Campus Celebrity || 1
pairing: jock!jungkook x girly!oc
genre/content warnings: smut, grumpyxsunshine, uni!au, popular!oc, consumption of alcohol, ciggs, jungkook is kinda an asshole, oc is a lil bratty and spoiled, oc loves pink a lot, loverboy jjk, yearning, slowburn, insecurities, body image, tw!ED, body shaming, slice of life, some jaehyunxoc,
summary: he’s the quiet, untouchable one, keeps to himself, doesn’t chase, doesn’t get caught up in things that don’t matter. She’s the opposite. Cher talks too much, smiles at everyone in the hallway, charming people like she does for a living--a natural flirt. The kind of girl who knows everyone and belongs everywhere, except somehow never quite around him. They circle each other anyway, glances that last too long, tension that builds where it shouldn’t, her pretending he doesn’t get to her, and him pretending he doesn’t care. It works, until it doesn’t. Because Jungkook is running out of patience, Cher is running out of excuses, and when something finally snaps between them, it turns into something messy, consuming, and a lot harder to walk away from than either of them expected.
wc: 5k ish
next
Everyone on campus knew her.
Which is exactly why being late was better than showing up in her sweats.
Fuck.
She was late—not in a cute, mysterious way either. No, this was the kind of late where people noticed. Where heads turned. Where whispers followed. Not that she minded the attention, it never bothered her. It was just not convenient right now.
She was late for her morning class, again, all because she couldn't decide what to wear with the cute Hollister top she squeezed into — skirt or bootcut jeans. The skirt, obviously, was the right choice. It was just perfect, all pretty and pink, lace trims on the hem, her favourite waist chain peeking out just above it.
Well, at least she was fashionably late.
One last look at her face in her phone, she carefully pushed the door to the lecture hall. Wincing when she heard her professor go on about the test dates.
“Shit.” She cursed under her breath when she saw that almost every seat in the room was occupied.
A few heads turned instantly. Not because she swore. Because it was her.
Some girl in the second row leaned over to whisper something to her friend. A guy at the back straightened a little. Even the professor paused for half a second longer than necessary before continuing.
Yeah, not embarrassing at all.
Her eyes scanned the room, quickly landing on an empty seat. The relief was short lived. Of course it had to be on the other end of the row. And of course the girl at the corner looked at her like she just committed a crime before she even opened her mouth.
Great.
Now she’d have to rub her ass on some tables and irritate a bunch of grumpy students who were running on room temperature coffee, redbull and barely two hours of sleep. Just the interruption that everyone needs, as if having an 8AM class isn’t sucking the soul out of their bodies enough anyway.
“Miss, are you planning on taking a seat or are you just gonna stand there staring at the wall?” The comment from the professor received a few chuckles, probably from the suckers in the front.
Laughing at his lame-ass jokes isn’t gonna get you recommendation.
Bowing her head slightly as an apology, she squeezed in between the chairs and the table behind them. Sorry's falling out her lips every time she almost knocked down something or accidentally hit someone with her giant pink tote, bumping into everything in existence.
An almost whine escaped her lips when she felt the friction as her bare thighs brushed against a chair. The metal dug into her skin but the guy just sighed in annoyance, stretching his legs.
Fucking prick. She almost said it out loud.
"Excuse me."
Something incoherent left his mouth before he rolled his eyes. He sighed like she personally ruined his life, but pulled his chair in anyway.
One more.
"Excuse–" The chair screeched back before she could finish.
"Thank you." She smiled to no one in particular, too distracted to notice that her chair was already pulled out for her.
Carefully plopping into her seat — grimacing when she felt the coldness of it on the back of legs — she dropped her bag on the table. The noise of her bag charms caught the attention of those around her and the professor paused.
But she didn't really care. Her head in her tote — quite literally and figuratively — busy looking for her VS gloss. The elder just shook his head when he saw her apply glitter over her lips. As if she felt the eyes, she finally looked up from her phone, head tilting in confusion.
"What?" She mouthed to Naeyeon, who was seated a few rows away and smiling immediately after she saw the bunny teeth peeking through her wide lips.
Content with her lips, she dropped her phone and grabbed her pen ready to jot down anything that was necessary. But she ended up doodling pink hearts in the corners of the blank page, half listening to whatever the old man was yapping on about. Her mind was wandering, already planned out her entire day and now pondering on what to eat for lunch.
"This might come for the test...." Wait.The test! It completely slipped off her mind. This is going to mess up her plans, what if it's this weekend? Or the next? Or the Wednesday she was planning to skip and go shopping with Yuna?
"Hey." She called out to the boy next to her, tapping her recently manicured nails near to where his hands were resting. Yuna was really the sweetest, she'd always give her ridiculous discounts for her nails. One time she arrived at her dorm with all the supplies at two in the morning just 'cause she casually mentioned she had an inspo for her nails during one of their daily late night calls.
"Uh, sorry–" She awkwardly chuckled when she realised she was zoning out again. But the words died on her tongue when her eyes fell on him, when she properly looked at him.
Holy shit. She was convinced that she's never laid eyes on a man this painfully pretty and so, so close to her type. Heat spread from her chest to all over her body as she took him in, mind turning into a puddle of goo at how sturdy he looked despite the thick jacket. Oh, and that face, the piercings — those doe eyes she couldn't bear to hold for more than two seconds. Just thinking about his hands made her giggle, a familiar feeling of giddiness clouding her head. She was going to be in so much trouble.
"O-oh, yes, sorry. Again." She blurted out, cheeks burning from his unwavering graze. Did she always find it hot when guys cocked their eyebrows? Or when they cleared their throat with a grumble? She doesn't get all hot and bothered in a way like this when Sunwoo does it, that only makes her want to rip his hair out.
Even his hands were pretty, long slender fingers adorned with rings and tattoos–! Right, the test dates.
"Did you note down the test dates by any chance?" She couldn't help but beam up at him with round eyes, fluttering her lashes with purpose. The gentle tilt of her head let a few short strands fall like a soft curtain, perfectly framing her face.
He pushed his opened notepad towards her in response. She didn't let him see the subtle disappointment dawn on her, quickly fixing her sulking face to an unfazed one. Leaning over, just close enough for her to feel the body heat radiate off him, she peered. Her eyes didn't just stay on the dates written—big, bold and underlined—they drifted to the tiny designs all over the page.
Must be his tattoo sketches! They were beautiful. Even though she barely spoke two sentences to him, she thought it was so him, every line whispered his touch. Now it made her wonder whether the tattoos on his skin were also his design. His pushed up sleeve only allowed some of his inked skin to show, she couldn't help but once again wonder what was beneath.
"Cute." His head snapped to the side, the word turning the corners of lips downward. "If I wasn't such a scaredy cat, I'd get one." She said, smiling softly to herself as she eyed the page with awe. His brows relaxed once he realised what she was talking about, his lips hinting a playful tilt.
"Of course you're–" He spoke, so low that she almost missed it. Her smile widened at his reply, her ear only a few inches away from her shoulder. "Miss sparkles." She feigned a pout at the new nickname.
"Okay, Mister 'look-at-me-I'm-so-tuff-and-scary', whatever you say."
Fine.
That was a stupid name to come up with, she cringed but it was too late. It was already out when she'd realised what she said.
"That's pretty long." He commented, he looked unfazed but his eyes lit up with mirth.
"Guess you'll have to stick with just 'Jungkook' until you come up with a better name. And god knows how long that will take."
This was bad bad.
It would've been better if he just kept acting unbothered and minded his own business. He was now teasing her, with something very dangerously close to a smirk.
"Sure and as if—" She scoffed. "Miss Sparkles is soo smart. Very proud of that aren't you."
The roll of her eyes couldn't help her contain the smile that was stretching her glossy lips. And it definitely couldn't be more obvious to Jungkook either.
Where was he hiding his pretty face all this time?
There was no way she would've missed him, not with that Greek god build and gorgeous fucking eyes that caught light every time she looked at him. Sure she couldn't possibly know the entire uni but she was quite acquainted with an unnecessary number of circles. Considering the fact she's always been popular enough to get invited to all the parties and hangouts—she has never seen him. And there was NO WAY a guy like him wasn't popular, there'd at least be crumbs of gossip revolving around him.
"Are you a freshman?" His eyes twinkled with amusement at her question. Jungkook cleared his throat to hide the chuckle that almost slipped past his lips.
"Nooo?" She squinted her eyes as she dragged the last syllable.
"No." Her mouth was shaped like a 'o' but she couldn't really come up with anything else to say to him.
If she opened her mouth again, she'd end up rambling something really dumb and stupid to fill the silence, like she always does when talking to guys she barely knew.
It wasn't that she couldn't talk to guys, but it always felt a little awkward socialising with men at the start, at least the ones she found attractive. She wasn't as comfortable around men as she was with women. With girls, it was natural, she could talk up any girl and make her laugh till they were tearing up, but it didn't come to her that easily with men. Unless it was someone she didn't really consider a man, like Sunwoo, he was basically her annoying little brother. Or Yuta, who acted as if he were one of her girlfriends, it doesn't really matter.
Then there was her being herself, all pink and hyper feminine and dramatic and too much. Men weren't exactly comfortable with that either. The moment they see her dressed like she owns Barbie's closet and pulled out lippies from her purse — that could probably pay off months' worth of groceries — they steer clear of her. Of course, the girls and the gays loved her. But straight men? Only a bunch of them got along with her really well. Not the ones that thought with their dicks.
Jungkook here — with his tattoos and piercings and all black clothing — doesn't seem like someone who'd want to deal with all the flamboyance that oozes from her. She's surprised that he looked at her without acting like he was gonna go blind. Not even a squint. No wincing or visible cringing after having to experience her animated personality first hand.
"Hello? Earth to our lil' daydreamer." Nayeon's voice snapped her out of her thoughts.
"Uh, why aren't you in your seat?" She furrowed her brows as confusion took over her features, lips hinting a pout when she looked past Nayeon to find Jungkook walk out of the lecture hall.
"Baby, the professor dismissed the class ages ago. Always in our own world aren't we?" She giggled, softly pinching her cheek. Nayeon laughed more when she saw her get more pouty and she slapped her hand off her cheek.
"Shut up. Let's go." She looked over to the door, no sight of Jungkook. Sighing, she resumed packing her things into her tote, her plans of subtly stalking Jungkook going to vain. She wasn't a crazy bitch — no, she was just curious about where he spawned from, who he's friends with, which year he was in, what he'd look like in his own habitat and the most important information — if he had a girl.
Whatever.
She wasn't going to go after him anyway, it'd only be a waste of her time. A guy like him wouldn't go for a girl like her; she's not exhausting her time and emotions only to learn otherwise later. He was just not into her, it didn't work that way. It was as simple as that. She was no longer the naive, hopeless romantic freshman to ignore all the signs and go in circles all over again, only to hurt herself.
"You little piece of shit!" Before she could even react, she was hauled around by a pair of hands on her sides. "What the fuck did you tell Heeseung?!"
A yelp left her lips when she almost got smacked instead of Sunwoo — who was shielding himself with her frame in hopes of avoiding getting beat up by a feral Yuna. She tried slipping out of Sunwoo's grip, her well moisturised arms making it easy but he wouldn't give up tugging her along.
When did this stupid rat get so strong? She mentally cursed Beomgyu for dragging him to the gym every time he wanted to workout.
"Ew, why are you all greasy?" Sunwoo complained, his hands finding purchase on her waist — rubbing the 'grease' off his palms.
"It's called body oil!" She wiggled, but his grip was just as stubborn as him, if not more. "Let me go you fucking rat—and stop getting oil all over my top!" He winced when she clawed at him but he was not budging.
"Cher, move or you're gonna get hurt." Yuna told her, eyes round and burning with rage.
"You think I wouldn't if I could?!"
"Yuna, you're being too dramatic, like I was just trying to help you. I just told him that you're very popular with men—"
"You literally started listing names like I'm a common street whore!"
"My godddd, Sunwoo, why would you say that to Heeseung? What is wrong with you?" Cher didn't know if it was her nudge or what she said, whatever it was that loosened his hold on her. But all that mattered was that she was now free.
"Don't leave me alone with her!" Sunwoo yelled from behind her but her ears were deaf to his desperate cries. Snorting when she saw Yuna reach for his hair as she walked towards where her best friend was sitting.
Under the shade of the tree, leaning back on his elbows, watching their friends chase each other like cat and dog.
"Ugh, smash," Yuta groaned, low and teasing with a sly grin. She rolled her eyes and shoved him by his chest in return, though she couldn't suppress the smile on her lips.
"It's a new top." She beamed at him, even spinning a little to show off her outfit.
"Fucking, Sunwoo. He rubbed body oil all over it." Her whine earned only a laugh from Yuta, his fingers tapping on the empty space beside him.
"Fuck off." She sneered at him.
"Oh, come on, Cher." He pulled her to sit next to him, shoulder to shoulder before he swung an arm around her.
"Yuta." He hummed. "Do you know anyone named Jungkook?"
"Jeon Jungkook? Tattoos and all?" With a coy 'uh-huh' she feigned indifference, she didn't want to sound even a slight bit excited by the fact that Yuta actually recognised him.
"He's chill."
Cher wanted to groan, it was too frustrating.
She could never let her newfound interest in Jungkook slip to anyone. Not even Yuta, or any of her close friends. It was dumb. She had to physically stop herself from screaming 'what the fuck do you mean by chill' at his face. If she was going to pry she needed to find smarter ways to do it without raising any suspicions.
"Chill?" Cher carefully prompted, shuffling a little in the pretense of getting comfortable. Her eyes fixed on his face, patiently waiting for him to answer her question.
"Yea, we uh, smoked together a few times."
So, he smokes.
Cher kept telling herself that this was nothing, he was nothing and this stupid little infatuation was nothing. But she couldn't help herself. Praying to god that Yuta didn't catch the slightest amusement in her eyes.
"Really? But we always smoke together, I've never seen him," she said, pouting a little as she glanced up at the sky pretending to think.
"Is he a freshman?"
"What?" Yuta laughed, not a chuckle or a snort but like a full heartily laugh, like he genuinely found it hilarious.
"Obviously not!" He spurted out when he saw her looking at him with no clue.
"What's so funny?" she mumbled, sulking a little over his exaggerated reaction.
How stupid and unaware was she of her surroundings? Of course, he was not. Jungkook looked nothing like a freshman, not just because of his appearance but also because of the effortless confidence that radiates off him. How completely comfortable he appeared in his skin and masculinity. It was not something a mere something-teen-year-old could embody.
"He's in your year." Once again. Her orbs enlarged with intrigue.
"How come I've never met him or heard about him?" This time it wasn't performative but Cher genuinely pondered.
"Heard about who?"
Both Yuta and Cher were startled by the deep voice, she felt a chill down her spine when she felt someone breathing in her ear. Something inside her dropped when she recognised that smooth honeyed voice. She didn't want to turn her head, trying her best to not appear uncomfortable even though her posture was stiff and shoulders tense.
"Jaehyun, you bastard." Yuta scowled, glaring up at his friend.
"Scoot." Jaehyun brushed his fingers on the bare skin of her arms, gentle and light, it was the kind of touch she felt more in her gut than anywhere else.
"Hey, Cher." She mustered a deep breath before turning to look at him.
"Hi, Jae." Her voice was so sweet, yet not sweeter than her graze.
He pulled her closer to his side for a short hug, but left an arm around her, hand caressing her skin.
"You smell so nice, you always do."
Cher held up well, she didn't melt into the ground or freak out and push him off the bench when his nose came in contact with her curls.
"Don't you have anything else better to do than sniffing my best friend like a fucking dog?" Yuta snarled at him, only half joking.
Cher chuckled to ease the tension, her hand moving to pat Jaehyun's cheek when he leaned on her shoulder. He smiled cheekily trying to get on his nerves, it tasted like victory.
"You're coming this Friday, right?" Jaehyun looked up at her from where his head was resting, eyes filled with expectation.
"I can't, Jae, I have like three tests next week. I need to sleep." He clicked his tongue, not buying her poor excuses.
"I'll get you those flavoured cigs you like, what was it called again—?"
"The strawberry ones?" Yuta pinched the bridge of his nose, shaking his head at her immediate reply at the mere mention of cigarettes.
"I can't find 'em anywhere, where do you even get those?"
"Not sure, Jungkook buys 'em every time." Her eyes lit up at the mention of his name, forgetting about fruity cigarettes and the party.
"But don't worry I'll ask him for you."
"Uhh?"
No.
Why was Jaehyun asking him? She wanted to ask Jungkook herself--if she could.
Will he be there at the party? He has to be, right? If he’s getting the cigs, then—wait, why wouldn’t Jaehyun invite him anyway? Were they close? How tight exactly?
Oh my god.
This just got way worse. Like, a lot worse.
She’s actually fucked.
"Cut the crap, we all know you're not gonna sleep or study. You'll just be scrolling through reels and will definitely cry 'bout fomo the next day. Just shut the fuck up and come to the party," Yuta said, now standing and fixing the sling bag across his torso.
"Where are you going?" Jaehyun received an eye roll in return.
"Come on, pretty girl, we can't be late four times in a row. The old hag will go all cray-cray on us." He urged her to get up, already taking her tote and arm thrown around her shoulders.
"Oh my god, stopppp." Cher groaned, throwing her head back dramatically when she caught Yuta turning back to glare at Jaehyun.
He wasn't even trying to be subtle, not that he wanted to anyways.
"That whore," Yuta grunted, "and you're so fucking nice. Letting him act that way 'round you, always touching and flirting with you."
That pretty much describes her relationship with Jung Jaehyun, there wasn't anything much to say about it anyways 'cause they barely had one. It was Jaehyun, the textbook definition of "campus crush" — tall, nice hair, pretty face, sweet boy charm and all dimples, a hot body and not to mention the fact that he was the lead singer of a band that used to perform at their local uni pub every week. He played the guitar too sometimes. By any means, or standards, Jung Jaehyun was popular and very much desired by all. He was the perfect blueprint of boyfriend material, only that he wasn't.
And of course, Cher wasn't any better. She wasn't immune to his charms. Anyone would fall for that kind of attention—the lingering touches, the soft looks, the way he always seemed to find her in a room full of people. It was easy to mistake that for something more. Maybe once, she did. Back then, she was eighteen, soft in the worst way possible. The kind of girl who believed that if someone looked at her long enough, it had to mean something.
Growing up, boys didn't look at her. Not like they do now. Not like the way heads turn when she walks into a room, or how people shift to make space for her without even realising it. Not like the whispers that follow her name, or the way she's always somehow part of every conversation even when she's not there.
Back then all she was is the biggest girl in the group, boys never looked at her—unless to make a joke at her expense or to get to her "prettier" friends. But Jaehyun didn't care about Jennie or Yuna or Nayeon, it was only her. Only her he'd hug a little longer and tighter, only her he'd talk to, only her cigarette he'd share and only her he'd bring drinks to.
And now, she couldn't go a single day without being watched. Without being wanted. Without someone, somewhere, deciding something about her. Funny how that works, considering she didn't become a different person overnight. She wasn't suddenly smaller, didn't wake up one day fitting into whatever version of perfect people found acceptable. But she learned, how to carry herself, how to take up space, how to be looked at and not flinch under it. Confidence did what being skinny never could, and people noticed. They always did.
Jaehyun was just part of that phase. The phase where she learned that attention didn't mean affection, and definitely didn't mean choice. He never made her feel small, and maybe that's why she stayed longer than she should have. But she wasn't that girl anymore—the one who waited, who hoped, who mistook crumbs for something real. She had grown past that, even if some parts of her still remembered what it felt like.
Freshman year, Cher had been completely enamoured with Jaehyun and everything he did. She was eighteen, hopelessly obsessed with coming-of-age rom-coms that fed into every soft, unrealistic fantasy she had about love. Back then, it was easy to believe that if someone looked at her long enough, stayed close enough, it had to mean something.
But once the rose-tinted glasses slipped off, reality settled in just as easily. Of course he'd go for a skinny girl. One after another. It wasn't even surprising—just... predictable. Looking back, she almost wanted to laugh at herself for ever thinking she could be the exception.
And yet, she couldn't bring herself to hate him.
Because Jaehyun had never made her feel like that girl—the one who was too much in the wrong ways and not enough in the right ones. He never looked past her, never made her feel like she had to shrink to fit beside someone else. And that... changed something. Quietly, but enough.
Not enough to make her delusional again. Just enough to make her grow into herself.
It wasn’t that she had forgotten what it felt like to be seen that way, but Jaehyun had never made her feel like that. And that changed things. She wouldn’t give it to him entirely, but he was still one of the biggest reasons she felt this comfortable in her own skin now.
And he was also the one who introduced her to Yuta, who ended up becoming her best friend.
So no, she didn't regret him.
She had just outgrown her younger self, who wished, dreamed of romance and lived full-time in a fantasy world.
"I'm totally fine, Yuta," Cher spoke, dramatically insinuating on her words.
"I'm soooo over him, the Jaehyun lore is very much outdated now."
It really was. There were plenty of guys after him, but none of them was like Jaehyun. He treated her like an actual friend—remembered the small things she said in passing, checked in on her without making it a big deal, made sure she got home safe, even when she insisted she was fine. He never made her feel like she had to perform or impress him, never looked at her the way the others did, like they were waiting for something more. With him, it was easy. Normal.
Maybe he really did see her as one of his close friends. Maybe that's all she'll ever be. And she was fine with that.
If anyone was being honest, all her friends hated him the least out of all the guys. The only thing that ever got on their nerves was how flirty he could be with her. Even Yuta, who actually loved Jaehyun, never let him off the hook for it that easily.
"Should I wear stockings underneath or not?" Cher looked at Yuna through the mirror as she powdered her face.
"I mean...." She paused, put her heavy, carved 'flower knows' brush down to face a frustrated Yuna. "For a house party? Really not the vibe. But if you're cold, you can just wear jeans underneath—maybe flare? I think your long legs will carry the fit."
"Wait really? Lemme...." Yuna was skeptical but rummaged through her closet to find a pair of jeans.
"This is why I keep telling you to clean your room, look at the mess." Cher chided, shaking her head when her eyes landed on the pile of clothes that managed to take such a huge space in the room.
"Oh my gosh, it does look cute!" She chuckled at her friend's shriek. "Cher, my love, you're an icon. A fucking genius!" Yuna cried, arms cradling her head and smacking a kiss on her cheek.
"Eww, get off." Scrunching her nose, she rubbed off her kiss. "You ruined my base, now I'm gonna look like a glazed donut." Cher complained, taking her cushion out to dab some more powder on her face.
"Your base is literally blush and powder. What are you crying about, dweeb?" Yuna teased, squishing her cheeks with her fingertips. Before Cher could pry her hands off, the door was clicked open. A smug Sunwoo entered with his hands shoved inside his jeans pockets.
"Ladies, get your asses out the door, we're pre-gaming in the car." Cher gasped when he held the bottle of pink vodka up in the air.
"It's so pretty!" Yuna couldn't help but chuckle at the sparkle in her eyes while eyeing the pink liquid.
"Was supposed to open this on your birthday but I couldn't find anything else, so....happy birthday!" Sunwoo threw his arms up, almost smashing the bottle against the threshold.
"Happy birthday to me!"
"Idiots."
"Do not talk to Heeseung. Not even a word." Yuna said, once they arrived where everyone was gathered around the kitchen island, tone firm and her index finger pinning the tipsy boy in place.
"Yea yea—Heeseung!"
"Fuck, fuck, Sunwoo, shut the fuck up." Yuna's nails dug into the material of his jacket but it was too late. Sunwoo had already jumped on the poor boy who was now looking very confused but received the hug regardless.
"Hi, Heeseung." Cher was the first one to break the ice, offering him a red cup of everything found in the kitchen.
"It's jungle juice—it's fine, we don't have class tomorrow." She assured him with a laugh when she saw hesitation written all over his face.
"You made it!" Arms wrapped around her waist from behind, pulling her back into a familiar frame.
author's note: im overwhelmed by all the responses i received for the teaser😭so here it goes.... im kinda nervous ngl, lemme know if u guys liked it. im slowly soft launching the ships here👀more to come.
tags: @prettypeachyplease @mar-lo-pap @mygvior