "And someone signed you up for the National Museum!"
Silence.
Jake stared at his phone then at the wall and then back at his phone
"...You've got to be kidding me."
Welp. There went his perfect weekend.
"Good morning! Welcome to the registration offic—oh... it's you." Sadie's voice dropped the moment she recognized you, her expression twisting into poorly concealed annoyance. Still, she quickly recovered, forcing on a sickeningly sweet smile.
"Uhm, how can I help you, Miss Y/n Y/l/n?" she asked, tone dripping with fake politeness.
You physically cringed at the way she said your name, clearing your throat before speaking. "Uh... Sadie, I noticed you were talking with Jake today”
"Ugh, don't even start about that asshole," she cut in immediately, emphasizing the last word while grinding her teeth.
She clicked her tongue in irritation before narrowing her eyes at you. "Also, why are you suddenly so interested in Jake Sim? Even that day, I noticed you giving him heart eyes like you wanted to unzip his chain and give the cafeteria a real volunteering show—"
You slapped your hand over her mouth before she could finish, head whipping in every direction to check if anyone had heard that. "Are you insane?" you hissed under your breath. Sadie smacked your hand away almost instantly "ew, what the hell?"
You swallowed hard, staring at her in disbelief. Can she just... disappear? Why was she this insufferable?
"Look, Sadie," you said, taking a steadying breath, trying very hard not to knock out her barely five foot frame, "I'm here as a peacemaker."
She raised a brow, clearly unconvinced.
"See, I know Jake ditched Evelyn for that museum date..." you continued carefully, choosing your words. "But he's regretting it now. He told me to register him for the volunteer program at the National Museum." Sadie gave you a blank face then she slowly looked you up and down, her lips curling into a mocking smile "Why the fuck would he tell a nobody like you what he's feeling?" she scoffed. "Since when are you sooo close to Jake?"
You bit the inside of your lip. Right. You expected that. Still, you didn't hesitate.
"I overheard him talking to his friends on the phone," you replied smoothly. "He said he really regrets what he did to Evelyn... and how he ignored you in the cafeteria."
That did it. You immediately saw the shift.Sadie stilled and there it was. That flicker behind her eyes. Hungry of Interest and validation she thrived on. If there was one thing you knew about Sadie, it was that she would drop all logic the moment attention came into the picture, especially if it involved someone like Jake.
And now? Now she was hooked.
You kept your expression neutral, though internally, you knew you had her exactly where you wanted. You gave a small shrug. "That's what I heard....and as someone who who admire Evelyn and you as my senior...I just wanted to help you all"
You noticed Sadie's smile getting bigger.
Then, slowly, she nodded to herself, as if piecing things together in her head "Uh... okay," she said finally, her tone shifting. "I'll set Jake and Evelyn in the same segment at the National Museum."
There it was. The opening you needed. And just like that your plan moved one step forward.
# 2 clickbait
Jake swore he was going to pass out at any moment if another child approached him with same ridiculous bullshit like why historical figures had small dicks. He dragged a tired hand down his face, exhaling sharply as he stared at the museum walls, silently praying for the worst possible downfall of whoever had put him in this situation. And somehow he knew EXACTLY who was behind it.
Evelyn's soft voice pulled him out of his spiraling thoughts.
"U-uhm... thank you, Jake," she said, her tone hesitant as she tried to tuck strands of her hair behind her ears, clearly attempting to hide how red they had become. "For... reconsidering our date. You really are a man of your word. I don't know why people make such weird assumptions about you, but—but I just wanted to let you know... I don't care about your bad reputa—"
Jake yawned blatantly.
See Evelyn was....fine. More than fine, actually. Pretty, soft-spoken, most people would easily fall for. He had noticed her before, maybe once or twice during calculus lectures, when boredom got the best of him. But that was it. Nothing more. He had known from the very beginning that the "date" she once asked him about, eyes hopeful, voice slightly trembling was never going to happen. Yet somehow, he had still said yes. Because Jake Sim never really thought twice before making promises.
And now here he was. Stuck babysitting a group of overly curious children in a museum, listening to questions that made his head hurt, while standing next to a girl who clearly thought this meant something more than it actually did. He suppressed a groan.
Is this my karma for not clearly rejecting people? The thought lingered, bitter and annoyingly accurate. But then another thought cut through.
You.
His jaw tightened instantly. The memory of the locked sports office, your voice, your laughter echoing down the hallway, it all came rushing back, sharp and irritating.
Who the hell—No What the fuck was your problem?
Because this? This had your name written all over it.
The soft pitter patter of rain against the glass window stirred Chaerin awake. She blinked slowly, adjusting her slightly fogged glasses as she lifted her head from the table. For a moment, everything felt hazy, her thoughts, her surroundings, even the time. How long had she been sleeping in the library? A dull ache settled behind her eyes as she straightened up, wincing slightly.
The table was cluttered with open books, scattered notes, and uncapped highlighters. Somewhere between all that mess. She fumbled around for her phone, finally finding it beneath a stack of questionnaires. Outside, the rain poured heavily, blurring everything beyond the glass into indistinct shapes. The rhythmic sound felt almostsoothing.
Lately, she hadn't been sleeping much in her dorm. For some reason, the library felt quieter and safer. More peaceful than her own room.
Did Y/n already go back to the dorm?
she wondered, pushing her chair back as she stood up.
Chaerin grabbed her umbrella, clutching it tightly in her left hand as she made her way out of the main building. The hallway was nearly empty. Most students had gathered near the entrance, waiting for the rain to ease before heading out. A few leaned against walls, some scrolling through their phones, others simply watching the downpour. Chaerin slowed down as she approached the gate.
And then she froze.
Her breath hitched.Leaning casually against a pillar stood a figure she knew all too well.
He looked... the same. Something about the moment felt different and almost like a miracle or as if sensing her presence, he looked up. Their eyes met and neither of them moved.
Not for longer than a second and then he adjusted his cap, pulling it lower to cover his face before pushing himself off the pillar. Without a word, without another glance he walked straight out into the rain.
"Wait! Ja—fuck!"
Chaerin stumbled forward, her umbrella slipping from her grip as it knocked into a nearby plant pot, sending it clattering to the ground.
"You look miserable as ever." Sunghoon's voice cut through the room as he glanced up, eyeing Jake from head to toe who stood there, completely drenched, water dripping from his hair, his clothes clinging uncomfortably to his body. Jungwon giggled from the side. "His life has been nothing but a shitshow ever since his secret admirer showed up—"
He stopped mid-sentence. Jake's glare was enough "...Okay, I'll shut up," Jungwon muttered, raising his hands in surrender.
"She stole my umbrella," Jake said flatly.
There was a fake attempt to look for words of consolation as Sunghoon turned away covering his mouth, not wanting to spit the gum at Jake's face while having a crashout level laughing. And then, unfortunately, to picture it Jake searching for his ridiculous Spongebob umbrella and someone actually stealing it was not helping him to stay sane at all.
"...What the fuck happened to you?" Jungwon groaned as the door burst open again.
Another drenched figure stepped in. Water pooled on the floor as he walked in, completely soaked. "I had a bathroom emergency," Jay announced casually, pulling off his wet t-shirt and tossing his cap toward Sunoo.
Jake, Jungwon, and Sunghoon exchanged a long, tired look.
"Man, we've been friends for as long as I can remember," Jungwon started, narrowing his eyes. "Stop lyi-"
The sharp sound of Jay's room's door slamming shut cut him off and eventually silence followed.
Jungwon sighed "...Yeah, okay. Not asking."
"H–he won't even stop to talk to me... and would rather walk out in the rain... wahhhhhh y/nnnnn"
You let out a deep sigh, passing another tissue to Chaerin. She was sprawled across your bed again, her head hanging slightly off the edge, hair cascading down as she continued rambling between sniffles. Meanwhile, you sat on the floor beside her, your back resting against the wooden frame of the bed, your head tilted up as you stared at the ceiling. Her cries didn't stop.
You had genuinely thought things were getting better. Slowly but still, better. Chaerin had started showing signs of herself again, enough to make you hopeful. And you? You were doing your part, making Jake regret every second of his existence. Or at least, that's what you had thought. Your eyes shifted toward the corner of the room. The stupid Spongebob umbrella sat there, slightly tilted, almost mocking you. You had taken it earlier that day from his bag while he was too busy fooling around with his equally stupid friends on the basketball court.
A small victory.
But clearly not enough.
You clicked your tongue softly. Nah.
This wasn't working. You needed something bigger. Something that would actually hit him where it mattered, something embarrassing enough to make him crawl back and apologize to Chaerin. Something that would make him think twice before ever ignoring her again.
"Don't worry, Chae..." you murmured quietly, "everything will end soon."
Chaerin sniffled again, barely processing your words.
But you weren't really talking to her anymore. Because at that exact moment an idea formed.
A little unhinged maybe.
A faint smile tugged at your lips. Oh, Jake....you were so dead.
Getting Evelyn's number hadn't been difficult. Sadie practically handed it over without much effort. The two of them were always glued together anyway, so it barely took any convincing on your part. What was difficult was Evelyn herself. Convincing her that Jake was playing with her turned out to be far more complicated than you had anticipated. If anything, things had gotten worse. After setting them up to volunteer together at the museum, Evelyn seemed to have grown even more attached to him.
And that was a problem. Because no matter how obvious it seemed to you, she just refused to see it.
You exhaled slowly, leaning your head back against the bed.
So if she wouldn't see it you would have to make her see it. Your fingers tapped absently against the floor as your thoughts began to align, one by one.
There was only one way to do this. Jake's reputation.
That was your key. Every rumor, every story, every whisper that followed his name around campus it all existed for a reason. And now? You were going to use it.
Carefully and strategically you were going to play your cards right.
You scrunched your nose in irritation as you stared at the engineering major's schedule in front of you. Jake was — unfortunately far more studious than you had expected. It made no sense. How could someone juggle being a complete menace when it came to relationships and still manage to maintain such an academically perfect life? You clicked your tongue, zooming in further on the neatly organized routine that had been sent to you by his class representative, someone you had somehow managed to charm (or manipulate) into sharing the information. Honestly, even you were impressed with yourself.
"Monday no chance...Tuesday....three calculus classes oh my god...Thursday... no free period..." you muttered under your breath, scanning the list. "And who the hell attends classes on Saturdays—oh wait."
Your posture straightened slightly as your eyes caught something. There it was. A gap. Right after his electrical engineering class. Your lips slowly curled into a smirk.
Okay this was your chance "I need to corner him that day," you whispered to yourself, already reaching for your phone. Your fingers hovered over the screen for a moment before you began typing, carefully constructing the message in your head. Every word had to be precise and believable.
You typed
Hi Evelyn, I got your number from Sadie! Just wanted to let you know Jake wanted to meet you near the second floor staircase this Saturday. He can't contact you since his phone is broken. Thanks.
You reread it once. Twice.
Perfect.
You hit send and a small, a satisfied breath left your lips as you leaned back slightly. You had enough information about jake to conclude the fact he barely checked his messages unless they were from his useless group of friends. Half the time, he didn't respond at all which meant there was almost no chance of him ruining your plan by accidentally answering Evelyn's question about his phone. Another advantage.
Everything was falling into place. You looked down at the screen again, your eyes immediately catching the small line beneath your message.
Read at 8:40 PM.
Your breath hitched slightly "Oh—" A quiet gasp slipped past your lips. That was quicker than expected and that worked in your favor too.
Jay rummaged through his desk, irritation evident in the way his fingers knocked against scattered items. His body felt like it was running on five blood cells like after nearly seven hours of continuous practice. His muscles ached, each movement reminding him just how far he had pushed himself. Jungwon’s voice from earlier still echoed faintly in his head— “What are you training so hard for?”
Good question.
He had never been this serious about basketball. He picked it up casually in his first year, mostly because of Jake and Sunghoon. It wasn’t like Decelis offered scholarships or financial support for sports anyway. So what exactly was he trying to prove?
He pulled open the second drawer of his cabinet, finally spotting the strip of painkillers tucked away beneath a mess of random trinkets and bills. Calloused fingers fumbled through them, pushing aside blister packs until he found the one he needed. And then his fingers touched something else.
A pair of hoop earrings.
He froze for a second, and just stared at them, unmoving.
The memory of that night crept in before he could stop it, the earrings...they kept getting caught in his shirt. He remembered how he had carelessly reached over, almost like an instinct and taken them off her while she was too lost in the afterglow.
Shit.
He didn’t even remember putting them or keeping them here. Jay's grip tightened slightly before he swallowed hard and pushed the drawer shut. He didn’t need them....did he?
His body fell back onto his bed, exhaustion finally catching up to him as he sank into the mattress.
“I hope you know how hard it was for Dad to pay your college tuition fees…”
Jongseong's voice echoed throughout his frontal lobe.
Of course. Park fucking Jongseong — the perfect twin. The ace. He always won, always succeeded, always made the right choices and was the only one their parents proudly spoke about. And Jay?Jay was just… Jay.
Average and impossibly stubborn. Never quite enough.
Getting into Decelis had been the only thing he had done right and now, even that felt heavy.
“Don’t do anything stupid that will tarnish our family name. I know you attract the wrong kind of people—”
“Ugh, enough,”
Jay muttered under his breath, head already hurting as he squeezed his eyes shut. He had always resented that brat. Jongseong's quiet superiority and that constant need to act like he knew better, like he was better, pissed him off on supersonic level.
People his age drank, partied, smoked, hooked up — Oh.
Right.
Jay exhaled shakily, dragging a hand over his face. No matter how much he wanted to forget it, he couldn’t. The memory of Jongseong's disappointed bitch face tangled with the image of his parent's inevitable hopeful expectations, clung to his bone like some kind of inherited disorder.
He really fell into the trap....didn't he?
“No way she followed you here.” Sunghoon’s voice dropped into a half-whisper as he nudged Jake’s arm, trying to pull his half assed attention away from the lecture. “What a crazy bitch,” he added under his breath. Jake didn’t respond immediately, instead his gaze shifted lazily toward where Sunghoon was pointing. Surprisingly he didn’t need to see your face to recognize you anymore. The small Kuromi charm hanging from your bag gave you away instantly, something he had noticed a few days ago when your presence had still felt…..coincidental?
Ugh. Nothing about you was never a coincidence to start with. You really were a bad omen for him.
Now? What is she trying to pull this time?
The rest of the class passed in a blur or maybe it just dragged, Jake couldn’t even tell anymore. His focus came and went, interrupted every now and then by the thought of you standing right outside.
Sunghoon, on the other hand, didn’t shut up and went on eating his eardrums, rambling about some stalking incident that ended up in murder few blocks away. Jake barely registered his words.
Murder? Uh oh...He didn’t think you had murder in your eyes. Whatever you were up to was far worse. Probably something that involved trapping him, torturing him, and dissolving his body afterward.
He shivered.
Outside, your patience was wearing thin.
“What the hell is he doing in there for so long?” you muttered, stomping your foot lightly against the ground as you tried to swat away a mosquitoes. You pressed your lips together and chewed on the inside of your cheek, irritation building with every passing second.
You had been waiting for this for an entire week. Planning, adjusting, calculating every move. There was no way you were letting this opportunity slip now.
The classroom door finally opened as students began spilling out one by one, voices overlapping, footsteps echoing down the corridor. And then Jake walked out last, his expression as blank and unbothered as ever, limbs moving in an excruciatingly painful speed. Sunghoon slipped away the moment he saw you, muttering something “I’m not getting involved in this mess.”
Before Jake could follow Sunghoon, you stepped forward. Blocking his path.
“Hi, Jake.”
He stopped, eyes flickering over your shoulder, then behind him, pretending to check if you were talking to someone else. Finally, he pointed at himself.
Ugh. Can he just die? His stupidly handsome — wait no, 'questionable' face remained unreadable as you crossed your arms, trying your best not to let your inner thoughts show “Evelyn wants to meet you.”
Jake stared at you for a second then let out a sharp breath, “do you think I’m some airhead running on low brain cells? At least come up with something new. How am I supposed to believe you after you fucking trapped me inside the sports room?”
You inhaled slowly “It’s okay if you don’t want to believe me,” you said, voice deliberately calm. “But she really did ask me to tell you she’ll be near the second-floor staircase.” You shrugged lightly, and then continued again “I mean…..you can ignore it. Totally up to you, just don’t get mad when Sadie starts her usual whining about you ditching Evelyn again.”
Jake exhaled, dragging a hand through his hair as he looked away. You weren’t entirely wrong. Sadie had been relentless ever since the museum incident, spamming him and trying to set him up with Evelyn for another date. And if what you were saying was true....he might need to shove a pencil up his ear, infact he could already hear her high pitched endless nagging.
God, no.
His gaze shifted back slow to you as he looked you over — braided hair, down to your hands… nails painted brown, slightly chipped at the edges.
His eyes moving shamelessly up and down your body made you flustered as you took a small step back, suddenly aware of just how openly he was checking you out. Jake clicked his tongue then, without another word said “let’s go.”
Bingo! You have him exactly where you wanted.
The walk to the second floor staircase was the most dreadful thing you experienced beside that one time in high school when you snuck out to meet your ex boyfriend at 2 am.
You took slow, steady breaths, trying to calm yourself. It’s okay… I am not the one getting into trouble today. Yet, despite telling yourself that, your eyes kept drifting back to Jake. Again and again. You didn’t want to look — fuck — but you couldn’t stop. He walked beside you with that same stoic expression, completely unaffected.
Wasn’t he even a little excited about meeting Evelyn?
Then again… why would he be? This was Jake, the guy who changed girls like onion skins. You clicked your tongue internally, forcing your gaze forward.
The staircase finally came into view, the stage where everything was supposed to unfold. It was tucked away, hidden from the usual corridor crowd, a place most students didn’t even notice.
Perfect....it won't be even that big of a drama —
Or at least...thats what you prayed for.
Before you or Jake could even step closer a figure came running out of nowhere. You barely had time to react before you were shoved aside, stumbling back as the person launched himself straight at Jake.
“Baby, I missed you so much!”
Your eyes widened.
Students lingering nearby turned instantly, attention snapping toward the scene unfolding in front of them.
Wait what? What the fuck?
Your brain scrambled to process what you were seeing. What is he doing here?! He wasn’t supposed to do this yet!
Jake, clearly caught off guard, stiffened as the almost 6ft figure clung to him.
“Okay what in the flying fuc—man, who are you?!” he snapped, trying to push him away, his voice filled with confusion and irritation. You stood there, frozen, mentally clutching your nonexistent pearls.
Oh no.
No, no, no.
This was going to go so wrong.
You had known Lee Heeseung since your very first day at Decelis. He had been…well kinda impossible to miss. You still remembered walking into your first lecture, only to see him sitting there all bruised and battered, yet completely unbothered. You could hell he was an anomaly. It didn’t take long for you to learn that Heeseung was a scholarship student — and a very highly respected one, personally recommended by his high school principal.
Professors seemed to favor him, though he never abused that advantage. Well… not openly, at least. Then there was his boxing gig which explained the occasional bruises, the late entries into class, and being absent for weeks.
But what truly stood out was how helpful he was. The projector stopped working? Heeseung would fix it. Someone's grandma died and they missed classes? Heeseung would send them notes without being asked. Breakups, academic stress, random life crises, he was always there, somehow involved in solving everyone’s problems like random side quests.
So when the idea of taking Jake Sim down first crossed your mind mid semester, there was only one person you could think of being part of your crazy plan...Lee Heeseung. The only problem? He was barely ever in class. And even when he was, he left the moment lectures ended, unless someone stopped him first.
But luck, for once, was on your side.
The day after you texted Evelyn, you spotted him in class sitting in the back. Focused on his Nintendo Switch.
You hesitated for a moment before approaching him “I… have a little favor to ask…”
Your voice came out softer than intended, almost swallowed by the quiet hum of the room. Heeseung looked up slowly, his face half-hidden behind a mask and hoodie. Only his large, curious eyes were visible as they settled on you.
You realized he was waiting for you to continue so you stepped closer.
And explained everything. EVERYTHING.
By the time you finished, he had put his switch aside, sitting up straighter.
“So…” you hesitated, fidgeting with the hem of your shirt. “Will you help me?”
Heeseung studied your face for a moment, then a quiet, breathy laugh escaped him “sure,” he said casually. “But what do I get?”
You gaped.
What exactly could you offer someone like him?
You scratched your head, genuinely thinking and then your face lit up. Rummaging through your bag, you pulled something out before holding it toward him with a hopeful expression.
A strawberry band-Aid set.
“This could help a lot,” you said earnestly. For a second Heeseung just stared at it. Then he laughed again, this time louder. He gave you a thumbs up.
“Consider your work done, baby.”
# 3 payback
“How can you be so heartless? Oh my god…” Heeseung’s doe eyes and exaggerated pout would have been almost comedic if not for the absolute horror etched across Jake’s face. You glanced around nervously. People were gathering. Of course they were!
A few curious students had already slowed down, whispers spreading as more heads turned toward the scene. Within seconds, a small crowd had formed, drawn in by the tension like moths to a flame.
“Me?! Heartless?” Jake groaned, finally managing to shove Heeseung away. “I don’t even know you!” Heeseung staggered back slightly before casually running a hand through his hair, “Really?” he scoffed, tilting his head. “Then why were you ignoring my texts?”
Holy shit. You stared at him, stunned. Lee Heeseung had exceeded your expectations. Was he secretly a theatre kid or something? Why was he so good at this?
Before you could even process it, Heeseung’s head snapped in your direction, his expression shifting dramatically “was it her?!” he accused, pointing straight at you “you’ve been ignoring me for her?!”
You had to bite down hard on the inside of your cheek to stop yourself from laughing but then you followed his gaze and turned back.
Oh shit.
Evelyn stood there, right behind you. Her expression a mix of disbelief, and something dangerously close to heartbreak.
“What?!” Jake’s voice rose again, panic slipping into it now. “I don’t even check texts from people I know!” He took a breath, trying to steady himself “look, I think you’ve got the wrong guy—”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Heeseung cut in smoothly, his tone suddenly serious “after you told me you were still confused about us… that you wanted to experience a few more ‘dates’ before settling down?” The final blow.
A sharp, collective gasp rippled through the crowd. Somewhere behind you Sadie shrieked. Your eyes darted back to Evelyn, her face had gone pale.
Oh my god.
Jake let out a disbelieving scoff “first of all, get your script right—I don’t even swing that way!”
Heeseung stepped closer again, gripping his shoulder lightly “you weren’t saying that last week after you came back from your museum event and told me how boring it wa—”
Smack.
The sound echoed through the corridor. Evelyn’s hand had already fallen back to her side, her chest rising and falling rapidly as Jake stood frozen, a red handprint blooming across his cheek.
For a moment everything went silent. Then Heeseung let out a small yelp, stepping back immediately. “Oh wow… I’m dipping,” he muttered, already retreating into the crowd. He threw you a quick wink before disappearing completely.
Wait—What?! Just like that?
“You could have told me if you didn’t like me in the first place!” Evelyn’s voice cracked, rising higher with every word. Jake blinked, still processing. “Look, Evelyn, I—”
She stepped back, shaking her head.
“Ahhhhh, so the campus fuckboy is actually a closeted gay who refuses to commit to any woman so he can keep his secret male concubines” Sadie, of course pushed her way to the front, her voice loud enough for everyone to hear “Guys!” she called out to the crowd still waiting for another climax “have you ever seen Jake Sim publicly showing affection to anyone?!”
Whispers spread instantly.
Agreement, disagreeing, mixed up speculation with judgment of course.
Jake stood there, jaw tightening as he took a slow, controlled breath. He was done. So fucking done.
All he had wanted was a quiet break. Maybe grab something to eat. Maybe scroll through Riki’s messages and laugh at whatever tung tung tung sahur nonsense his brother was up to.
Evelyn’s quiet sniffles broke through the noise “I should’ve known…” she whispered, her voice trembling “There were other people… how did I not see this coming…?” Sadie immediately jumped back in “Exactly, Evelyn! How many more wom—oops, actually, how many more people are there, Jake? Huh? Your reputation exists for a rea—”
Enough.
Something in him snapped.
Your body reacted before your mind could catch up. Legs told you to move, to leave, to get the fuck away and disappear before this spiraled even further out of control. But you couldn't.
Jake’s eyes found yours and something about the way he looked at you made your stomach churn. Wait…Why was he looking at you like that? Before you could think, he started walking toward you. Fast and long strides.
Oh no no no no — You turned, trying to slip into the crowd, but you couldn’t make it more than a step as his hand caught your forearm firnly. You yelped as he pulled you back, turning you to face him.
“I am not gay,” he said sharply, looking at Evelyn and Sadie “And I don’t know whatever the fuck that was.”
Your brain scrambled to catch up.
“But I sure as hell have something going on with her.”
“What—wait—”
You didn’t even get the chance to protest because in the next second, He pulled you in close. His frame towering over yours, overwhelming and leaving you no space to think, no space to breathe and then — His lips pressed against yours.
The bulb above your mind short circuited.
Gasps rippled through the crowd as Evelyn and Sadie screamed at the same time. Your legs felt like jelly. Mind completely blank. All you could register was the warmth of Jake’s lips against yours, and the way everything around you seemed to blur into nothing.
Wahhh....is that....the pearly gates of heaven—
And just as suddenly as it began he pulled away. There was a faint, almost smug smile playing on his lips.
A look of victory it is.
He got you at last.
“You bitch!” Sadie’s voice cut through the moment. She stormed toward you, her hand already raised, ready to strike, but Jake was way faster. He stood between you and Sadie, body shielding your figure as his hand shot out gripping her wrist mid air before it could make contact.
“Be careful.”
His voice was cold. Not raised. Enough to make Sadie freeze. Then she yanked her hand back, jaw clenched tightly, eyes burning with fury. Without another word, she grabbed Evelyn’s hand “Let’s go, Eve. Both of them are shit faced.”
Evelyn didn’t argue or look back. The two of them disappeared into the thinning crowd, whispers trailing behind them as people slowly lost interest and drifted away.
And then the inevitable silence fell. Just you, Jake and your trembling lips. Your heart was racing so fast it hurt. You barely noticed the way he turned toward you again until you instinctively stepped back. Once....twice until your back hit the cold railing behind you.
No escape zone.
Your breath hitched as Jake stepped closer. Too close.
Before you could react, his hand came up, gripping your jaw firmly, forcing you to look at him. Your breath stuttered and for a second, everything slowed.
His face was right there. His eyes—Wait. Had his eyes always looked like that? So… attractive —Shit, the HELL were you thinking?
“I hope you enjoyed that kiss,” he said, voice mocking you.
Your chest tightened slowly “And now,” he continued, his grip loosening just slightly but not enough to let you pull away, “you’re going to do everything I tell you.” Your stomach dropped.
“Otherwise…” He paused and that smirk returned.
“…the cctv footage of you locking me in the sports office won’t take long to reach your dean.”
Your eyes widened. Fuck. What ?!
Before you could even process it, he let go. Just like that and adjusted his bag over his shoulder, completely unbothered, then walked past you without a second glance.
Leaving you there, utterly screwed.
“Can we talk?”
Jay’s hand paused, his pen hovering over the notebook as he looked up, eyes widening slightly when he saw Chaerin standing in front of him, her expression unreadable. The library was packed, students hunched over books and laptops, trying to squeeze in whatever they could before finals.
He inhaled slowly. So this was it.
After weeks of avoiding her, ducking calls, changing routes, pretending not to notice, he had finally been cornered.
“i guess,” he muttered, though it sounded more like surrender than agreement.
Chaerin pulled out the chair across from him and sat down. For a moment, she said nothing, her fingers resting on the edge of the table as if she was trying to steady herself “see…” she began, “I wasn’t aware of your… fuck and leave rule”
Jay’s jaw tightened slightly.
“And I know I’m probably being annoying as hell,” she continued, fidgeting with her fingers, “but….I thought—I thought maybe...we had something. You talked about your family… your brother—I mean I'm not complaining!—it's just–”
“I do that with everyone” his voice cut through her words, firm and unwavering. Chaerin stilled.
“And you weren’t the first girl to sympathize with me,” he added, not looking away. “Everyone I’ve had ‘something’ with had the same reaction.”
Something.
So that’s what she was to him. Just another 'something'.
“Jay, I—” she hesitated, adjusting her glasses again as they slipped down her nose. “I like you. A lot. And it’s okay if you don’t feel the same. I don’t want to force anything…” The slight tremble in her voice was audible, “...I was just wondering… why did you stop talking to me? We were fine before that party, right?”
“I fuck and leave. Just as you said” his words landed bluntly.
Chaerin went quiet. An “oh” escaped her mouth sounding barely above a whisper.
“So… all this time…” she murmured, her gaze dropping to the table, “you just wanted to leave? Even before we…?”Jay’s fingers twitched under the desk. He opened his mouth but nothing came out. Did he want to leave? His thoughts betrayed him — memories flickering through his mind. The lectures where she sat beside him, talking endlessly, distracting him in ways he never admitted he liked. The days she made him laugh when he felt suffocated by everything at home.
His silence stretched too long as Chaerin took it as her answer.
She stood up abruptly, the chair scraping softly against the floor “s–sorry for wasting your time, I guess…”
Move. Say something. Don’t just sit there stubbornly. His brother’s voice echoed in his head, mocking him.
But Jay couldn't move. His body felt heavy, rooted in place. Chaerin inhaled shakily “I really liked you, Jay,” she said, her voice steadier now, even if her hands weren’t “I’m sorry I was so blinded by it… I forgot to ask what you felt about me”
Liked. Did she not like him anymore? Was he really that easy to walk away from?
Chaerin didn’t wait for an answer this time before turning around and walking out of his sight.
You bit your nails relentlessly, eyes scanning the same line in your book for what felt like the hundredth time and yet not a single word registered. Everything was slipping out of your brain. What the hell had just happened? Why would Jake do that? And worse — What was going to happen now?!
You groaned, grabbing your pillow and pressing your face into it before letting out a loud, muffled scream “It’s my fault—it’s my fault, ughhhhh! Why didn’t I think about the cctv?!” you whined into the fabric, your voice coming out distorted. This had gone so utterly out of control. Nothing—nothing—had gone according to plan and on top of that, Heeseung’s useless entrance at the worst possible time, followed by his equally useless disappearance, had left you even more irritated.
You flopped onto your back, staring at the ceiling before your eyes drifted toward your phone lying lifeless beside you. Switched off.
You hadn’t dared to turn it on since morning knowing notifications would be flooded, messages, missed calls, blah blah and at least half of them would be from Sadie, probably cursing you, your ancestors, and your entire bloodline and perform some sacrificial ritual.
You groaned again, throwing an arm over your eyes.
A sudden knock on your door snapped you upright.
Your heart jumped into your throat. Oh shit.
Did Sadie come to kill you? No, no, no—this is too early—another knock came, louder this time. Fuck. She’s going to murder you.
Your palms grew sweaty as you slowly got off the bed, taking cautious steps toward the door. Each step felt heavier than the last. The knocking grew impatient. You gasped softly, grip tightening around the doorknob. Okay. This is it. You twisted the lock and pulled the door open —
Chaerin!
Relief flooded through you so fast your knees almost gave out.
“Ooouf—thank god…”
You stood there for a moment, just staring at her, trying to gather the right words.
“Jake kissed me.”
“I finally talked to Jay—wait, WHAT??”
crickets....
Your eyes widened as Chaerin stepped inside, quickly locking the door behind her “what the fuck do you mean Jake kissed you?!” she gripped her hair, pacing the room. “I’m going to commit arson on that bitch oh my god!”
Your mind went completely blank as you tried to process everything at once.
Wait....why was Chaerin so furious at Jake? Wasn’t she… heartbroken over him? And — Why did she say she talked to Ja..…y.
Oh.
Oh.
Wait.....wait a damn second.
“y/n, answer me!” Chaerin shoved you lightly, her eyes blazing. “What in the world happened?!”
You swallowed hard, your throat suddenly dry “C-Chae…” you stammered, “who was the person you said you slept with at last month’s party…?” Chaerin groaned in frustration “Ugh, I told you—it was Jay! But that’s not important right now, first of all—”
Her voice started fading into the background as your slow ass brain finally caught up. You felt your legs giving up as you sank onto the mattress, hands coming up to clutch your head.
Jay. Not Jake.
Chaerin was hung up on Jay, not Jake.
Your dumbahh confused both the J’s and in the process you had created an absolute disaster. A soft gasp escaped your lips as the realization hit you fully. Oh my god. All this time…Everything you planned…every move you made, instead of helping Chaerin you were just embarrassing yourself.
“Helloooo??? Earth to y/n? Are you even listening?” Chaerin’s voice cut through your spiraling thoughts, laced with concern. You looked up at her slowly, your expression somewhere between horror and disbelief “Chae…” you said weakly, running a hand through your hair
“I think I might’ve done some irreversible damage…”
Getting into Decelis was something you had always been proud of. Being a scholarship student, getting the chance to major in architecture, the one thing you had dreamed of throughout your teenage years was more than enough. It was everything you had worked for and yet now you found yourself counting down the days to graduation. Or worse. To drop out without telling anyone. More importantly There was no one to blame but yourself.
You knew that.
You had spent the entire afternoon explaining Chaerin the absolute mess you had created, while looking up “painless kms methods” on your browser, only to slam your laptop shut seconds later.
“Y/n… I fear even I can’t get you out of this situation…”
Chaerin’s helpless voice echoed in your mind, and your chest tightened as another wave of emotion hit you. You let out a broken cry what, the fifth time today? You had lost count.
Now, sitting in front of your laptop again as the screen glowed harshly in the dim room, feeling less like a device and more like some kind of execution platform, your eyes remained fixed on a single message that came just a few seconds ago from an unknown number. Or at least you pretended it was unknown and you definietly didn’t recognize who it could be.
Anything to convince yourself this wasn’t real.
— Boys’ dormitory, third floor, room number 15. Come within five minutes.
Your gaze slowly shifted toward the digital clock on the wall.
1:00 a.m.
A dry laugh escaped your lips. Right.....What business could someone from the boys’ dorm possibly have with you at this hour? Hahaha…Such a silly prank.…ha.…ha....ha....
The silence that followed felt unbearable. You exhaled shakily, dragging a hand down your face. Yeah no.
This wasn’t a prank anymore. Which meant you had no choice but to go. Because if you didn’t — The next message you might receive would be directly from the dean’s office.
The trip to the boys’ dormitory felt like you were willingly walking straight into hell. Surprisingly, getting past the guards wasn’t difficult as they were sound asleep, completely unaware of your existence. Soon enough you found yourself standing in front of the door, with a metal batch of the number '15' on it.
You rubbed your sweaty palms against your jeans and lifted your hand, about to knock.
The door swung open.
Jake stood there, fresh out of the shower, his hair still wet, blonde strands clinging to his forehead. You could practically see the faint steam rising from his skin. The scent of his shampoo or body wash hit you instantly, clean and sharp, making your head feel oddly light.
“Oh?” he raised a brow. “Right on time. I was just about to notify your dean.”
The smugness in his voice made you want to turn back and leave. Before you could respond, his eyes flicked left and right down the hallway. Without any warning he grabbed your elbow and yanked you inside.
The door shut behind you with a click.
Your brain immediately fogged. Is he going to kill me? Or not? Every alarm bell in your head went off as you stood frozen for a second before forcing yourself to follow him further inside.
You had never been inside the boys’ dormitory before. Well—obviously you had never had a reason to. But everything you had heard was true. The space was bigger, more open compared to the girls’ dorms. Instead of separate rooms, a few boys shared one large living area with individual bedrooms branching off. You followed Jake through the common space, your eyes scanning everything instinctively. Unwashed dishes piled up in the sink. A gaming controller lay abandoned on the floor “Shit—” you muttered under your breath, almost tripping over it, catching your balance just in time.
You passed by three other closed doors, assuming they belonged to his friends, before finally reaching his room. Jake stepped in first, then you. And the door shut behind you again.
This is it. He’s going to kill you and put up your kidneys for friday sale. You stood awkwardly near the entrance as he nudged a gaming chair toward you with his foot. The wheels rolled softly until they bumped against your legs.
“Sit.”
You couldn't.
Meanwhile, Jake casually dropped onto his bed, completely at ease, “sooo…” he dragged out, resting back on his hands. “What should we do with you, miss...?”
"y/n..." you answered then swallowed, fingers fidgeting nervously as your gaze wandered everywhere except his face. His room was annoyingly spotless.
“okayy let’s start from the beginning,” his tone shifted slightly. “and clear our bad blood.”
You could feel his eyes on you, waiting. You took a deep breath. Whatever happens, happens. “See… I’m sorry,” you began “I mistook you for someone else and—and I didn’t realize it until I—”
He huffed, cutting you off “I’m not an idiot, y/n...I knew you mistook me for someone else the moment you locked me in the sports office,” Jake clicked his tongue, leaning back on one elbow. His gaze dragged over you again in that same shameless way.
“I just didn’t realize you’d be bold enough to drag it out this long.”
You wanted to disappear. This was so humiliating that you briefly considered jumping out of the third floor window.
“Now that the damage is done,” he continued casually, “let’s discuss what happens next.”
Your head snapped up. “Next?”
There’s a next?!
Jake stood up and walked towards you. Your body instinctively stepped back until your legs hit the gaming chair behind you, causing you to fall right into it with a soft thud.
“You,” he pointed at you, “are going to act like my girlfriend.”
Your brain stopped functioning.
“As long as I say,” he added. “And we—yes, WE—are going to make Evelyn jealous until she comes back to me.”
Your head spun. This can't be real.
“And everything in this relationship, will go according to my rules. My conditions.”
You opened your mouth, but nothing came out.
“Unless,” he added smoothly, “you decide you don’t want to do this and also don’t want to graduate with a proper degree.” Your stomach dropped “I can always send that footage to the dean—”
“No!” you blurted out, shooting up from the chair. “I—I’ll do it!”
Silence followed. Jake studied your face carefully, his eyes scanning for hesitation, doubt, anything that suggested you might back out. After a moment, a satisfied smile spread across his face.
“Good—savor the moment while it lasts”
Lying on your bed, you traced random patterns over your bedsheet, fingers moving absentmindedly as your mind refused to settle. Sleep was nowhere to be found. Your brain felt heavy as hell as your eyes flickered toward the digital clock.
4:00 a.m.
Another sleepless night. Another hellish week. And, of course — another hellish fake boyfriend who made sure you regretted every second of taking admission in Decelis. It had been almost two weeks since Jake “proposed”– no, forced this whole pretend relationship onto you, all for the sake of making his darling jealous. At this point, you were convinced it wasn’t even about her anymore. It felt personal grudge against your entire bloodline.
You groaned, rolling onto your side. Well, technically...it was personal.
Going to college had turned into a daily humiliation ritual. No matter where you went, lecture halls, corridors, cafeteria, Jake was there, reminding you of what an absolute joke your life had become. And the college? Oh, they were having the time of their lives. The forum buzzed nonstop with rumors about you being Jake’s new babe. Your classmates flocked around you like flies, throwing questions left and right from how does Jake wipe his ass to what the hell did he even see in you?
Disrespectful as fuck.
You had been avoiding the engineering building entirely, convinced Sadie might have already hired an assassin to take you out. You shivered, fingers brushing over a spot on your neck absentmindedly.
“Girl… I think you need to see a doctor,” Jurin sighed, grabbing your hand in concern.
“This could be an early symptom of cancer, who knows,” Chisa added still munching on a drumstick, earning dead glares from both Chaerin and Jurin. You huffed.
Honestly, being hospitalized didn’t sound that bad right now. At least Jake wouldn’t be able to drag you around.
“…So,” Chisa spoke again, completely unfazed, “how is Jake as a boyfriend?”
You groaned loudly, dropping your head back. The worst. Absolutely the worst.
He would call you at the most ungodly hours, 3 p.m., 3 a.m., it didn’t matter, interrupting whatever you were doing just to summon you to his room. For what? To turn on his computer. To clean his desk. Which, by the way, was already clean most of the time. Being Jake’s girlfriend—no, fake girlfriend felt like a full time ragebait experiment. And yet you thought, would he treat you better if you were his actual girlfriend?
What the fuck? No. Absolutely not.
Why were you even thinking that? Who in their right mind would want to be his girlfriend?
He was just an asshole with a good face. That’s it.…Okay, fine. Maybe a very good face.
You squeezed your eyes shut, annoyed at yourself and your eyes which unfortunately worked. Which meant you noticed stuffs. Like the way he looked on the basketball court, focused, sharp, effortlessly attractive.
Or the times you’d find him in his room, sitting casually and completely absorbed in his phone as you sneaked glances while cleaning his basketball tournament trophies.
Or the way he walked just ahead of you in the corridor, his tall frame practically swallowing your smaller one.
You exhaled deeply. This was getting bad. Very bad.
“Oh my god… she’s lost in the exclusive Jake sauce,” Chisa whispered and Chaerin smacked her arm instantly.
# 4 fatal trouble
“Are you purposely ignoring me or what?” Jake’s annoyed voice snapped you back to reality. You crossed your arms, already irritated by the heat and by him. His furrowed brows weren’t helping either. Why the fuck does he looks so attractive with an ugly expression like that the FUCK????
He had called you multiple times until you were forced to pick up in the middle of a lecture, no less which earned you a scolding from Professor Min in front of the entire class.
“I’m not,” you replied shortly, your tone flat. You knew if you said anything more, you might actually punch him. Jake didn’t bother arguing, instead, he tossed his bag at you. Which you caught it out of reflex, immediately sliding it over your shoulder.
God....did he carry bricks in this thing?
“Let’s go,” he said, already turning away. “We have somewhere to be.”
Which is how you found yourself stuck in some godforsaken café, whose interior design alone announced that they sold tasteless stuffs at horrible overpriced rates. Girls sat all around, looking as pretty as ever in their cute tank tops, skirts, jeans, and frilly bow clips, honestly, the only thing making the place somewhat bearable even though, you were still judging hard the questionable boyfriends they had brought along.
Evelyn and Sadie were seated near the window, surrounded by their friend group. Yunjin...ahyeon...daniel...You recognized a few familiar faces from the mechanical engineering department.
You weren’t sure if they had noticed you yet — or were just choosing to ignore you, but Evelyn had definitely noticed Jake who was sitting right across from you. His back faced her, hiding you perfectly from their line of sight.
Jake slid the menu toward you and you shook your head
“not hungry.”
He rolled his eyes “then pretend you are. Don’t embarrass me anymore in public, don’t you think once was enough?”
You screamed internally and flipped open the menu anyway.
What the fuck. 23 dollars for a frappuccino???You immediately snapped the menu shut.
that amount of money could feed you for days... there was no way you were ordering—
“uhhhh, two frappuccinos....and extra whipped cream on both.”
You froze.
Jake had already placed the order, completely uncaring of your internal crisis as you stared at him, mouth slightly open.
Is this it? Is this the part of fake dating where they pay for your food? I mean… not that you were complaining—
“Close your mouth, dimwit. You really do love attention,” he muttered causing your cheeks to hit up as you quickly looked away “whatever”
this was nothing like what you had imagined?? First of all, how the hell was sipping overpriced coffee with Jake supposed to make Evelyn jealous? Did he even have a plan? At this rate, you’d be fifty by the time anything happened, probably with heart problems from stress.
You hummed a random tune under your breath, absentmindedly playing with your straw, trying to distract yourself.
Your eyes drifted toward Jake out of habit. He was scrolling through his phone, as usual, a faint smile tugging at his lips.
You swallowed, the sweetness of the frappuccino did nothing to calm the sudden goosebumps on your skin. Why did he kiss me that day? Ugh… it’s his fault I can’t fucking look away from his lips the FUCK?
At the table beside you, some guy was making weird faces and feeding his girlfriend, and you couldn’t help but cringe. Wasn’t Jake supposed to be doing stuff like that to make Evelyn jealous? Whatever. Not your problem anyway—
You gasped slightly as Jake suddenly stood up and dragged his chair right beside yours, drawing a bit of attention,
including from Evelyn’s table.
You kept your head down, pretending to focus on your drink. Should you say something? Do something? This was so confusing. Minutes passed and you sensed Evelyn and her group getting closer, the clique clack of their heels on the hard wood floor, echoing through, you relaxed when she didn’t even spare you a glance and started heading toward the exit. Thank go—
Suddenly Jake’s hand moved from his cup to your left thigh, gripping it without hesitation. He squeezed lightly, too close to the hem of your skirt, his fingers brushing dangerously near your inner thigh.
“Eek!” you yelped, startled.
The sound drew immediate attention including Evelyn who turned and her eyes locked onto your flustered expression then they slowly travelled to Jake’s arm resting casually under the table, and his hand still wrapped around your thigh.
Shit shit shit.
Sadie wasted no time and grabbed her arm, pulling her away to the exit. The rest of the girls threw you strange, judging looks before following her out. Silence fell over your table. You could hear your own heart pounding violently in your chest.
The warmth around your thigh was gone the moment Evelyn walked out of sight. You sat there, heartbeat in your throat, and sweating crazy underneath the air conditioning machine. “Bill, please,” Jake called casually, handing his card to the waiter. “For one frappuccino.” Wait—what? You grabbed his shoulder, eyes wide. “What about me?!” He glanced at you, dragging his gaze up and down before shrugging. “I don’t know. I asked what you wanted—you couldn’t decide, so I ordered the same for both of us. Doesn’t mean I’m paying for both.”
You stared at him in disbelief. This was getting SO ridiculous. You quickly fumbled through your bag looking for your purse and shoved some crumpled notes into his hand before standing up and storming out.
God you just wanted to die.
Jake had officially pushed you to the point where you discovered strands of grey hairs growing from your roots. “Ouch!” you winced as Chaerin tugged at one absentmindedly. “Girl… trust me, no one cares. Damn, this one’s stubborn.” You bit your lower lip, trying to ignore the sting. “I care! What if people think I’m some kind of weirdo grandma going after a college guy?!”
Chaerin rolled her eyes. “You trapped yourself, at the end of the day.” You shot her a glare “I did everything for you, and this is how you repay me?!”
All she did was sigh “my dumb, pretty y/n… maybe if you had listened to me carefully NONE OF THIS WOULD’VE HAPPENED!”
You pouted. “Yeah, yeah. Everyone hates me, I get it.”
Between Jake and your coursework, the pressure of getting bullied by both was becoming unbearable. You let out what felt like your hundredth groan of the week. “Can this just end, god…”
Thud!
A basketball smacked straight into your head. “Ow!” you yelped looking up instantly, Jake stood there, amusement written all over his face “stop thinking so hard, dimwit. Take life easy,” he said, giggled and you swore you wanted to break his face.
Grabbing the ball, you threw it back at him with full force. “Suck it, Jackass.”
He caught it effortlessly, raising a brow. “Oh? Making progress, huh?” You stood up, brushing dirt off your jeans. Enough. It had already been over two hours. Jake had dragged you here because apparently Evelyn was supposed to watch the practice for new cheerleading recruits, but neither she nor any cheerleaders had shown up. Instead, you had been stuck watching him practice alone and getting harassed relentlessly.
He tossed the ball at you again but this time you caught it cleanly. And somehow that turned into a full blown game back and forth. Again and again. You hadn’t played basketball seriously since high school, but with Jake, everything felt different. Competitive and definitely Intense. No way you were leting him get out of the court without smashing his nuts with that ball–wait that's sounds weird but anyways.
It went on until both of you were completely out of breath. Jake finally dropped to the floor, legs stretched out, chest rising and falling rapidly. You laughed breathlessly. “Wha....t? Tired already?” He rolled his eyes “look at yourself first”
You both fell into a quiet pause, just staring at each other. And suddenly that same awkward, flustered feeling crept back in. “M-my dorm has a curfew today… I need to go,” you muttered, mostly to yourself, but loud enough for him to hear and started stomping towards the exit ready to leave. But before you could your foot caught on his stretched out legs.
“Ah—!” gravity pulled you down without giving you the chance to realise what just happened as a pair of strong arms caught you perfectly, landing right on top of him.
Your brain short circuited. From this close, he looked… unfair. His eyes slightly hooded, face flushed from exertion, and breath warm against your skin. You didn’t even notice the sweat trailing down your neck, hair just a mess and fingers tightly clutching his shirt. All you could focus on was him. Fuck, fuck, fuck. His gaze locked onto yours then slowly dropped to your lips. Your felt your heart skipping a beat. And before you could think you leaned in. Just a little closer, just this one time, jusssstt this once — Jake’s hand shot up, gripping your jaw, stopping you instantly.
Oh.
The doors burst opened and instantly gasps and low whistles filled the court.
Reality doubled down back into you. You scrambled off him immediately, heart racing, refusing to meet his eyes. Your gaze landed on the group that had just walked in.
The cheerleading team.
And right in the center — Evelyn.
Her glare was unpleasant. Great....just great. Sunghoon and Jay, who had come along, ran up to Jake, laughing about something you couldn’t even process. Jake, however, stayed seated, his expression unreadable. You didn’t wait another second. Grabbing your bag, you turned and stormed out.
“Oh my god… oh my god, fuckkkkkk fuckkkkk what was I thinking?” You smacked your cheeks repeatedly, staring at your reflection in the bathroom mirror. The girl staring back looked just as frustrated and flustered. Cupping your face you tried to sum up what the fuck was going on “y/n, get it together ugh!”
There were levels to your breakdown, and you were currently crossing every single one of them.
The image of jake being breathless and his warm breath against your face replayed again. His half lidded eyes drifting from yours to your lips.
Nope.
You turned the shower on. This couldn’t be happening rn. What the hell was his problem?No, more importantly, why did you lean in to kiss—“No! The fuck—never!” you shouted, trying to convince yourself as your fingers brushed over your lips, you nearly cried in frustration. Embarrassment seeped into your veins as you remembered his grip on your jaw, the only thing that had stopped you from completely humiliating yourself.
“Am I a slut?” you whispered, then let out a loud laugh. “Hell nah. How am I a slut for wanting to kiss my boy…friend…”
You trailed off. Oh... Right.
“Soooo… what was that?” Sunghoon grabbed Jake’s jaw, puckering his lips in an exaggerated kissy face “getting all lovey-dovey with your girl, aww—Fuck—AH!” he yelped when Jake kicked him under the table. “Can I eat my damn dinner in peace?” Jay muttered, already irritated by their dogfight since they returned. Sunghoon laughed, wiping the corners of his eyes. “Man… why are you even wasting your time on her?” He paused, then leaned forward “…no way. Don’t tell me you like her.”
Jake scoffed immediately “she isn’t even my type, the fuck? And how can I just let her walk away after the shit she pulled on me last month?” He crossed his arms, gaze drifting past Sunghoon toward the depressing white walls of their dorm “she pisses me off,” he added after a moment “in a good way. And I’m not letting her walk out until I get my satisfaction.”
Sunghoon leaned back, raising his hands in surrender. “Alrighttt. Do whatever you want—just don’t break the poor girl’s heart.” Jake ignored him, focusing back on his food.
Your next meeting with Jake wasn’t awkward for him. But for you? Oh you were a mess. You kept stammering, stumbling over your words, avoiding eye contact so obviously that even Jake noticed. “Are you sick?” he asked, casually licking his popsicle. You stared straight ahead, your mind screaming 'whatever you do, do not look at him'.
Your own popsicle had started melting in your hand within minutes.
Why was it suddenly so hot? And why did Jake even buy me one? He wasn’t that generous....was he?? Is he making fun of me rn? Oh god, he definitely is. I should just dig a hole and bury myself.
Jake sighed, clearly losing patience. He scooted closer, the bleacher suddenly feeling way too small as his thigh brushed against yours.
“N-no! I’m fine! I’m not sick!” you blurted out, forcing an overly bright smile. He grimaced “ew… what is that expression? I don’t believe you at all” before you could react, he leaned closer. His arms rested on the back of the bleacher, caging you in “hey…” he frowned slightly.
“Are you planning something behind my back again?”
His eyes locked onto yours, and you swore they were going to swallow you whole. You shook your head quickly. “…No.”
“No…?”
“No—”
Jake suddenly lifted his popsicle toward your mouth “lick.”
Your brain went blank. “What—no! I have my own—”
He pushed it closer anyway, smearing a bit of that melted cream at the corner of your lips. You froze instantly as his smug expression only made it worse. “Oops,” he muttered, mockingly. “So sorry, baby.” You felt your stomach flipping as a thumb came up, brushing against your lip to wipe the cream away — his rough fingertip lingered just a second too long. And then he brought that same thumb to his mouth. Licking it clean.
You heard faint shrieks from nearby girls, but they barely registered because your eyes had already caught something else.
Evelyn.
She was standing near a pillar, trying to hide, but her unmistakable stare gave it away.
Shit.
“I—I have class,” you rushed out, scrambling to your feet. “Evelyn saw us, I think my job here is done—” You backed away quickly when Jake tried to grab your wrist
“What—?” He turned, trying to spot Evelyn.
But by the time he looked back you were already gone.
What was happening? Why were you suddenly so nervous around Jake? He had always been the center of your rants and main topic of shit talking sessions between you and Chaerin. You had cursed him out more times than you could ever count. It wasn’t supposed to end up like this… right?
So what if he wasn’t the one who caused Chaerin’s breakdown? He was still an asshole for using you like this.
But then again… what you did to him wasn’t exactly justified either.
“Ugh…” you groaned softly, pressing your fingers to your temple. Everything was making your head spin.
“Good morning to Miss y/n? I hope you’re alright back there.” Professor Min’s voice snapped you out of your thoughts. You blinked, suddenly aware of the classroom and the number of students who had turned around to look at you.
“…what? Did Jake dump her already?”
Your jaw clenched. I can hear you, assholes.
As exam week approached, you prayed to every god you could think of that Jake would at least spare you. And surprisingly he did. He left you alone for the most part. There was no tortures except the occasional insulting text or sarcastic remark, nothing that actually disrupted your study schedule. There were only a few days left before your first exam, and Jake had practically gone MIA. By now, you knew he took his GPA seriously.
Not like you were missing him or anything.
“Why does the syllabus look longer now…? I swear it wasn’t this big before…” you muttered, flipping through your notes that looked like new discovery when you were so damn confident about your preparation.
“Whoa, easy, princess. You’re going to rip the book apart.”
You froze. That voice—You looked up and gasped “wha— It’s you!”
A few heads turned in annoyance, reminding you instantly that you were in the library. Oops. You mouthed a quick sorry before lowering your voice, eyes narrowing at the person who had just taken a seat beside you “Lee fucking Heeseung, what the hell…” you whispered. He covered his mouth, trying to suppress a laugh. “Why do you look like you’ve seen a ghost?”
“Well, that’s because you literally disappeared after that incident!” you whisper yelled, making him sigh. He casually rolled up his sleeves and started taking out his books. “I had stuff to do.”
He shot you a wink, and annoyingly you couldn’t help but find it a little cute. Okay, fine. It was hard to stay mad at him.
“Want me to help you out?” he asked, glancing at your open notebook. “I know this chapter.” Relief washed over you instantly. “Yes, please.”
“Wahhhh, that was so easy!” You stretched, letting out a satisfied yawn. Heeseung nodded “I told you it wasn’t that hard.”
You started packing your bag while he slowly gathered his things as well. Then you paused. “Wait… aren’t you going to study? All you did was explain everything to my slow brain.”
He shrugged casually. “I studied too—in the process.” You nodded, slinging your bag over your shoulder. “Then… see you, I guess. Good luck!” you said, giving him a thumbs up. But before you could walk away, he grabbed your bag strap, stopping you in your tracks “and what do I get for tutoring you?”
You chuckled, already reaching into your pocket, pulling out the same strawberry designed band-aid, you held it out to him. “Here. Restock your supplies.”
Heeseung burst into laughter as he took it from your hand. “Sure thing.”
Jake wasn’t replying to your texts. You stared at the last message you had sent him two days ago still sitting there, untouched. You scoffed. It wasn’t like you were worried or anything. Or maybe… you were. You sighed and started typing again.
You okay?|
ew that sounded way too concerned.
You quickly erased it and tried again.
Is our deal off?|
no...what if he sees that and decides to pull something even weirder during exam week?
You groaned softly, deleting the message once more before turning your phone off entirely. This felt…weird. Just a few days ago Jake’s texts felt like notifications of doom and despair. You hated them. So why did his silence feel worse?
You stared down at your nails. The half chipped nail polish you had been nervously chewing off looked as awful as ever. Should I get a manicure? But… Chaerin wasn’t free. Chisa and Jurin were probably busy too. So what? You could go alone. Why were you waiting for anyone?
Yeah a small reward. Maybe motivation for your exams.
The nail salon wasn’t too far from your dorm. The sharp smell of nail polish and acetone hit you the moment you pushed the glass door open and stepped inside. After explaining the design you wanted, you sank into the padded chair, finally allowing yourself to relax. For once, things felt calm and peaceful. But that peace didn’t last long because the moment you turned your head slightly — your stomach dropped. Fuck. Sadie.
She was sitting right next to you, getting her nails done, laughing at something her nail artist had said. And just as if fate wanted to ruin your day further her eyes landed on you. You cursed under your breath.“H-hi…” you forced out, offering a tight lipped smile. Her response was a scowl and the nastiest glare you had ever received.
Okayyyy. Let’s just pretend that never happen.
You turned your head away, sitting as stiff as possible for the rest of the session, painfully aware of her gaze burning into the side of your face. You were in the middle of getting your cuticles pushed back, trying to ignore everything, when suddenly her figure appeared behind your nail artist. Before you could react she shoved your nail artist, who stumbled forward. The metal tool scraped against your skin in a flash.
“Ouch!” you hissed, flinching as a sharp sting shot through your fingers.
“I’m so sorry! Oh my god, are you okay?” your nail artist immediately stepped back, panicked, turning toward the source of everything that just went down. Saddie shrugged. “Sorry, I didn’t see you.”
What a bitch.
“I-it’s okay,” you managed, even though the skin around your nail was already starting to bleed. So much for a peaceful evening.
Jake stared at his answer for a solid fifteen minutes, eyes wide and watery as he tried to figure out what the hell he had just written. With a frustrated sigh, he deleted the entire paragraph. A tissue was stuffed into one of his nostrils as he struggled to stay sane and not sneeze again. Running a fever while preparing for darn sem finals felt like a survival show.
A soft knock broke his concentration.
He let out an annoyed sound. “Sunghoon, I told you stop bothering me”
The door creaked open slightly and Sunghoon peeked in, his expression unusually concerned. “I swear the dean will forgive you for one bad paper,”
Jake huffed. “I don’t care.”
Sunghoon hesitated for a moment before adding, “Uh… someone’s here for you” and Jake frowned. “Who?”
Instead of answering, Sunghoon pushed the door open wider, revealing you. You were standing there, glancing around the living room while trying to process the caveman level lifestyle these boys were living in. Jake’s eyes widened and he shot up immediately, only for his legs to wobble as pain shot through his joints. You rushed forward instinctively, grabbing his arm just as Sunghoon stepped in to help. The two of you guided him back to the bed.
Sunghoon looked between you both, then shrugged. “I’ll leave you guys to it,” he muttered before walking out.
You finally turned your full attention to Jake.“Damn. You look like you’re dying.”
He chuckled weakly, blowing his nose. “Yeah? You’re not invited to the funeral, by the way. The food’s gonna be great.” You rolled your eyes. Even sick, he is unbearable ugh.
“Sooo…” he leaned back, a lazy, teasing smile forming on his lips. “Did you miss me?”
God, you regretted coming here.
You swallowed. “No?”
“That came out way too fast. That means you did miss me—ouch!” he winced when you kicked his foot. “Have some mercy on a sick man, damn.” You huffed and tossed the plastic bag you were holding onto his lap. Jake blinked, confused, before peeking inside.
“…Oranges?!”
You tried not to smile too proudly at the way his entire demeanor shifted. He had clearly been craving them. Well It’s not like you spent a whole night stalked his old Instagram highlights from 2017 and saw a 13 years old Jake in his post basketball tournament, holding a trophie and a big box of fresh oranges from his hometown in Brisbane.
You cleared your throat. “Uh… consider it payment for the p-popsicle.”
A faint blush crept onto your cheeks. Jake set the bag aside and began peeling one, his eyes never leaving yours “sure”
You couldn’t tell what he was thinking. Even sick, he looked annoyingly good. His flushed face, slightly watery eyes, and glossed lips from constantly licking them.
“Speaking of which…” he suddenly stood up making you instinctively stepped back. “Why did you run away like that...that day?”
“I did not!” you protested, flailing your hands, only for him to catch your arms mid motion. “Right…?” he tilted his head, a grin forming. “are you shy?” He laughed softly, and you immediately cursed yourself for stepping inside the lion's den.“I am not!” you snapped, your voice rising. His grip shifted from your forearms to your wrists, holding you in place as your back bumped against the edge of his study desk.
I need to run. I need to run RIGHT NOW.
Your screamed in your head but your body stayed rooted while jake continued with his snarky remarks. Suddenly the sharp edge of the desk pressed against your injured finger.
“Ow!” you yelped. Jake paused immediately letting your wrist go. “shit are you okay?”
You rubbed the spot, shaking your head. “Y-yeah, I’m fine don’t worry!”
But he had already grabbed your hand. His eyes dropped to the cut, still slightly bleeding even under the bandage.
“Jake, you don’t have to do this—I should go—stop—ouch! slowly asshole!”
Your protests faded as he ignored you completely, carefully applying medicine to the wound. You watched him quietly, his brows furrowed in concentration, his touch surprisingly gentle. And slowly… your chest warmed. Maybe…he wasn’t that bad. You bit your lip, trying to make sense of your thoughts. You would’ve done the same if he showed up hurt at your door, right? But then again, why would he ever come to you? He had plenty of other places to go.
He’d probably run back to Evelyn.
Your body stiffened. Why did that thought bother you? Wasn’t this the whole point from the beginning? There was nothing to feel upset about.
Jake Sim was just living up to his reputation. Your thoughts were cut short when he suddenly shoved a piece of orange into your mouth.
“Stop thinking too much.”
You blinked, chewing slowly. Your finger was now neatly cleaned and re-bandaged. Your gaze drifted back to Jake who had already settled comfortably on his bed, munching on the remaining slices of orange. Stomach doing that weird twists again. You stood up slowly. “It’s late… I should go.”
This was bad.
He didn’t even look up and just hummed in response.
This was so bad.
You turned toward the door. Wouldn’t he say something? Anything?
You paused, waiting. But nothing came.
This was so fucking bad.
“Goodnight, Jake,” you muttered under your breath, hoping he wouldn’t hear it from under his duvet.
“Yeah… this is pretty bad,” Jake muttered, zooming in on the picture of you and Heeseung laughing over scattered notes on the table. He clicked his tongue, though his expression remained unreadable. It wasn’t like he cared anyway, at least, that’s what he told himself. He turned his phone off and rolled onto his side, facing the wall. Whatever.
“I believe this is not the first time you all are giving a test… still, I will do the final courtesy of reminding you that cheating is absolutely prohibited. Anyone caught cheating will be penalised according to Decelis rulebook…”
Professor Min’s voice felt unusually overwhelming today. You checked the clock, then your laptop screen. Is Jake feeling better now? It had been exactly one week since you last spoke. The bandage he had carefully wrapped around your finger had long been replaced by Chaerin, but somehow, the warmth of his fingertips still lingered. You shook your head. Focus. You forced your attention back to the test paper in front of you.
“Are you fucking kidding me? The test just ended and you’re telling me 50% of our grade still depends on this dumbass assignment?!” Sunghoon groaned, shoving his phone in front of Jay, who looked like he was about to pass out. “How the fuck are you so chill about it?” Jungwon leaned over to peek at Jake’s laptop screen, where he had already started gathering materials for the assignment.
“Party at Soobin’s who’s in?” Sunoo chimed in, instantly grabbing everyone’s attention.“Let’s fucking go. I’m so sick of these exams and assignments,” Sunghoon wailed dramatically, only to fall silent when Jake spoke.“Not coming.”
He scoffed. “Yeah, suit yourself.”
“Exam is overrrr, finally!” Chisa sang, doing a little celebratory dance. “Oh my God, guys! I just got an invitation from Soobin to attend his dope party...and....he even said I could bring whoever I want!” Jurin squealed, joining her.
“No.”
The word left both you and Chaerin at the same time. “Every single bad thing happens there,” you muttered, earning an “exactly!” from Chaerin who nodded her head in agreement. Chisa whined. “Oh, come onnn, Chae—you did have fun at that senior party. And Y/n! don’t act like you won’t be cozying up with your boyfriend.”
You flushed instantly. “N-no?! We’re not even dating like that!”
“Yeah… not yet,” Jurin added with a grin.
“Not happening everrr,” you made a fake throwing up sound.
.…Well. You did say that before.
But now, sitting in Jake’s room with blankets bunched around your legs, a bowl of popcorn resting on your lap, and an iPad screen still loading movie details, you wondered if the universe was playing some twisted joke on you. After ghosting you for two weeks, he had suddenly texted. And here you were. “Why the hell are you sitting so far away?” Jake muttered, grabbing your arm and pulling you closer. You yelped. “No—no! I’m fine!”
He gave you a weird look before pressing play. You barely registered what the movie was about. Spaceships and dinosaurs blurred together as your thoughts spiraled uncontrollably. Right, he said he was stressed because of assignments and needed someone to be his popcorn holder. What a hell of an excuse.
You dared to steal a glance at Jake who was at this point completely immersed in the movie, eyes focused, expression calm. Damn he is such a science freak. I mean not like I was complaining anyway.
Actually, you were. You missed the comfort of your bed and jake's touch—No. Stop.
You shook your head violently. What the hell were you even thinking?Jake suddenly paused the movie and turned to you. “You okay?” You nodded quickly. “Uh huh! Completely!” He stared at you for a solid five seconds before sighing. “Okay. I’m bored. Feed me popcorn while I work on my assignment.”
You blinked.
He raised his eyebrows “you got any problem?”
“But what about the movie??”
“I’ve watched it five times.”
You stared at him, dumbfounded “then why the fuck did you even turn it on, idiot?”
“Because I wanted to, dimwit,” he laughed, already opening his laptop and scooting even closer to you. The rest of the night passed in a blur of bickering and chaos. Your phone buzzed nonstop with texts from Chisa and Jurin sending funny pictures of a drunk Chaerin.
You looked down at your fingers. The sticky feeling of caramel and alongside Jake's tongue brushing against them was lingering there. Your toes curled under the blanket. You swallowed hard, staring blankly ahead.
You didn’t want to admit it yet.
“After having an extensive conversation with the principal, we’ve decided to resume our yearly academic gala after four years of discontinuation.”
The vice chancellor’s announcement echoed through the auditorium, immediately followed by gasps, whispers, and rising excitement. “Why did they discontinue it again…?” Chaerin whispered beside you, still half-asleep as it was unusual for students to be summoned this early. “Some seniors got into a fight,” a random girl nearby replied “ and one of them even ended up with a head concussion.”
You made a weird face. Who the hell does that elementary level nonsense?
Anyways, you had greater problems to worry about than this gala which was about to take place months from now on. Not like you were interested to participate anyways. There was like hundreds of unspoken rule about participation by seniors which included having a mandatory 'attractive' date and wearing limited edition shits. So where does the middle class ugly kid goes? Nowhere silly! They stayed in their dorm while the rich kids drowned themselves in expensive alcohol and drugs.
“Need help?”
You flinched at the sudden voice cutting through your thoughts, then relaxed when you saw Heeseung’s familiar smile peeking out from under his hoodie. “Nahhh, I can reach it—see?” you said, stretching your arm to grab the design book you’d been eyeing. He laughed “no, dumbo. I meant…” He stepped closer and lightly tapped your forehead with his index finger. “There’s a lot going on in here.”
You rolled your eyes “Being a second year architecture major is not for the weak.” He chuckled, then crouched slightly to match your height. “Mhm… I don’t think this is about architecture at all, baby. There’s gotta be a mole.”
You shook your head and raised your hand to flick his forehead. “That’s not it—”
But before your fingers could reach him, another hand shot in and grabbed your wrist. Startled, both you and heeseung turned — and there he was.
Jake.
His expression was sharper than usual, a pair of bold black framed glasses rested on his nose, his uncombed hair falling messily over his forehead.
“You really should stop getting into people’s business,” he said coldly looking into Heeseung's eyes who let out a quiet sigh. “Yeah, my bad. Didn’t realise my boyfriend was into my girlfriend.”
Your tried your best to stay calm as Jake’s grip on your wrist tightened. “Fuck off,” he snapped.
Heeseung simply winked at you, mouthing 'got the mole', before slinging his bag over his shoulder and walking away. The moment he disappeared, you yanked your hand free and rubbed your wrist. “Stop showing up like that.”
Jake crossed his arms, scoffing. “Don’t you think you’re getting a little too comfortable with our deal?” You frowned. “It’s still on. What the hell did I even do wrong?”
He glanced around briefly, checking for anyone nearby, then leaned in slightly. “Getting all cozy with that guy is enough to ruin everything. Evelyn wouldn't even take me seriously at this rate.”
You ignored him, flipping open the book in your hands. “I think you just want to annoy me. This whole ‘making Evelyn jealous’ thing feels like an excuse. Why would a guy with a disgusting reputation like yours even try this hard for someone? You could literally just sleep with anyone and get whoever you want—”
You stopped abruptly, realising how harsh that sounded.
Slowly, you looked up at him. Jake’s expression remained stoic but his grip on the strap of his bag had tightened.
“And what makes you think I’m not fucking other girls while pretending to be in this ‘thing’ with you?” he asked flatly.
A lump formed in your throat and you tried to step closer instinctively. “I’m sorry I didn’t mean it like tha—”
“You know what your problem is?” he cut in, his voice sharp. “Girls like you think you’re superior than others just because you don’t go out, don’t have fun, don’t have any social life outside your stupid syllabus and assignments. When in reality, nobody ever actually chooses you.”
Something inside you cracked. Before you could respond, he stormed past you, his shoulder colliding with yours hard enough to push you back against the bookshelf.
Empty vessels make the loudest noise. Yes that was it. Of course Jake had no right to feel anything when he himself had built that image around him. But who were you even trying to convince? You weren’t supposed to feel like shit. And yet, you felt the worst.
“I can’t find my hoop earrings, what the hell…” Chaerin muttered, rummaging through your drawer and scattering everything in the process which you barely paid attention to. You really weren’t in the fucking mood.
Should I apologise? You bit your nails. But I was trying to...he didn’t even give me a chance.Your head was a mess, thoughts clashing into each other until they turned into an ugly emotion you couldn’t even name anymore.
“You’ve been sighing for the past half an hour. Just spit it out already,” Chaerin said absentmindedly, still searching for her jewellery. You rolled onto your bed, facing her. “I think I messed up.”
“Again???”
The silence that followed felt heavy. Slowly, Chaerin stopped moving.“What’s wrong?”
“I messed up.”
“No shit. About what?” She scooted closer. You bit your lips, trying to organise your thoughts before they spilled out in a word vomit. “Y/n, what are you thinking…” she nudged you lightly. That was enough to make you sit up abruptly, words tumbling out before you could manage them. “I think I have some…ehhh for Jake and I kind of pissed him off and he misunderstood me and—”
“Hold on.” Chaerin grabbed your shoulders. “You have what for Jake?”
You stared at her blankly. “ehhh”
“I swear I’m going to slap the shit out of you if you don’t get to the point,” she shook you violently and you gave up, instantly collapsing back onto the bed and pulling the duvet over your head. “Don’f hate mhme, Chaerin… I—I don’t know hoow it happenfed…”
She sighed, shaking her head, then peeked under the covers, only to find your face wet with tears and snots. “ew, gross” she muttered, covering you again. The room fell silent except for your quiet sobs. After a moment, you felt her hand gently resting on your head. “hey...It’s okay to like someone you know. And why are you crying, idiot? Get up,” she let out a small laugh. You slowly lowered the duvet, eyes red, nose sniffly as you grabbed a tissue “I hurt him, Chae…”
She shrugged. “Apologise. Problem solved.” You blowed your nose out, reaching for another tissue. “I don’t think he’s going to talk to me anymore…” Chaerin paused, thinking “then you accept it and move on. You can’t stay stuck like this forever, baby.”
Your chest tightened. Fresh tears welled up again, as you laid back down.
“I didn’t mean it like that… I didn’t…”
She laid down beside you, wrapping her arms around your torso. “If he feels the same, he’ll accept your apology.”
“you saying?”
“mmh hmm”
# 5 look back
The next time you saw Jake, almost after one week, he was in the library working on his assignments, attention full focused and absorbed in his laptop. You hesitated at the entrance. Even after Chaerin’s reassurance, your courage wavered. Well at this point it's now or never.
You walked in, your Kuromi keychain swinging with each step, and sat down in the empty chair beside him. You knew he felt your presence right away because the moment you turned towards him, he subtly shifted away. Oh. So that’s how it was. Fine, you weren’t backing out either. “Okay, listen… I’ll keep it short,” you whispered, leaning in just enough that your voice brushed against his ear. You could smell his familiar woody scent mixed with something musky.
“I’m sorr—”
Jake stood up. The chair scraped loudly against the floor, drawing a few annoyed glances from nearby students. Without saying a word, he packed his laptop and bag and started walking away. “Jake, wait—” You stood up to follow, but before you could take another step, three figures blocked your path.
Not now oh my god.
“Hi Y/n!” one of them chirped with a smile that didn’t quite reach their eyes. “Mind having a little talk?”
Your legs forgot their purpose as your pupils darted between the familiar faces standing in front of you. Yunjin casually threw an arm around your shoulder, steering you away from the library entrance, with Daniella and Ahyeon following close behind. “So… I heard you designed last year’s college carnival banner?” Ahyeon asked, twirling a strand of her perfectly curled hair.
“I—uh… yeah…” you stammered. “Great!” Daniella clapped excitedly, but immediately stopped when Yunjin shot her a sharp glare. The poor girl cleared her throat and turned to you with an stiff smile. “We’re having a small introduction party for our new cheerleading recruits. Mind designing a banner for us?” Your brain scrambled, trying to calculate what would happen if you refused, but it came up blank.
“Uh… sure. When do you need it?” you asked hesitantly.
“By tomorrow!” Daniella replied, a little too enthusiastically.
You sighed internally. Tomorrow meant Professor Min’s mandatory lecture, so the banner had to be done today. “But I don’t have any materials right now–” Before you could finish, Ahyeon and Yunjin grabbed your arms from either side. “Don’t worry,” Ahyeon chimed. “We already got permission from the art department to use their supplies!”
You didn’t get a chance to decline as the three of them dragged you across Decelis campus toward the art department, away from the library. Usually, the art students were extremely protective of their materials, so you were surprised and even relieved to find the main room was completely empty.
Daniella gave a squeeze on your shoulder. “We’ll wait for you in the library!” And just like that, the three of them disappeared, leaving you alone.
You began gathering supplies, trying to sketch out a rough design in your head. But actually nothing formed since your mind wasn’t empty at all — it was overflowing with jake jake jake and JAKE. Was he really never going to talk to you again? Well if that was it, then fine. It wasn’t like you were going to die if you did not see him.
But it totally felt like you would.
The memory of him ignoring you replayed over and over again, tightening something painful in your chest. You sighed. I need a break. Maybe working on the banner would distract you.
You stood up, suddenly realising you hadn’t asked for any details about the party. You needed them for the design. So you walked toward the door and stopped discovering it closed.
A frown formed on your face. Was it like this when I came in?
You grabbed the handle and pulled. It didn’t budge at all. A sharp wave of panic surged through you and the markers slipped from your hands, clattering loudly onto the floor.
“What the fuck…”You tugged at the handle again. Nothing.
You banged on the door.
“Guys??”
No response came as you knocked harder. “Hello?! Anyone here?!” Silence welcomed you again and this time you slammed your body against the heavy iron door. Again and again, but it didn’t move. Your energy drained quickly, knees weakening, your throat burned from shouting. And after few tries of banging again and calming yourself down, tears slowly welled up and spilled down your cheeks, you bit your lip.
A full circle moment, huh?
The memory hit you like a slap, locking Jake in the sports room just a month ago. Was this karma?
You wiped your tears roughly with the back of your hand, shaking your head. No. You weren’t giving up.
You stepped back, inhaled deeply, and shouted again, louder this time.
“Somebody help me! The door is locked from outside!”
“Okay, so hypothetically, what would you do if I told you Decelis has a ghost?”
Heeseung barely registered a word Beomgyu was saying whose mouth was stuffed with banana chips, crumbs flying everywhere as he talked. Heeseung sighed and closed the book he was reading, then snatched the packet from Beomgyu’s hand. “I mean, that explains why the art department students are always in a bad mood…” Beomgyu continued, leaning closer. “I once stole a roll of art paper—you should’ve seen the way one of them threatened to slit my throat with a craft knife.”
Heeseung finished the remaining chips and tossed the empty packet at Beomgyu’s head “Idiot why would you steal their stuff in the first place? Art paper is expensive.”
Beomgyu rolled his eyes “so??? I heard someone comitted over an argument about art supplies. That’s probably why they hold grudges like that…”
Heeseung checked his watch. Almost 6:30 pm.
He really needed to leave before Beomgyu’s nonsense drained whatever brain cells he had left. “Okay, whatever. Go buy me a drink,” he shoved his shoulder. Beomgyu made a horrified face. “Are you crazy??? The vending machine is literally beside the art department, and it’s the hour of doom. The sun has already set, and look! There are no birds flying back home, and I—”
Heeseung stood up. No this idiot won't stop. “Fine. Suit yourself. I’m going alone.”
“Fuck, what’s wrong with this…” he muttered under his breath when the vending machine failed to process his coins for the second time. “This is it. If it doesn’t work now, I’m getting the hell outta here,” he whispered to himself, trying again for the third time. While waiting, he glanced around, quietly laughing at Beomgyu’s stupidity. With a mechanical clunk, the drink finally dropped into the slot. He relaxed, bending down to pick it up and he paused.
A faint knock came out from the closed art department room. Heeseung froze for a second, a chill creeping up his spine. What the fuck. His eyes scanned around the large iron door. Then he shook his head.
This was Beomgyu’s nonsense getting into his head.
He grabbed his drink and turned to leave. Another knock came louder this time followed by sniffles. He stopped mid step. His grip tightened around the can as he slowly turned back. Something wasn’t right. He walked toward the door in long strides, stopping right in front of it. It was locked from the outside. He cleared his throat. “Is anyone inside?”
The sniffles stopped for a moment, silence filled the space.
Had he imagined it?
And then a voice called out for help. Heeseung didn’t hesitate this time. He quickly unlocked the door and pulled it open. “Y/N?? What are you—” You didn’t let him finish. The moment the door opened, you rushed forward and threw yourself into his arms, clinging to him tightly as your sobs broke out uncontrollably.
Jake stared hard at the pink bouquet, filled with roses, lilies, and a few other flowers he didn’t even know the names of. A frustrated exhale left his mouth as he let out a groan he had been suppressing for a long time. He had bought them hours ago, some of the petals had already started to wither. Now, sitting on the bleachers of the campus, he couldn’t understand what had possessed him to do so.
Jake is plain, he wasn’t a gentleman. Until now, his charm had worked on almost everyone, whether he wanted it to or not. There had never been a reason for him to buy flowers or take someone out on a proper date. At most, he’d share pirated movies with them or let them sit beside him while he played games on his computer. But this? Completely out of his syllabus. So what now? He had bought them so he should have given them to the person he wanted to — but who had he really bought them for?
Fuck. Okay he knows it's for you alright? And he also knows roses and lilies are your favourite flower from that particular shop you always gushed about when their catalogue popped up in your for you page. He knows it, he knows what he's doing but his mind is slowly failing to generate excuses why he would do this.
“shit,” he muttered under his breath, pushing himself up to his feet. He pulled out his phone, which he hadn’t checked since morning. He was scared, scared that he’d see your name in his notifications and run straight to you. His ego was far too fragile for that. And yet, the moment his phone connected to the campus wi fi, the first notification that appeared was from you.
Six hours ago.
I’m in the art department.
let me know when you’re free, I want to talk to you.
Please.
His legs moved before his eyes could fully read the message. In seconds, he found himself sprinting towards the art department, on forth floor.
“Hey, shh… what happened?” Heeseung cupped your face gently, his thumb wiping away the tears that wouldn’t stop falling. “I was scared… m-my phone died, and I—I couldn’t reach anyone,” you choked out between sobs, clutching his shirt tightly, as if letting go would make some unknown creature drag you inside the room again. He didn’t ask for details, didn’t need them. All he cared about was calming you down. So he let you hold onto him, let you cry until your breathing steadied, until the panic slowly drained out of your body.
Moments ago, the room had felt like a prison with sealed windows, locked doors, suffocating silence. You had truly thought you might be trapped there forever.
And then through your blurred vision, you noticed a figure standing a few feet away. Panting and watching. Your breath hitched.
Jake.
His glasses were slightly crooked, his chest rising and falling rapidly from the run. All sweaty from skipping the elevator and taking stairs to reach to you fast.
The moment you recognized him, a sharp ringing filled your ears. You let go of Heeseung almost instantly and stepped toward him. “Jake you came...”
Suddenly he stepped back. A hollow, almost bitter laugh escaped him. “Is this why you called me here? To watch your cliché romance?”
Your stomach dropped. What? No no no no no he's getting it all wrong.
“No Jake listen–” You reached out for him, but before your fingers could touch him, he smacked your hand away. “Don’t.”
Behind you, you felt Heeseung step closer. His voice cut through the tension, uncharacteristically serious as the weight of the situation multiplied rapidly “can you stop being a dick for once?”
Jake’s eyes flickered, irritation flashing across his face. “And why should I take advice from a weirdo like you?”
Heeseung’s jaw tightened and he grabbed your arm, gently pulling you aside, placing himself between you and Jake. “Listen, deepshit—if you actually used that thing on your eyes of yours, you’d see the state she’s in—”
"I don't need to" Jake let out a shaky breathe. He refused to look at your way, cuz he knew if he did he would say something which would harder for him to take back later.
“Y/n…” he began,
“our deal is off.” he finished with a stone expression.
“You can fuck around him as much as you want now,” he continued, taking a deep breathe “but I really wish we had met in a different way.”
Before you could respond to him, he turned and and started walking away without looking back.
“Jake wait!” you called out, your voice breaking as you ran after him, ignoring Heeseung’s hand reaching out to stop you.
Down the stairs, through the empty corridor you called out his name but he was simply gone. Disappointed when you walked back your steps slowed as your eyes fell on a nearby trash can, where a bouquet of lilies and roses wrapped in pink was dumped.
Discarded like it meant nothing. Your chest tightened as you stared at it, the pieces falling into place far too late.
synopsis: y/n has been in love with her older brother, jay’s, best friend since she was 10. niki on the other hand is an asshole who barely acknowledges her.
troupe: brothers best friend - enemies to lovers kinda type shit.
an: genuinely didn’t expect people to actually read part 1 frl but im so happy people liked it because i had sm fun writing it. lmk how you guys feel abt this one too. way more y/nki scenes this chapter and y/n makes a new friend thankfully. 🙌🙌
this chapter got slightly slightly spicy at the end don’t expect much its basically nothing but just a warning.‼️
part 1 part 2
⏔⏔⏔ ꒰ ᧔ෆ᧓ ꒱ ⏔⏔⏔ ⏔⏔⏔ ꒰ ᧔ෆ᧓ ꒱ ⏔⏔⏔ ⏔⏔⏔ ꒰ ᧔ෆ᧓
i was waiting patiently for the last class of the day to end, completely zoned out wishing to be anywhere but here.
keeho and yunjin are sitting to my left a few tables away and all i could think about was how weird this was. i used to look forward to this class, it being the only class the three of us shared.
now its something i’ve been dreading all day. i can hear their faint whispers and giggles among the noise of our other classmates. it hurts so bad to see them so unaffected while im suffering and struggling to hold back my tears.
i feel someones eyes on my, before whoever that is asks if im ok and i burst out into tears in-front of the whole class, i quickly raise my hand and ask to go to the bathroom.
once i close the classroom door behind me i finally let the tears fall as i walk outside and towards the back wall of the soccer field to get some air, silently hoping that nobody else would be there to witness my breakdown. once i get there i sit down against the wall, but obviously luck was not on my side.
“can you like go cry somewhere else. you’re gonna get me caught.”
i look up to see riki standing against the wall a few feet away from me, cigarette in one hand and phone in the other. he had obviously been skipping class.
of course its him.
i roll my eyes, my previous sad thoughts about losing my friends gone, and replaced with frustration. this man has the audacity to tell me where im allowed to cry, no regard for why im crying in the first place or if im okay. i shouldn’t expect anything more from him, he had made it clear im nothing in his eyes.
“you can leave nobody is forcing you to stay here.”
“i was here first, this is my spot. i dont care what you are crying about or how bad your day was so dont expect that sitting and crying in-front of me is going to make me suddenly give a fuck about you. i dont care, so you can just give up now and leave.”
this man seriously thinks his shit doesn’t stink.
“im not here because i want you to care about me i know you would never go that low.” i repeat his words that i overheard the other night. a look of guilt crosses his face but its gone before i can comprehend it. he says nothing but takes a puff of his cigarette and looks away as he exhales.
i check my phone and see that there are about 10 minutes left of the school day. i’ll just walk around the school for the remaining time, i guess its better than being here with riki. “but fine since you think me being within 10 feet of you means i must be in love with you, i’ll go. because obviously the world revolves around you.” i say as i get up from my spot against the wall and walk back toward the school entrance.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
i sit down for the first class of the day and the interaction with riki from yesterday still plays in my mind.
how egotistical can a person be? he genuinely has no regard for anyone but himself. at least these few interactions have been more than enough ammunition to get over my crush on him. its better this way i can now see that we were never-
“hey are you okay? i saw you in english class yesterday you looked pretty rough.” an Australian accent pulls me away from my inner rant.
its jake, one of riki and jay’s friends. he had always seemed like the nicest and most outgoing of the group. he is friends with most of the school and nobody ever says a bad word about him. he sits down in the seat next to me.
“damn did i really look that bad.” i say with a soft laugh hoping he would drop the topic of yesterday.
he chuckles “nah nah nah, sorry what i mean is you just looked kinda sad. are you okay?” he says genuinely, like he actually cared.
i freeze. its been so long since someone had cared enough to notice that i was struggling let alone ask if i was okay.
“oh yea im just going through it a bit right now, i don’t really have any friends left i guess.” i say with a smile, not wanting to seem as pathetic as i feel.
when i met his eyes i expected to see pity, him who had probably hundreds of friends listening to someone tell him they have no friends at all. instead he didn’t look like he pitied me at all more like he was trying to figure how how to make me feel better.
“its okay though im sure it will work out somehow.” i add not wanting to make him feel obligated to be my therapist.
“nah its not okay that really sucks. but look we can hang out, i can be your friend.” he says kindly.
“jake that’s really nice i appreciate it a lot actually, but don’t worry you don’t have to feel bad. its not your problem.”
“no seriously y/n i wanna be your friend. lets go get coffee after school today i’ll drive. ill even pay. even if you don’t enjoy the hangout at least you get free coffee.”
i debate it for a second before deciding that there was no possible way that i could say no to this man. “ ok i mean if theres free coffee involved im there.” i joke
he laughs “okay great meet me in the parking lot after school.”
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
the day drags, but the excitement for my hangout with jake stays on my mind. he seems like a really fun person and i am in need of new friends. im so sick of being alone. i really hope we can be good friends.
i reach the parking lot and search the crowd for jake, before i spot him i see keeho and yunjin against keeho’s car. her hands are on his shoulder and his are around her waist. they are laughing about something and i cant help but notice how happy the both look. i start to wonder how it would’ve been if i had still been friends with them. would they still be the way they are now, or would i have been there to interrupt them. maybe its best that we aren’t friends anymore they seem way happier now.
before i can spiral any more riki’s voice once again interrupts me from behind.
“why are you always in my way i swear.” his voice is annoyed like i personally offended him.
as im about to reply i notice jake from the corner of my eye. without replying to riki i walk towards jake. once i come to a stop in-front of jake i notice riki still behind me. jake greets me as riki comes from behind me and daps jake up.
“hey jake.”
“what are you doing here?are you following me?” riki says in a mocking tone towards me.
“nah dude we’re grabbing coffee, you wish she was following you.” jake basically takes the words out of my mouth. i let out a loud laugh.
“relax ponytail its not that funny.” he says with a laugh tugging on my ponytail from the ends of my hair, tilting my head backwards.
i push on his arm to get his hand off my hair and turn towards him. “ugh why are you still here didn’t you hear jake? we’re grabbing coffee so you can leave, stop annoying us.”
“i don’t know y/n its kinda fun to annoy you.” he bends down slightly with a smile so we can make eye contact, we’re still not at eye level so i still have to look up to meet his eyes but just not as much as usual.
“okay lovebirds, as cute as this is i think its time we leave. im kinda embarrassed third wheeling over here.” jake cuts in with a huge smile on his face.
is he for real right now?
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
we arrive at a cute coffee shop about 10 minutes away from the school. and place our order then we go sit at a table in the far corner of the shop. jake mentions that he lives nearby.
“okay so what really happened, why were you looking so sad yesterday?” he mentions after our debate on whether mint chocolate chip ice cream is good or not (it is).
i hesitate to answer. he notices. “ i mean you don’t have to tell me of course no pressure but i mean im here for you if you need to vent. its what good friends are here for, everyone deserves someone they can talk to about anything. and i hope you will let me be that for you.”
“thanks jake thats like the nicest thing ever i appreciate it and i mean if you ever need someone to talk to im good at listening.” i smile for a second then continue. “but basically i had a crush on this guy for the longest time and i guess i talked about him a lot. keeho and yunjin were my best friends so they had to listen to me talk about him all the time. towards the end of our friendship i noticed small things like them sneaking glances at each other or them changing the topic of conversation when i arrive and then one day i found out that they got together and when i asked them about it the told me i was self centred and only think about myself they told me that i talked about my crush too much and i should just get over it.”
“shit thats a lot.” jake looks like hes still busy comprehending all the information.
“yea sorry i know, i didn’t mean to vent i just had to say it all.” i add hoping he doesn’t think i talk too much.
“oh no you’re good i mean its a lot for you. i mean your two closest friends, like that sucks y/n.” he says genuinely. “do you think you would go back to being friends with them if they wanted to?”
“honestly i dont know i miss them so much, i always preferred having two close friends over a huge group of people, but now i kinda with i had branched out more. i really have nobody without them.”
“i get that i think quality its better than quantity, even though i have a lot of friends im really grateful for my close friend group that feels like family. “ he smiles fondly at the mention of his friends. “and don’t worry y/n you have me now don’t even think for a second that you are alone.”
ok i might start crying he’s literally the best person to exist.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
after about 3 hours of yapping at the coffee shop we decided to head out and jake drove me home.
as i enter the house i see the usually occupied lounge empty. i take the opportunity, grab some snacks watch a movie.
about half way through the movie the door opens and in walks in my brother and of course riki. i hear jay say something about going to take a shower than riki walks up to the couch and throws himself down next to me.
“how was your date with jake.”
“ugh grow up riki a boy and a girl can go out together as friends.” i roll my eyes.
“you you’re telling me you dont have a crush on jake.” he says like the answer is obviously that i do.
“no! i literally dont.”
he doesn’t say anything.
after a few seconds of silence i return back to the movie when riki changes positions so that for some reason his head is rested on my bare legs as he lays on the couch.
i freeze in shock suddenly regretting wearing shorts.
what the heck.
“what the heck are you doing.” i say hoping my voice doesn’t give away how nervous i am.
“what, nobody told you to sit where im supposed to be sleeping.” he looks up at me from my lap as if daring me to argue with him. when i say nothing he turns, getting comfortable with the back of his head now against my tummy.
i can feel his breath against my thighs.
i try my very best to keep my breathing steady and my legs still as to not give away how much he is affecting me right now.
when did it get so hot in here.
“am i making you nervous.” his voice is deeper than usual as he trails a finger on my leg just in-front of his face.
the soft touch tickling my legs.
“no..” i say trying to sound firm but it sounds more like a question.
then i feel it.
his mouth, against my legs.
whatthefuck whatthefuck whatthefuck
“still not?” he questions before resuming his tiny licks and kisses to my legs. its slow and deliberate. he’s taking his time as if he’s enjoying this just as much as i am.
doubtful
i stay silent. if i speak now im not sure what is going to come out of my mouth.
he continues slowly moving higher and higher as if testing how far i’ll allow him to go. his head lifts when he runs out of space to move up. he turns his body so he is now facing my thighs.
his mouth once again connects with my thighs, higher this time.
shit
“riki” i say softly.
he doesn’t stop just mumbles a quick “hmm”
after a second i opened my mouth again “you have to stop.” with that i move his head and get up.
once i turn around to pick up my phone off the arm of the couch i see a boyish smile on his face.
“look how red your face is, i barely even touched you.” he laughs.
oh!
i don’t even know what to say im so flustered so i just rush into my room. and shut the door.
synopsis: after finally gathering the courage to confess to your long-time crush, you ask one of his friends for his number to message him. what happens when the number is misleading and causes you to message a random person?
smau au
pairing: lee heeseung x reader
cw: some nsfw themes, crackfic, inappropriate jokes, heeseung is lowkey a dick in this
synopsis: after catching her boyfriend cheating on her with her best friend at the concert the three of them had been attending, y/n has an unexpected encounter with one of the members of the group she had been there to see.
troupe: strangers to lovers , celeb x fan
an: guys i wrote this hella quickly so apologies for any mistakes‼️
────୨ৎ──── ────୨ৎ────
it was cold outside the venue. not that the temperature bothered me much until i exited the stadium, suddenly i regretted wearing fishnets instead of actual tights that would at least provide my some form of warmth under my skirt.
tonight was supposed to be a good night. i had been looking forward to this for months. my boyfriend had surprised me with tickets to the enhypen concert for my birthday him even being so thoughtful as to get an extra ticket for my best friend as well.
the concert was good and i had a good time until the intermission. i needed the bathroom so i left my boyfriend and best friend alone together. big mistake. when i returned from the bathroom however, they were nowhere to be seen.
i pulled out my phone to text them expecting that they must have just gone to buy some more snacks. when i receive no response i leave the area where our seats are and walk towards the far exit that leads to the snack stands.
as i turn the corner i see them.
they’re kissing.
they break away for a second and she looks up at him. they both have wide smiles on their faces. he has never once looked at me the was he is looking at her in this moment.
i take a step back in shock. they haven’t seen me yet. i don’t want them to. i silently turn around and go back to our seats. at this point the stadium is slightly more crowded as the intermission comes to an end and everyone comes back to their seats. as the lights go out and enhypen enter the stage once again they still aren’t back.
the now dark lighting of the stadium does well to hide my eyes that have been tearing up. when the two return i don’t fully register what they said, my boyfriend making up some excuse as to where they went. i nod and stay silent.
i feel my boyfriend turn towards my friend and whisper something to her.
i feel sick
the concert goes by in a blink and before i know it we are leaving the venue. she was suddenly wearing his jacket, i hadn’t even bothered to pretend to care what excuse they made up as to why he gave her his jacket and not me.
had they always been this obvious? had i always been this blind?
“you know you can at least act like you appreciate this.”
my boyfriends annoyed voice brings me away from my thoughts.
he’s upset now?
i look up at him with a straight face genuinely not knowing what to say to him.
“you know hes not wrong y/n. do you know how much he spent on these tickets? you haven’t even said a word to him since the whole second half of the concert. honestly thats really ungrateful of you.”
why is she suddenly acting so high and mighty? last time i checked she was kissing my boyfriend. at this point im struggling to keep my tears back
“you know what maybe im just not grateful that my boyfriend is cheating on me with my best friend.”
my reply makes them both freeze.
he was the first one to open his mouth “what y/n that crazy i-”
“i actually don’t care what you have to say i saw you guys with my own eyes. you can both go fuck yourselves. i hope you guys are happy.”
with that i walk away from them.
shit
im all alone now, how the fuck do i get home.
with tears now streaming down my face i go around to the back of the stadium close to one of the back exits. i just need to get away from the crowd its all too much. as i pass the door, it opens and knocks me onto the floor.
what the fuck? who opens a door that aggressively.
“shit im so sorry” i hear a man with an Australian accent say.
my eyes are closed as i bring my hand to my head and to sooth the place the door had hit me.
the Australian man helps me to my feet and once i open my eyes they widen in shock.
its fucking jake.
no ways. what is the chance. anyone could have opened that door it just had to be him.
any other time i would have been happy to be hit by a door because of sim jake. but after the night i’ve had? my makeup is probably a mess and my face is still wet and streaked because of my tears.
“are you alright?” he sounds genuinely concerned. weather he’s concerned for my wellbeing or at the possibility of this turning into a scandal i not sure of.
“yeah, im fine, sorry.” i say slowly
why did i just apologise?
“are you sure? shit did i make you cry” he says now panicking as he inspects my face. .
“yea im fine i promise i’ve just had a really bad night. totally not your fault.” suddenly the night doesn’t seem so bad. not while im literally talking to sim jaehyun.
ok i have to be calm i cant freak him out.
“whats wrong? were you at the concert?”
“yea i was, the concert was great by the way. you all performed so well.”
“ahh thanks performing is honestly the best part of this job.” he says with a smile. he looks like he really means what he says. “if you enjoyed the concert, why was your night so bad? if you don’t mind me asking you.”
“oh… its a long story i dont wanna bore you. im sure you are tired after your performance.” i say not wanting him to feel like he has to sit and listen to my unfortunate love life.
“im not bored” he says while making eye contact.
shit im about to drop to my knees he is so hot.
after a few seconds i open my mouth again “i was here with my boyfriend and best friend...” his face falls slightly at the mention of my now ex-boyfriend i guess but maybe thats just my imagination. “but i caught the two of them kissing during the intermission. after the concert we had a fight because of that and now i don’t have a way to get home.”
his face changed into a look of shock but before he can reply his phone buzzes from his pocket. he pulls it out with a quick apology as he reads the message.
“shit i gotta go the bus thats takes us back to the hotel is ready. um… here” he diggs in his pocket and fishes out a $100 bill and offers it to me.
ok what the fuck did he just have $100 in his pocket??
“oh! no..sorry i didn’t tell you that so you would help me i was just venting. seriously i’ll figure it out don’t worry about it. thank you so much though i appreciate it anyways.” i rush out not wanting him to think i was looking for charity.
“no seriously take it this probably wont even cover an uber, the prices are insane after a concert not to mention the traffic. seriously take it or im just gonna leave it on the floor for you. its nothing i want to help you it will make me feel better.” he insists.
hesitantly i take it from him. still feeling slightly embarrassed for taking $100 from basically a complete stranger, a celebrity none the less. in addition to that he takes off his hoodie and hands it to me.
i look at him in shock. that hoodie is probably worth more than i make in a month.
“what no i cant take all this. seriously this is too much!” i state firmly.
“its cold you’re already shivering and the uber pick up point is still quite a distance from here. i wont be able to forgive myself for making you walk in this wind with no jacket.” he walks up to me and wraps his hoodie around my shoulders.
noticing my hesitation, he continues “look in return you could give me your instagram maybe? unless you don’t want to, no pressure of course.” his voice sounds sincere and maybe even slightly nervous.
what?
did i just hear that right? i must be hallucinating.
“you seem really cool and i would like to keep in touch, you can tell me more about that shitty boyfriend of yours and i can help you plot revenge.” he says jokingly
for the first time that night i let out a laugh.
i reach into my shoulder bag to retrieve my phone and pull up my instagram account showing him the username. he types it in on his phone.
“there, i followed you, send me a follow request and ill accept it, thats my private account. text me when you get home safe yeah?”
im still in shock “yeah, okay i will. thank you so much for your help and for making sure my night was not a total shit show.” i say with a small smile.
he returns the smile with an even bigger one of his own. “okay i gotta go my members are waiting, but make sure to text me okay?”
i nod as he retreats back toward the stadium and enters the door he came out of.
synopsis: y/n has been in love with her older brother, jay’s, best friend since she was 10. niki on the other hand is an asshole who barely acknowledges her.
troupe: brothers best friend - enemies to lovers kinda type shit.
an: ok chat this is deadass the first thing ive ever written so be nice pls🙏🙏 apologies if this is kinda all over the place. constructive criticism is hella appreciated to help me improve.
part 1 part 2
⏔⏔⏔ ꒰ ᧔ෆ᧓ ꒱ ⏔⏔⏔ ⏔⏔⏔ ꒰ ᧔ෆ᧓ ꒱ ⏔⏔⏔ ⏔⏔⏔ ꒰ ᧔ෆ᧓
it was late at night when i dragged myself into my house. as the door closes i turn around and i am met with my brother sitting on the couch doing absolutely nothing.
“what the fuck jay”
he looks at me apologetically as i walk towards him and fully enter the lounge where he is seated.
“y/n look im sorry, i really was coming to fetch you this time i just had no idea how late it was”
i scoff at his useless excuse “and you just happened to not get any of my calls or texts? seriously jay i hate walking home alone especially when its dark outside”
as i finish my sentence niki walks in. suddenly im hyper aware about the fact that i haven’t changed out of my work uniform and im pretty sure my hair looks a mess after not paying it much attention since i left the house this morning. he doesn’t say anything, just sits down on the couch next to jay and pulls out his phone.
ouch
not even a hello? does he even see me standing here?
jay brings my attention back to him “look its not my fault you haven’t got your license yet”
“fine, whatever next time just let me know if you cant pick me up” i say quickly and retreat back to my room not wanting to embarrass myself further arguing about something so small in-front of niki.
i have had a crush on him for a long time, ever since jay brought him home from school one day, my 10 year old self had never seen someone so good looking. he had always been cute, that along with the fact that he was a year older than me was a recipe for disaster.
now that he is a senior and im a junior my feelings for have calmed down - not gone away, rather pushed down not allowing my brain to even explore the possibility of romance between the two of us.
niki along with his whole friend group were unsurprisingly well known around our school, although niki by far the most sought after.
therefore its no surprise he barely acknowledges me even though he spends more time at my house than at his own. i can barely look at him without feeling intimidated and thats how it has always been.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
the day had been dragging with still 2 classes left of the day, and on top of that i had my part time job after school. the only thing getting me through the day was knowing i get to go sleep at the end of the day.
while i was fantasising about my bed my thoughts are interrupted.
“genuinely what are you thinking that hard about” keeho says sitting down along with yunjin.
i roll my eyes at his loud voice “i was just thinking of how good its been to not have heard your voice all day” i tease. yunjin laughs as keeho pulls a funny face.
keeho and yunjin are my best friends. i met keeho in elementary school and he saw me through the early stages of my crush on niki. later on at the start of highschool i met yunjin and we immediately clicked. eventually i introduced the two and we have been inseparable since.
“you guys wanna come to my house after school today? my parents are gone for the night and im kinda scared alone.” yunjin asks with a smile
keehos face lights up as he is always down to spend time with people. “ugh yes its been so long since we’ve hung out at your house, bro im definitely there.”
“sorry guys i have a shift tonight and i end late so its best if i just go home” i reply sad to have to turn them down but im sure they understand “you guys have a good time though”
i expect to see slight disappointment from them, instead they meet each others eyes for a split second in a sideways glance. before i get to say anything about it the bell rings for our next class.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
my shift at the coffee shop is surprisingly quiet and goes by fairly quick. its around 10 minutes before the end of my shift and niki comes in.
shit
its just the two of us in the front of the shop with my coworker in the back room doing who knows what.
ok be calm just act like he is any other customer
he walks up to the counter and before i can properly give him the standard greeting he interrupts me. “can i just get a strawberry matcha”
his tone wasn’t necessarily rude, it was more dismissive like he couldn’t care less about anything that comes out of my mouth.
it made me feel like shit.
i silently rung up his order and gave him his total. once he paid, i got to making his matcha as fast as i could, i could not wait for him to leave.
i felt embarrassed?
i didn’t do anything to embarrass myself, but something about him just made me feel so small, like i was interrupting him for doing what he is literally paying me to do.
once i was done making his drink i said a quick prayer and turned around to give him his drink hoping he wouldn’t notice that my hands were shaking.
“uhm, niki?”
he looked up from his phone and walked toward me i made the mistake of looking at his eyes surprised to see he was already looking at mine. he took the match and straw with one hand and without breaking eye contact he said monotonously.
“its riki”
right.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
its been 2 weeks since the day riki came into the coffee shop and while i tried to keep that whole interaction out of my mind there wasn’t much else going on in my life anyway. keeho and yunjin have been acting weird since that day too.
i don’t know what i missed out on but they have both been seriously distant since that day i wasn’t able to make it to yunjins house.
im mindlessly putting my books in my locker as the school day had just ended when i see them.
keeho and yunjin linked arms walking across the hallway like they are about to get married.
okay what is going on?
i catch up to them once they had exited the building.
“hey, guys what is going on, since when are you guys a thing?” i say with a half smile half confused look on my face.
yunjin turns to me “look y/n, we didn’t want to make it a big deal.”
keeho opens his mouth next “yunjin and i are together we have been for a while now.”
“what? how long? cant believe you guys didn’t tell me”i say half joking.
“a month y/n”
i freeze.
they’ve been together for a whole month and didn’t tell me anything?
keeho rolls his eyes “yea thats how little you care about us. its always about you and how you are so in love with niki and he doesn’t give a shit about you. poor y/n. we are so sick of hearing you bitch and complain when we can do literally nothing about it. like seriously just get over it.”
i feel myself start to tear up.
what is happening right now?
“look y/n we love you and all but sometimes you are just so tiring to be around.” yunjin says quietly.
“i - what guys i don’t know what to say. im sorry if i haven’t been there for you guys im sorry i was being annoying all the time but you could’ve told me. i would’ve stopped if you guys told me i was being too much. why didn’t you just tell me.” im full on crying now.
yunjin looks at me sympathetically “we aren’t mad at you y/n, but keeho and i are a couple now too so i think we just need some space to figure out everything”
“space? what does that even mean? are we even still friends?” i say, my voice getting louder as i notice them start to walk off.
“relax y/n we just need some time thats all. see you around ok.”
what the genuine fuck
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
i enter my house in a daze. jay had surprisingly offered me a ride home since i didn’t have a shift that day but i had decided i needed the walk to clear my head.
“yo y/n you good?”
i don’t feel like lying and saying im fine, but i don’t feel like telling the truth and embarrassing myself in-front of riki yet again who i just about have registered to be sitting on his usual spot on the couch.
instead i walk past them both and lock myself in my room.
a little later in the night my hunger gets the best of me and i get up to find something to eat before i pass out for the night. as im about to pass the lounge when jay and riki are, i hear my name.
“…no like seriously whats wrong with her though. i always thought she was weird with that fuckass ponytail. she could never even say two words without stuttering”
he was laughing. at me. like im a fucking joke.
“nah what, shes chill i think shes just kinda shy you know like maybe she has a small crush on you” my stupid brother says
he already thinks im weird now he is going to know that i have a crush on him. thanks a fucking lot jongsoeng.
“no ways she thinks i would get with her like be for real, can you even imagine that? i would never go that low.”
oh im not hungry anymore
with that i turned around and went back to my room for the night.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
after crying myself to sleep the night before, i decided not to go to school. im not sure how im supposed to stomach it knowing i don’t have a single friend there and i just didn’t feel like seeing rikis face for once.
eventually its time for my shift at the coffee shop.
once i get there im on auto pilot robotically seeing to customers plastering a fake smile on my face.
one of the first customers is a man who looks to be in his early 30s. he looks wealthy from the way he is dressed and the sour look he wears on his face.
he starts talking before he even reaches the counter. “cappuccino, no froth. and make it quick i have things to do.”
i hesitate “sir a cappuccino no froth? do you mean a latte?”
“if i wanted a latte i would’ve ordered a latte, no i want a cappuccino, no froth” he repeats his order slowly in a condescending way.
i sigh, knowing that this is going to be a long shift.
*ੈ✩‧₊˚༺☆༻*ੈ✩‧₊˚
later that night i stand in-front of the fridge looking for something to eat. when i hear footsteps approaching, i know jay is in the shower so that means it has to be-
“yo are you almost done there.” he says annoyed, because how dare i stand in front of my fridge in my house while looking at the food my parents bought, right.
i turn to him “what is your problem. why the fuck are you so rude all the time.”
shit where did that confidence come from
i expected him to be surprised or even upset at my outburst, but he kept the same nonchalant expression on his face and with the same annoyed tone replied “i have no problem i just wanna know when you are going to be done staring into the fridge so i can get some food.”
“right but you can act like a normal person and ask nicely or just wait your turn.”
ok stop talking now y/n
“or you can just hurry the fuck up”
“or you can get the fuck out of my house”
he now has a visible expression of anger on his face and suddenly i wish i was back at the coffee shop dealing with stupid customers. in a second that anger disappears and is replaced with amusement?
“woah i didn’t know you could say more than two words.” he says mockingly.
i just roll my eyes and turn back around to face the fridge once again. before i can open the fridge door he grabs my arm and turns me back around to face him, pushing my up against the closed fridge door. he’s so close to me i can feel his breath on my face.
“not so confident anymore? nothing else to say?”
i feel my face turn red. i don’t know what to say.
“remember who you’re talking to next time. just because you learned to talk in full sentences doesn’t mean you should forget your place.”
with that he lets go of me and walks off somewhere into the house.
cast: idol!sunghoon x reader ft. enhypen, txt, stray kids, etc.
what happens when your crush and ‘friend’ start dating on what was supposed to be a good day? you go for a long walk and come home with a bag full of empty wrappers and a new found friendship with a random guy you found crying in a park at half past one in the morning, on a weekday, in the middle of winter. what could possibly go wrong? nothing. (read: everything)
genre(s): fluff, angst, crack?, written and social media au, idol au
warning(s): a lot of swearing, mentions of bad mental health and mental health conditions, mentions of injuries, mentions of food, toxic friend(s), etc.
status: completed!
a/n: hello~ since this is my first work i would absolutely love any feedback that anyone is willing to give. also, please let me know if you think that i should add any trigger warnings to any specific chapters, since this work does discuss some heavy topics. thank you and enjoy!
choi soobin has always been the popular kid surrounded by his popular friends. you... not so much. one night, soobin and his friends make bet that soobin can't get you to date him in a month. unfortunately for you, you're a hopeless romantic.
sypnosis: getting paired up with nishimura riki for a project was not apart of your plan for second semester, considering he's quite literally known for simply not caring. But who knows, maybe he's willing to make an exception.
contains: suggestive jokes, cussing, featuring the following: Jake, Jungwon, Heeseung, Sunoo, Yunjin, (more to be added)
genuinely have up to 5 parts of this rotting in my drafts so i might as well start releasing them—i made this for fun btw!
(not falling for the whole “niki is nonchalant” thing)
𓏲 summary⠀⠀journalism major jung wooyoung and his cronies (read: friends) handle superbusters, an anti superhero podcast and news outlet, particularly popular amongst the youth. you don't really understand why he ropes you into it, but he does, and somehow the very tiny detail that you're best friends with a certain spider themed vigilante, gets unsaid.
𓏲 content⠀⠀jung wooyoung x fem!reader, band au, spiderman au, featuring artms, uncomfortable amt of gay jokes, swearing/profanities, kys jokes, medical inaccuracies probably
u da real shart | nut busters
⤷ prologue
⤷ tba
taglist: @driedfleurs @livonianmaia @pansexual-and-eating-pancakes wealwayskeepfighting
(taglist is open!)
PAIRING: Death Eater!Sunghoon X Fem!Reader (MDNI 18+)
SYNOPSIS: At Hogwarts, you were golden. He chose darkness and shattered you. Years later, you hesitate to kill him. He kills for you instead. Now you teach at Hogwarts, trying to forget him. But Park Sunghoon never forgot you, now he has decided he won’t lose you twice.
WORD COUNT: 50.1k (updating)
WARNINGS: Listed in each chapter, will contain angst & smut
A/N: It was supposed to be a oneshot. But i really wanna expand the story and tumblr wont allow it. So i have to cut it into chapters.
SUMMARY: Kim Jongseob has always been one of your brother’s closest friends. All your life, he’s made you feel nervous, insane, and completely off balance, but that’s what crushes are supposed to do, right? When Intak convinces you to join him and his friends on his birthday trip to Japan, it seems like a perfect plan! But what should have been a simple vacation quickly turns into a minefield of stolen glances and accidental touches.. now suddenly, everything feels different.
DISCLAIMERS: NON idol au! Smirk. brothers best friend! Reader is pining (It makes her feel insane…..) , LOSER!!!!jongseob Who else is shocked???? , She fell first and WAITED, he fell harder tho I think. vacation Hurray! kang haerin & kim dohoon mentioned , #Duo i made up but also not. im crying.
A high stakes game of paranoia among a toxic campus group of friends spirals into a brutal social execution as hidden betrayals, illicit affairs and devastating personal secrets are weaponized just for the sake of shattering reputations.
nsfw warnings ── smut, talks of sex, EVERYONE is horrible, don’t root for anyone of them, talks of cheating, use of hard drugs, violence. honestly let me know if i missed any, i wrote this a little unhinged.
word count ── 4.4k
How to play ── players sit in a circle and take turns whispering a "who" question to the person on their right, that person then publicly names a person in the group as the answer to the question, the person named must either drink to find out the question or decline to drink and remain in the dark.
You shift your feet on the carpet, your knees brushing against Jake on your left and Heeseung on your right. You're still trying to wrap your head around the rules Calista just laid out, her voice sweet but carrying an edge that suggests she's played this game to destroy people before. Your palms are already sweating against your jeans, as you look around the circle at Heeseung, you, Jake, Calista, Sunghoon, Leah, Jay, and Ume all sat in a circle. It feels like a predatory loop, you’ve always thought you were the observant one, the one who passes all her classes while everyone else is out partying, and being thrust into this dynamic feels like being a lamb at a wolf's dinner table.
"I'll start then," Jay says, his voice cutting through the hum of the air conditioner.
He leans over toward Leah, his silver rings glint in the light, as he whispers something into her ear, his expression stays unreadable. You watch Leah's face, she bites her lip and her eyes flicker around the circle before they land on someone. "Jake," she says clearly.
The room goes silent and Jake, who is sat right next to you lets out a dry chuckle. He doesn't hesitate for a second though, immediately reaching for the bottle of vodka in the center of the circle, pouring himself a heavy measure into the shot glass.
"I'm not staying in the dark for that," Jake says, looking straight Leah before tossing the drink back and slamming the glass down. "What was the question?"
Leah clears her throat, looking sheepish. "The question was...who here is most likely to not graduate?"
A few people let out oohs and light laughter, the tension breaking just enough for the game to feel tame. Jake rolls his eyes, nudging your shoulder playfully. "Harsh, Leah. I'm literally passing three of my labs right now."
But your heart is still beating a frantic rhythm against your ribs. The game is moving clockwise, so now it’s Jake's turn to whisper to you, he leans in so close that his shoulder presses firmly against yours and the scent of the alcohol on his breath mixes with his expensive cologne. His hand brushes your arm as he anchors himself to whisper in your ear. "Who in this room," he murmurs, his voice is so low it sends a vibration down your spine, "would you cheat on your partner with?"
A landmine of a question, and stupidly your eyes instinctively flick toward Jay and then toward Sunghoon, whose posture has gone unnervingly rigid beside you.
Your throat feels tight, your palms are slick with sweat. You know can't hesitate too long or you’ll look suspicious, so you take a breath and try to keep your voice steady. "Jay," you say.
Jay's eyebrows shoot up as a grin spreads across his face. He doesn't even look at the shot glass, going straight for the bottle instead, tilting it back for a throat burning swallow. He wipes his mouth with the back of his hand, his dark eyes locked onto yours.
"I definitely need to know the question for that one," Jay rasps, his voice dripping with mock innocence. "What did you ask our girl, Jake?"
Jake leans back. "The question was…who here would you cheat on your partner with?"
You feel the heavy silence that immediately falls over the circle, it’s suffocating in a way that precedes a storm. You feel Sunghoon's gaze burning into the side of your face, you don’t need to look at him to know his mouth is set in that angry line.
Suddenly the silence is broken by Calista’s sharp laugh, her face lit up maliciously. "Wait," her voice cuts through. "That's a bit redundant, innit? I mean, didn't you already do that?"
Fucking Calista.
You feel like you're shrinking into the floor as Leah and Ume exchange a wide eyed look. Before you can even think of what to say Sunghoon's voice snaps out, "Shut up, Calista," he says with a terrifying authority. He doesn't even look at her, he just stares straight ahead, his knuckles white where they're gripped around his own knees. "It's your turn to whisper to Heeseung." Well it’s not, by the rules of the game it should be Jay’s turn but no one bothers to correct Sunghoon.
You try to swallow the lump in your throat and pretend you can’t sense the tension vibrating between you, Sunghoon and Jay.
Heeesung next to you is sat with a deceptively relaxed look on his face, his eyes betray him though, they remain sharp, tracking the fallout of the last round with interest.
You lean in, placing your hand on his shoulder for balance, "Who in this room," you whisper, "do you think is secretly an alcoholic?"
He stiffens for a split second before a raspy laugh leaves his chest. He pulls back with a smirk dancing on his lips as he scans the faces in the circle, lingering on the glass in Leah's hand. "Leah," he says, his voice clear and resonant. "Obviously."
Her name lands with a dull thud but Heeseung doesn't stop there, he leans back on his elbows and continues. "I mean, the whole party girl aesthetic is a great mask, right? It's easy to hide the shakes when everyone expects you to have a drink in your hand twenty four-seven."
You had expected Heeseung to answer Jay, everyone always talks about how he drinks too much but Heeseung being the shit starter he is just had to pick her.
Leah's face pales immediately and her forced smile from earlier completely vanishes. She looks down at the half full shot glass in front of her and her fingers trembling slightly. Everyone is watching her, waiting for her to reach for the bottle and demand to know what question would make Heeseung make such a pointed comment.
But Leah doesn't move. "I don't want to know," she says, "I'm staying in the dark."
"Oh, come on, Leah," Jake groans from beside you, his voice dripping with agitation. He's already tipsy and his competitive streak getting soured by the heavy atmosphere. "Don't be boring. It's a game. Just drink and get it over with."
"Leave her alone, Jake," you snap, the words come out of your mouth before you can think. You feel the heat of Sunghoon's gaze on you, probably surprised by your sudden sharp tongue. You look over at Leah and offer a small nod. "She said she doesn't want to know. Let's move on."
Leah looks up at you with her eyes glassy with unshed tears, she shoots you a look of gratitude.
The bottle is slid toward Heeseung now, he has to whisper to Ume but you can't help but feel like the vibe in the room has shifted from a party game to a battlefield.
"Can’t I just pick who I want to whisper to instead?" He asks and Calista being as equally aggravating as he is agrees with him. "Sure you can!"
So instead, Heeseung gets up and hands over to Ume, crowding her space, his lips almost brushing her ear. Whatever he whispers is a long string of murmurs that lasts just a few seconds too many. You watch the playful smirk on Ume's face fade, her nose wrinkled in a display of revulsion. "God, Heeseung," Ume spits out, her voice sharp with a mix of shock and genuine disgust. "That's actually disgusting. You're such a weirdo."
Jay shifts forward, clearly intrigued by the sudden spike in hostility, while Sunghoon's jaw remains tight. Ume looks around the circle, her eyes landing right back on the man who whispered to her.
"It's him," she announces, pointing a finger directly at Heeseung. "The answer is Heeseung."
Heeseung lets out a mocking laugh that makes your skin prickle, he tilts his head to the side as he stares Ume down with a terrifyingly calm intensity.
"Funny," Oh God. "Because you didn't seem to think it was disgusting three days ago. In fact, you didn't seem to need any help at all when you were begging me to fuck you in my car."
Ume's face goes from flushed to a sickly white very quickly, she opens her mouth to retort but no sound comes out.
Heeseung on the other hand, just smirks while the question remains unrevealed, it's now a toxic secret sitting between them that has everyone else exchanging uneasy glances.
Someone should really call it now, call it a night but instead someone just murmurs that it's Ume's turn and now you're hyper aware she's about to ask Sunghoon—who's been a ticking time bomb since Calista brought up your lore—a question.
Ume, looking for any way to deflect the humiliation Heeseung just heaped on her, leans into Sunghoon. You can see the tremor in her hand as she tucks her hair back, her eyes narrowed with a vengeful glint.
She whispers the question to Sunghoon and for the first time tonight, you see a flicker of a smile cross his face. He doesn't hesitate his answer, "Heeseung," Sunghoon says and of course Heeseung wants to know, so he reaches for the bottle and takes an aggressive swig from it. "Reveal it," he commands, "What's the question?"
"The question," Sunghoon says, leaning forward so he's eye to eye with Heeseung, "was who here is definitely not as rich as they pretend to be?"
You nearly snort, that's not just a jab or a joke, it's a strike at the core of Heeseung's carefully curated image.
"Rich coming from you, Sunghoon," Heeseung sneers, his gaze flickering toward you before snapping back to his former friend. "At least I'm not the one who's so pathetic he took back a girl who already went through half the guys in this room. You're sitting there acting all protective of her, but we all know you're just the guy who cleans up the mess everyone else left behind."
The insult is so raw, it’s so unearned and cruel, so Heeseung. You hate how quick with it he is but you're quick too. Quick to connect the back of your hand with his face, the sound of your hand connecting with his cheek is like a gunshot in the small living room.
His head snaps sharply to the side and your hand starts to sting with the force of the blow as tears of pure rage blur your vision. Heeseung stays frozen for a long beat before his hand slowly comes up to touch his reddening face.
"Don't you ever," you choke out, your voice trembling with a fury you didn't know you possessed, "speak about me or Sunghoon like that again."
You don't even realize you've started heading for the door until you hear a pair of frantic footsteps following behind you. The stinging in your palm is nothing compared to the acid burning in your throat. You burst out into the cool night air, you're crying so hard you can barely see.
"Wait! Just—stop for a second!" Sunghoon's voice echoes behind you, his hand gently but firmly grasping your wrist to pull you into a quiet corner of the stairwell.
"Get away from me," you sob, trying to yank your arm back, the adrenaline from the slap finally crashing into a wave of pure humiliation. "He's trying to make me look like a whore, Hoon. In front of everyone. He's sitting there acting like I'm some...some conquest for the whole group."
Sunghoon doesn't let go, his face is red too and his eyes are filled with a mix of hurt and protective fury. "He's an asshole who's lashing out because he got called out for being broke. Don't listen to him."
"But he's making it sound like—" You choke on a breath, your voice dropping to a desperate whisper. "Jay was one time. I was drunk, baby. You know that, I told you I didn't even know where I was. It wasn't half the guys, it was one mistake that almost killed me to tell you."
You look up at him with your tear stained face, you’re searching his eyes for any sign of the judgment Heeseung just spewed. "You believe me, right? Hoon, you know me. Or do you secretly think I'm just a whore, too?"
His face softens a little, right as he moves his hands to cup your face and wipe your tears, "I believe you," he says, finally letting your heart stop its frantic racing. "I know who you are. I didn't take you back because I'm pathetic. I took you back because I'd rather have a complicated life with you than a perfect one without you." "Let him talk. He has nothing and I have you."
The moment you and Sunghoon step back into the room, you realize the game didn’t even stop. You sit in Sunghoon’s lap instead of next to Heeseung again. Jay is whispering into Calista's ear now and whatever he says makes her eyes light up with glee that she literally cackles, a sound that grates against your raw nerves.
"Sunghoon. For sure," she says, her voice dripping with mock sympathy.
"I don't want to know. Move on." He says, tightening his hand on your hip.
"Are you sureeeee, Hoonie?" Calista taunts, leaning forward so her cleavage is on display. "It's a really juicy one. Don't you want to know what Jay thinks about your...habits?"
"He said move on, Calista," you say, your irritation showing on your face clear as day.
She rolls her eyes but since it’s her turn now, she leans over to Heeseung. You can’t help but think of how the two of them have always shared a certain level of toxicity and as she whispers to him, the damn near evil smile that spreads on his face makes you want to throw up, even though the read mark from your slap still so visible on his cheek like a badge of dishonor.
Heeseung looks around the circle, first at Leah then at you. "Leah and Y/n," he answers.
"Wait, what the fuck?" Jake interjects, his brow furrowing. "The rules are one person, Hee. Don't be a dick and break the flow."
Heeseung doesn't even look at Jake, he looks like he's out for blood now. "Oh fuck the rules. I'll just tell you the question," Heeseung announces. "So Calista here, asked me who here would I have a threesome with?"
Fucking disgusting.
"I picked Leah because word on campus is she gives the best head when she's blacked out drunk. So efficiency, right?"
He turns his gaze to you, he’s so hellbent on destroying the little peace Sunghoon just gave you.
"And I picked Y/n," he continues, ignoring the way Sunghoon is literally vibrating with rage beside you, "because Jay told me that he's never seen an ass bounce on cock quite like hers. I figured I should see what the hype is about."
The room explodes and Sunghoon is up from under you, pushing you off him before Heeseung can even finish his sentence, his fist flies towards Heeseung's jaw as Jake tries to scramble out of the way.
The living room erupts into a violent blur of motion and anger. Jay and Jake lunged forward, trying to haul Sunghoon off Heeseung but he is a whirlwind of unbridled rage and he’s too strong for both of them, his heels skidding on the hardwood as he punches Heeseung one two three times square in the face.
"Get off me!" Sunghoon roars, his voice cracking with the intensity of his fury.
"Hoon please! You’ll kill him!" Leah cries and in the midst of the chaos, Calista decides now is the perfect time to give her unsolicited opinion. Just as Jake and Jay finally manage to drag Sunghoon off the now bloodied Heeseung, she stands up and smooths her skirt with a sickeningly calm demeanor that irritates you so quickly. "I don't even know why you're getting so defensive, Sunghoon," she starts, "It's not like he lied. You did cheat on him with Jay. It's public knowledge at this point. Why act like she's some untouchable virgin when everyone already knows how passed around your girlfriend is?"
Take it to hell then.
"Public knowledge, huh?" you repeat, "Is that what we're calling it now, Calista?"
You take another step, deliberately trying to invade her personal space until she's forced to lean back against the sofa. "Since we're so happily sharing public knowledge," you continue, "is it public knowledge that you spent seven months last year practically begging Sunghoon to take your virginity? That you sent him dozens of nudes he never asked for, crying and pleading with him to be the one because you were so obsessed with his fucking reputation?"
She tries to interrupt you, maybe to get you to shut up but you don't give her the air. "And when he wouldn't even look at you—when he told you he wasn't interested in a girl who tried that hard—is it public knowledge that you finally settled for Heeseung just so you could feel like you were part of the group?"
It’s almost laughable how the whole room is suddenly silent. Heeseung, who was wiping blood from his lip, freezes before his eyes snapping to Calista with a look of pure realization.
Jay and Jake slowly loosen their grip on Sunghoon, their eyes wide as they look between you and the trembling girl in front of you. She really looks like she’s about to faint. "You...you don't know what you're talking about," she stammers.
"I have the screenshots, Calista," you announce. "Sunghoon showed me everything the day we got back together. So if I were you, I'd stop talking about public knowledge before I make sure everyone on this campus knows exactly how little dignity you actually have."
Despite the blood from his split lip, the black eye and bruises forming all over his face, Heeseung laughs, looking at Calista then at you with some kind of twisted admiration. "Damn," his voice scrapes against the silence. "That's harsh. Even for this room."
Leah, who has been sitting in a crumpled heap of tears and humiliation since Heeseung brought up her blackout reputation, finally snaps. The gratitude she felt when you defended her earlier has fermented into a courage. "Oh, fuck off, Heeseung," "You're really going to act like you're worth more than that? Settlement is the best word for you. Honestly, it's the best you can do seeing as you can't get anyone sober to actually touch you."
Jake and Jay look at each other, realizing the night has moved past a game and into a total social execution. You wince at Leah’s words cause you know Heeseung, he has no problems being dragged through the mud, as long as someone is being dragged with him and that’s exactly what he does.
"Ouch, Leah. You're hurting my feelings," he pouts, looking directly at Ume. "But you're wrong. I get plenty of sober pussy. Right, Ume?"
She shakes her head, almost like she’s begging him to stop but Heeseung is long past mercy.
"Ume fucks me. A lot, actually," he says with a voice so casual, you’d think he was discussing the news. "You'd be surprised how many pregnancy scares we've had just this semester. I think we're on what? Three now, Ume? Or did you forget to tell me about the one last week because you were too busy pretending we don't know each other in the halls?"
Ume lets out a choked sob, covering her mouth with her hands. The revelation is a nuclear bomb, Heeseung is burning every bridge in the room just to stay warm.
Sunghoon's grip on your waist tightens, you hadn’t even realized he was behind you. He looks down at you, his eyes silently communicating that this has gone too far. The game has completely turned into a search and destroy mission and of course Heeseung is leading the charge with a bloody lip and a terrifyingly calm smile. He ignores the sobbing Ume and the trembling Calista, turning his predatory focus toward the one person who has stayed unnervingly silent during the chaos. "Jongie," Heeseung coos, tilting his head. "You've been awfully quiet while everyone else's skeletons are falling out of the closet. Why is that? I know it's not because you're worried about our girl over there—we already established you've been there, done that."
"Shut the fuck up, Heeseung," Jake snaps, "You're clearly just high on the drama. Stop it."
But Calista, sensing a chance to shift the target off her own humiliation, lets out a hysterical laugh. She wipes the tears from her eyes that are already shining with a manic triumph.
"Oh, wait! I know this one!" she chirps, her voice trembling but eager. "It’ll all make sense now but Jay here didn't sleep with Y/n because he wanted her. He used her as a litmus test."
Sunghoon's grip on your waist becomes painfully tight as the room goes dead silent.
"He was trying to figure out if he was actually gay or not," Calista sneers, pointing a manicured finger between Jay and Jake. "Because Jay and Jake haven't just been best friends since freshman year. They've been fucking since the first week of classes. Jay just needed to see if a girl could still do it for him, and you were the easiest target because you were drunk and vulnerable."
This can’t be happening. Why? Why did you agree to even come to Jay’s house tonight?
The two boys don’t even move, it’s like they can’t. Sunghoon’s hands fall from your waist as he looks at Jay—the man he thought was his best friend, the man who had supposedly betrayed him out of a moment of drunken weakness, not a cold blooded experiment.
"Is that true?" Sunghoon asks, his voice dangerously low. "You used my girlfriend to see if you could still get your dick hard for a woman?" But Jay can’t answer, he can’t even look Sunghoon in the eye.
Before you realize you’ve moved, you’re right in Calista’s face again, moving without thinking. Without a word, you bring your hand up and deliberately swipe your index finger right under her nostril. When you pull your hand back, you look at the faint white residue on your finger before looking back at her with pity.
"Aw, Cali,"
"I knew you did coke but I didn't know it was this bad. Is that why your heart is racing so fast? Or is it just the sniffles?"
You want to dismantle her credibility, her sanity. How dare she? You don’t even care about what Jay allegedly did. How dare she attempt to out two people who clearly weren’t ready for that.
"Are you just making up shit now because you're scared?" you ask, tilting your head. "You’re scared that everyone will finally find out you're nothing but a coke whore who trades blowjobs for a gram?"
A strangled sound escapes her throat, she looks around the room, searching for an ally but everyone—even Heeseung—is looking at her with a new level of disgust.
"News fucking flash, Calista," "Everyone knows. We've always known. We just didn't care enough about you to say it out loud until you decided to make yourself everyone's damn problem."
You turn your back on her, grab Leah’s hand and heading for the door, you’re sure Sunghoon is right behind you. "We're done," you say. "We don’t need these toxic people."
──.୨ৎ
The laundry room basement of Jay’s house is a stark contrast to the polished, expensive chaos neither Sunghoon nor Leah are expecting to unfold in about an hour. Down here, the smell of the laundry detergent is strong, paired with the rhythmic thrum of the m washing machine, it’s enough to make anyone overstimulated in this situation.
Sunghoon has Leah propped up against the vibrating metal of the washer, her legs wrapped around his waist, as he drives his cock harder and harder into her.
The machine’s cycle is loud but it’s still not loud enough to drown out the wet sounds of their bodies meeting or Leah’s loud moans.
"Hoon...Sunghoon," Leah whimpers, her fingers digging into the muscle of his shoulders as he thrusts into her with a mechanical intensity.
"Quiet," he shushes, pressing his palm over her mouth for a second, his eyes dark and devoid of the softness he usually keeps reserved for you. "The others are going to be here any minute. You want them to hear you?"
Leah shakes her head no, her eyes glassy with a mix of pleasure and a desperate need for him to look at her with something other than detachment, for him to look at her the way he looks at you. She pulls his head down, pressing her lips against his before whimpering when he brushes her sweet spot.
"Oh fuck! I love you!" she moans, the words suddenly slipping out like a confession she can’t hold back. "I love you so much, Sunghoon."
Sunghoon doesn’t hesitate, kissing her to shut her up, his tongue invading her mouth with a possessive hunger that felt more like a conquest than an embrace. "I love you too," he mutters against her skin, the words sound practiced, they’re even mean in their delivery—a hollow comfort he’s offering only to keep her compliant.
He shifts his grip, hooking his large hands under her thighs to pull her closer, "Are you close?" he demands, his breath hot and erratic against her neck. "Fuck—Your pussy’s so good, babe. You’re gonna make me cum right now."
Leah lets out a frustrated breath, lolling her head back against the cold laundry shelf. "No...no, I'm not. It’s okay, baby." She wraps her legs tighter around his waist, pulling him in as deep as he could go. "You can cum, Hoonie. Just...cum inside me. Please."
Sunghoon lets out a grunt of appreciation, she doesn’t need to tell him twice before he buries his face in the crook of her neck, his thrusts become faster and more desperate until he finally stiffens, his entire body shudders as he fills her. "Mm yes, Sunghoon. Gimme your cum."
He stays there inside her for a long moment, before pulling back to start fixing his clothes with a terrifyingly quick efficiency.
"Clean yourself up," he says, not looking at her as he heads for the stairs. "We need to be upstairs before the rest of them get here."
nene’s note ── is it just me or is heeseung HILARIOUS in this? lmao (cause i’m not on the receiving end) also poor ume (right?👀) did you expect the twist? i loveeee feedback! please enjoy!💋
synopsis you kinda (literally) catch your brother’s best friend touching himself and can't stop thinking about him after that. He doesn't make it any easier when he starts teasing you. enhypen masterlist.
pairing brother's bff!heeseung x reader
genre smau (+ written). crack. brother's best friend.
featuring rei, wonyoung, & liz (ive), enhypen, anton (riize), taesan & leehan (bnd), minju, yunah, & moka (illit).
contains kys jokes; suggestive jokes; little age gap (19&22); profanity; a lot of dick jokes; Rei being so into Jake (obviously fake don’t take it seriously).
mars' yap this is my first time posting in here, I've had so much fun reading SMAUs so I thought i'd try it since I kind of do them but in Wattpad (follow me by the way @ hyuckzcult)! I will try updating regularly and not leave you waiting lol but I can't promise anything!! Reblogs, comments, asks and even likes are deeply appreciated. Have fun reading!!
PROFILES just us girlies ; gay freaks
CHAPTERS
01. caught in 4k
02. bouta jump off a cliff✌️😂
03. "perfect" brother-in-law (not)
04. hey shawty
05. stolen glances - written
06. clueless flirting
07. unfortunate live tweeting
08. uncs catching strays
Also credits to @cafekitsune for their divider!
⋅˚₊˚ ⋅ amy ⋅˚₊‧ @leeknowstoes00 - Tumblr Blog | Tumgag
