teenage fever : jake sim x reader
in which, you have do not have a crush on your brother's best friend, jake; decelis high's golden boy, campus crush, and football superstar. because that would be ridiculous. ...right? OR the one where two oblivious idiots fall in love while everyone around them patiently waits to collect their betting money.
byr : brothersbsf!jake x f!reader, romcom, fluff, friends to lovers, brother's best friend, mutual pining, high school au, idiots in love wc : 7147 words (i got carried away, it was supposed to be 4k) masterlist 𐙚 tl is always open ; reblogs are appreciated!
sim jaeyun, or better known as jake, was decelis high’s golden boy.
the man was the star football player, smart, rich, popular, and surrounded by a group of friends so tightly knit that watching them felt like a sitcom. he was the “golden retriever” of the group– or perhaps even the school. the happy-go-lucky boy who made every room he entered a little brighter with his loud personality and bright smile.
and the campus crush, of course. the kind acts, and the charming smile brought a number of girls flocking towards him.
then there was you, yang y/n, the older sister of yang jungwon. you weren’t exactly a favorite of the people. not that you were a bitch– god no– you were simply a little too direct, straightforward, and somewhat cold; the type who made people think twice before starting a conversation. by sophomore year, people had decided you were somewhat of an enigma.
you were the type of girl people thought twice about asking a pen from. and jake was the type of guy they’d wave at in the hallways and ask for help even if it’s for dumb things.
you were the beauty they observed from afar. you had that “untouchable” air around you. the quiet confidence you carried yourself with made your presence known and respected. it was only the coldness in your eyes that drove people away.
it didn’t bother you much. you preferred being alone or surrounded by your group of friends.
and you weren’t a stranger to jake. how could you be?
your younger brother became friends with him when you were in middle school. and since then, the whole friend group, seven guys all with different styles and personalities, would come to your house every wednesday and friday after school.
they were a lively bunch, often inviting you to their frequent movie nights or game nights when they came over, and you did comply a couple of times.
and of course there was the fateful day, just a day before jake’s birthday. they had invited you to their movie night as usual and none of your friends were free either, so you joined them. you sat down on the floor, pillow in your lap, back resting against the sofa.
the movie, sunoo’s pick, was a romance and slow paced one. honestly, it was flat out boring and unintresting.
not even half way through the movie, you had to fight to keep you head up– you tried, really did– but eventually, it was all in vain. you fell asleep. where you may ask?
ding ding ding!
sim jaeyun’s shoulder.
he woke you up when the movie ended, apologising and teasing, saying he had to go home and your shoulder was crushing him– but his voice? it was too soft to be “casual”. you jerked back, the drowsiness earlier gone– your cheeks turned red with embarrassment and your mouth open with horror.
for a second, you swore the room seemed as if it had suddenly gone silent. but he just laughed and pinched your cheeks, ruffled your hair, whispered, “close the mouth, you might drool” all before standing to walk out.
you sat there, glued to the floor, flushed as you watched all the boys leave.
jungwon turned to you when it was finally just the both of you, “what was that, huh?”
“nothing!” you said. your voice came out a little louder than you intended it to. he just smirked, eye-brow raised as he gestured to your red ears.
you grab the nearest thing to you, which so happens to be a pillow, and throw it at his face.
he laughed, muttering something teasingly as you got up quickly, fanning your face, profusely blushing– the embarrassment getting worse.
letting the door fall shut, you walked into your room and fall face flat onto your bed.
you cursed, how could you fall asleep on jake sim of all people? and goddamn it, why was he actually pretty cute? you screamed into your pillow, frustrated because you can’t find jake sim cute. he’s your classmate and your brother’s friend.
a horrific thought crossed your mind.
you didn’t like him. right?
you couldn’t. crushes were lame. and boyfriends were uncool, useless and a distraction. you always said so, since you were twelve.
that was two months ago.
now you’re making it your mission to ignore him. it wasn’t going really well though. how can you possibly ignore someone when they go to your school, is your classmate, friends with your brother– and should be charged rent for how often he was in your house.
no matter how hard you tried, the butterflies always came back. with every greeting, with every stupid puppy-like smile, every invitation for you to join them for dinner, or their movie nights, or their game nights, or– well, you get the point.
the kids in your school would freak out if they found out the yang y/n acted like a human who couldn’t function, couldn’t work and gosh couldn’t stop getting flustered around a certain boy.
oh how humiliating it would be.
eventually your two friends, yunah and sora, found out about your “not” crush on jake on your weekly trip to the local mcdonalds. and, oh my god, they could not stop cheesing.
“aww, our baby girl has finally grown up,” yunah gushed, smiling so wide you wondered whether her cheeks hurt.
sora wasn’t any better. she giggled, elbowed your ribs, wiggling her eyebrows teasingly.
rolling your eyes, you repied, “it’s not a crush. i don’t like him,” before aggressively biting a fry.
“sure it isn’t babe. that’s why you get all nervous every time he enters the room, or challenges you in class, or—” sora was interrupted by your whiny screech.
the two girls couldn’t help but burst out laughing, watching their dear best friend malfunctioning at a not-so-crush on a certain boy.
“okay, fine! maybe i do have a crush. but it’s only a little one. and it WILL go away. i can’t stand this,” you admit. finally.
“right. and that’s what they all say,” yunah said, smiling cheekily.
you elbowed the girl beside you, only making her laugh more. you groaned, letting your head drop to the table, hiding your face from them.
“Y/N!”
oh no. jake. you freeze. you turn around and see the man running towards you. you pause your music, pulling your earbud out as he stops in front of you.
“hi,” he says.
“hi,” you reply, keeping your tone flat and uninterested.
“ouch, y/n. why so bored?” he says, feigning hurt. “i thought we were friends.” he moves to walk ahead of you.
“oh, is it so? i didn’t think so,” you say, rolling your eyes. his smile only widens, and he turns to walk backwards so he is facing you.
“jake, walk properly. you’re going to trip over something,” you say, eyes narrowing.
“oh! she cares,” jake says, cheering like his favourite football team won. you can’t help but let out a small giggle at his antics. but what you fail to see is that jake sim’s smile widens as he watches you giggle.
“why are you even here, sim?” you ask, trying to sound bored, though you aren’t able to crush the smile that has already formed.
“why, i’m here to accompany the dear lady on her voyage to her great home, for i” he pauses dramatically, pointing at himself, “am a gentleman and am also going to meet her dearest younger brother, yang jungwon.” he finishes with a tiny little bow in your direction.
you roll your eyes. “you? a gentleman? didn’t you and sunghoon throw sunoo in the pool three days ago?”
sighing, he says, “i recall no such thing, m’lady,” and lies. and he says all this while delivering a cheeky wink.
“of course you don’t, was it a technical malfunction because of gravity?” you ask, eyes attempting to look serious but there is a small laugh in your voice.
jake only laughs, shaking his head, running his hand through his hair.
when you reach your house, he runs ahead to push the door open for you. you mutter a quick thanks, ears turning red, silently praying he won’t notice.
you sprint up to your room, so you don’t see that jake’s cheeks have also faintly flushed pink.
you shut the door behind you, throw your bag on the bed and slide down to the floor, covering your face.
“i can’t be acting like this over jake! it’s so embarrassing,” you whisper, scared that saying it any louder will expose your crush on the man.
a couple of minutes later, a knock on your door pulls you out of your trance. you pull open the door and are met with your brother’s face.
“come down, we’re ordering pizza,” he says, not waiting for a reply before turning around and walking downstairs again.
you make your way downstairs, fixing your hair as you go. your heart is still beating a little faster than normal because of a certain boy and his antics, and you’re walking towards him right now.
shit. do you look good? you hope you do. because– actually, you don’t know why. he’s seen you in worse attire.
“there she is. the lady, the woman, the icon,” sunoo’s loud voice greets you as you step into the room, and it is also the last thing you hear before you find yourself in a bone crushing hug from said boy.
a small laugh leaves your lips, as you ruffle the younger boy’s hair before greeting the rest of the room.
heeseung smiles at you, greeting you with a side hug, before asking “what pizza would you like?”
“i’m not sur—” you begin to say, but jay shoves the phone in your hand letting you scroll through the options yourself. you thank him, pulling out of heeseung’s embrace and collapsing on the sofa beside your brother.
placing your order, you hand the phone to sunghoon, who sticks his hand out for you, clicking his tongue in impatience, teasing you for being so slow. you smack his hand lightly, watching as he feigns hurt, sending the room into bursts of laughter.
ni-ki– the youngest of the group– true to his age and flings himself onto the sofa, landing on everybody with a small “oof”
groans and cries fill the room, cursing the younger boy. he yells in protest as everyone pushes him down.
as jake pulls out a deck of uno cards from his bag, you ask “why do you even have that?” sliding down onto the floor alongside sunghoon.
he grins, “preparation.” was all he offered.
jungwon and heeseung bring out the drinks as everyone not-so patiently waits for the food. during the third game of uno– after multiple accusations of cheating, dramatic threats to end friendships, and cries of frustration and happiness– the pizza finally arrives, much to everyone's happiness.
“thank the lord, my stomach’s been growling like i haven’t fed it for years.” heeseung groans dramatically, lying down on the floor, clutching his stomach.
cans of soft drinks and boxes of pizza are spread all around you, and of course no plates, because at the end of the day you guys are still lazy high school students who hate doing the dishes.
the hum of something upbeat plays softly in the background, but no one really pays it any mind; everyone is busy stuffing themselves full and talking their hearts out.
at the moment, jay and sunghoon are arguing about some assignment and the rest of the room is just passing comments and watching, occasionally giggling at them. you shift closer to sunghoon, and without looking away from jay, he scoots over to make room. you grab the can from his hand and take a sip. sunghoon lets you, too caught up, trying to prove his point.
you giggle, watching jay animatedly mimic sunghoon, and pass the drink back. without even pausing for a moment, he grabs it and takes a swig before placing it down on the floor, his his hands flying wildly as he loudly threatens jay.
the whole group is clutching their stomachs, falling backwards laughing and enjoying the argument. well, everyone except jake. his eyes are fixed on the can sunghoon placed on the ground.
a faint trace of your lipgloss was left on the can. the very same spot you had taken a sip out of? sunghoon had taken one too.
it was stupid really. very stupid. but he couldn’t stop staring at the can’s rim and he couldn't figure out why his stomach twisted so uncomfortably.
a particularly loud laugh breaks through the room, but his eyes snap towards your figure. he doesn’t know why you’re laughing, but he does know he wishes he caused it instead. and he really wished it was him you were leaning on instead.
he plays along, laughing as well. he moves to grab another slice of pizza when his hand brushes yours. sparks shoot through his body. he pulls his hand away, muttering a quick sorry, pushing the slice towards you. you stare at him for a second, grabbing the slice. your smile widens a little more.
a warm feeling engulfs you, and without your knowledge your smile widens as well. you hum along to the song playing in the background, suddenly feeling a little happier.
sunghoon turns to you and raises an eye-brow. as if asking why the sudden increase in happiness. amongst the screaming chaos, he lowers his head to hear you better.
and ni-ki, always the menace, notices. big mistake. “sunghoon making them moves,” he teases, his voice exaggerating every syllable.
you only roll your eyes and sunghoon threatens to hit the kid, but no one realises how jake’s smile has disappeared from his face.
“okay guys, pack it up. it’s getting really late.” heeseung announces. “ni-ki, sunoo, i’m dropping the two of you,” he informs, as he gets up picking up the empty boxes of pizza walking past the rest of you, to the kitchen. you follow the man, grabbing a bunch of empty cans, and jake joins you.
you walk in silence, shoulders brushing, to the kitchen. and god, that shouldn’t give you butterflies. but it does. you’re absolutely screwed.
pen spinning in your hand, you’re trying your best not to fall asleep in class. yunah is dozing off right beside you, and you sigh. you’re watching the clock tick on the wall, wishing time goes faster.
slumping against the chair as you watch jake answer something you don’t even know the question of.
god, he looks so pretty with the sleeves of his hoodie rolled back and those thick black framed glasses with his fluffy hair falling into his eyes.
with ten minutes to spare, your teacher announces a group project worth forty-five percent of your grade. you rolling your eyes, because god. you hate group projects.
“yang y/n, don’t roll your eyes.” your teachers colds, because of course he had to notice. you mutter a quick sorry, before you turn towards your best friend, opening your mouth to ask her to be partners.
your teacher clears his throat, getting the class’s attention once more. “before you decide who to partner with, i’ve already assigned—” and he is cut off by loud groans and whines.
he only shakes his head, “i know, you guys are never happy. i’ll announce the groups and no changes will be made. these groups are final.” he says, his eyes narrowing and moving across the room, as if waiting for anyone to disagree with him.
you let your head fall to the table, a group project. with your classmates. amazing.
he starts announcing groups one-by-one. “kim nari, park juhoon, kang…”
four or five groups later, yunah perks up as she hears her name, and immediately lets out a disappointed moan when she realises the two of you weren’t paired together.
bouncing your leg, you get increasingly anxious watching all the tolerable people in your class get put into teams.
god, you hoped you got a good group.
“sim jaeyun, choi jiwoo, park sunghoon and yang y/n.” the teacher announces, finally.
you heave a sigh of relief as you learn sunghoon and jake were in your group. you didn’t talk to jiwoo but she seemed like a nice girl. but the thought of working with jake? made you a little nervous.
the bell rings, and the teacher walks out– the last class finally dismissed. you sling your bag over your shoulder, walking out with yunah.
feeling a slight tap against your shoulder, you spin around to see choi jiwoo in front of you. you only tilt your head, waiting for her to speak as you wave yunah off.
“uhm–” she stutters, “i need your instagram? or number, preferably? for the project?” she speaks, her voice soft, but sounding a little unsure.
“yeah, sure.” you say, “could i have your phone? i’ll add it in.” the girl fumbles a little with her bag, as if shocked you were so easy to convince– or for that matter– talk to. you type in your name and number, then save it. she thanks you, and you brush it off, turning around to go find your friends.
you’re drying your hair when you notice you’re in a group chat. you pick your phone up, realising it was the one for the project. everyone is active, how convenient, you think.
unknown hi guys! it’s me jiwoo, is it fine if we meet up tom after school for the project? in the library, if everyone’s good with that! sunghoon sure jake of course!
you reply with a thumbs up, making a mental note to postpone your dinner with jungwon for tomorrow.
and that’s how you find yourself seated across from sim jaeyun at four-o-clock the next evening. the four of you quickly decide on how to split the work, and then settle to do your work. it wasn’t a difficult project, it was just a little lengthy.
the four of you work in silence, the only noise noise comes from keyboards clicking and pages turning.
the silence only lasts for about forty minutes before sunghoon starts twisting in his seat, complainging about his back being stiff. everyone cracks a smile at his statement, and jake snorts. “it’s the grandpa in you,” he mocks, his grin only widening when sunghoon glares at him.
“i’m going to go get some drinks and snacks from the cafe across the campus. what do you guys want?” sunghoon asks, getting up from his seat, grabbing his phone and wallet from his bag.
once he leaves, you shift your attention back to your screen, reading through the article, looking for points to support your arguments. that’s when you feel jiwoo’s eyes on you. the girl sitting next to you stops typing, stares at her screen, then deletes a whole paragraph. scribbles something down, then scratches it.
she lets out a little frustrated sigh, before glancing at you once more. she opens her mouth, as if to say something, but shuts it– thinking better of it.
you glance towards her and she averts her eyes, choosing to focus on her screen instead. you tap the desk once, gaining her attention. “need something?” you ask, voice light.
“uhh, yeah actually. thank you. i’m kinda stuck here.” she says, pushing her screen towards you. you hum, looking at her screen. “see here?” you say, pointing at her screen. she nods, watching you with utmost attention.
you explain her mistake to her carefully, making sure she understands where she went wrong, and pointing her toward the section she should cite. understanding dawns her face when she gets it. she smiles brightly and thanks you, and you just nod, turning back to your screen.
you get up from your seat, muttering something about getting a book. you stretch as you search for the book you need, smiling slightly when you find it.
you take the longer way back, wanting to stretch your legs out properly. and when you reach the table, your eyes narrow and your jaw clenches. because apparently jake migrated to your spot and claimed it his– during your little stroll around the library– to sit next to jiwoo. and they were sitting so close.
you walk closer, watching jiwoo giggle at something jake said. lord since when does he smile that wide? and holy shit, jiwoo. he cannot be that funny, you thought. they didn’t even realise you reached the table, until you cleared your throat.
“sorry, she just need some help, i hope you don’t mind me taking your spot,” jake says, his grin not fading.
you only nod, pulling your things towards you, before taking a seat in his chair.
jiwoo’s eyes shoot towards you for a second, watching your reaction before deciding you were fine and then going back to listening to jake. and you focused back on your work. but suddenly, it seems as if you lost all the willpower to work because you can’t seem to ignore the way jake and jiwoo are speaking, forgetting your presence as if you weren’t even there!
you sigh, removing your glasses and rubbing your eyes. you stretch and when you open your eyes, a cold coffee materializes in front of you. you turn around, to be greeted by the sight of sunghoon– the world’s slowest delivery boy– giving everyone else's drinks.
you thank him, but even to your own ears your voice comes out flatter than usual. he still catches it, raising an eyebrow, questioning your tone. you shake your head, trying to tell him it’s nothing. but you weren’t able to stop the way your eyes flicked to the pair sitting across you.
understanding dawns on sunghoon’s face, and a cheeky grin begins to form. he takes a seat beside you, trying to stop laughing.
jake notices, and asks “what’s up? why do you look like you're laugh away from taking a shit in your pants? ” sunghoon snorts and waves his question off, glancing around the table, catching you crack a small smile while jiwoo bursts into laughter.
the table quiets again, everyone getting absorbed in their work. well, everyone except sunghoon. that man was buzzing with the urge to say something, and only you knew what it was.
kissing your teeth, you suck in a sharp breath, rolling your eyes as you feel sunghoon’s gaze on you once again. you watch him choose to stare at jake from the corner of your eye– after disguising a snicker as a cough.
jake looks up, catching sunghoon stare at him with a smirk on his face. he lifts an eyebrow, tilting his head only for sunghoon to ignore him, who instead chooses to take a sip from his drink.
you spend the next hour, controlling the urge to hit sunghoon and avoid glancing at jake and jiwoo interact. and that goal? not going very well. your eyes keep shifting upwards– but you convince yourself it’s because they’re seated right in front of you. and not because you're jealous or anything. because that would be ridiculous. …right? you can’t be jealous. you aren’t even dating.
because you would never date jake sim right? you can’t. that’s weird.
when the clock hits six, jiwoo rises after packing her things, “i have to leave, i have practice in sometime. text me updates on what you do, and when we meet next! bye!”
she leaves quickly, leaving it to you, sunghoon, and jake.
“so?” sunghoon says, in that specific tone that has you resisting the urge to kick him under the table.
“so, what?” jake and you reply at the same time. you glance at him through the corner of your eyes, only to find him already looking. your face warms. and sunghoon catches it all. of course he does.
“are we going to continue working? or call it a day?” sunghoon asks, trying too hard to keep his tone casual. and you could have sworn that was not what he was going to say. but thank god he didn’t. because if he had, you might have actually jumped at him.
jake, somehow oblivious as ever, questions none of his friend’s weird behavior– and yours for the fact– and replies “we can leave, i’m kind of tired too, i might go mad soon” earning a tired laugh from you.
busy packing away your things, you fail to see the way jake pauses just to watch you laugh. jake’s eyes flick towards sunghoon, who is trying not to laugh and smirks at him, and raises an eyebrow when he catches jake’s eye.
“what?” jake mouths, confused at the other boy’s teasing actions. what could he possibly being teasing him about?
sunghoon’s smirk widens further, and let out a small laugh, gaining your attention as well.
you stare at him, unimpressed and annoyed, and jake looks at his best friend confused and slightly irritated.
the three of you walk out, casually talking about the latest gossip going around your grade. though the guys were more invested in it than you were. whoever decided women gossip more than men needs to get themselves some proper guy friends.
mid-way through the conversation, when you’re about five minutes out of the building, jake stops. he frantically pats his pockets, while a look of horror flashes on his face. “i left my phone in the building,” he groans.
“go get it then, puppy boy. should we wait?” sunghoon asks, as he stops– turning towards the other boy. jake shakes his head, telling you and sunghoon to move on and that he’ll catch up with the two of you. you shrug, telling him you'd walk slowly, and he just smiles and sprints the opposite direction and into the building.
and that was your big mistake. the moment the boy was out of earshot, sunghoon turns to you as you begin to walk. a grin that makes your hands itch to hit him forms on his face, and you knew he'd finally found the opportunity he'd been waiting for.
“so,” he begins. and this time, you deliver a light punch to his side. shooting him a glare, as if saying ‘don’t even try’. he doesn’t get the hint– or he just doesn’t care, and says “you and jake, huh?”
watching your ears turn red, his smirk widens further. “well well well, what do we have here? the yang y/n blushing over a man? much less her brother’s best friend. oh! what a sight to— OW!” he screams, clutching his arm in pain as he jumps slightly away from you. he looks at you in shock and then looks at his arm and the tiny little mark of where you pinched him. you simply stare at him, face burning.
honestly? you just prayed you weren’t in competition to be the brightest tomato in existence. your glare sharpens, watching the man double down, clutching his stomach in laughter. sunghoon’s wheezing when he finally gets up, and slings an arm over your shoulder.
“oh c’mon. it’s not the end of the world, jake’s a really good guy, yeah? and i’m not saying this because he’s my bestfriend, scout’s honour.” he says lifting his other hand and placing it on his chest, solemnly– as if he was pledging to the country’s honour. you groan, trying to duck out from beneath his arm, but Sunghoon only laughs and tightens his grip for another second.
and what neither of you notices is jake returning, his chest slightly heaving. and his jaw clenches, watching sunghoon’s arm around you and— wait. were you blushing? jake couldn’t help but feel angry. and his stomach twists, uncomfortably. because that’s his best friend, not some random dude. he stops in his tracks, his phone falling from his hand.
you turn at the sound, and pull yourself out of sunghoon’s embrace. you turn even more red, watching jake scramble to pick up his phone. your eyes shift between sunghoon and jake, praying he didn’t hear a word of the conversation you just had.
sunghoon opens his arms, his grin widening. you could basically hear him think, ‘perfect timing’. “jakey-poo, my boy!” he says, running towards jake like a heartbroken wife of a man sent off to the military. and jake, because he refuses to show his upset mood, hugs him back. and on sunghoon’s hoodie? he catches the very faint smell of your perfume. his jaw clenches, and he breathes in heavily, trying to calm himself– because he shouldn't feel like this.
you just watch the two of them hug, rolling your eyes. when you click your tongue, sunghoon looks up, smirks and says, “you’re just jealous because i have someone who'll put up with me and will hug me.” and he does all this while clutching jake a little harder.
his grin widens and he sees your eyes narrow.
“okay, boys. pack it up, we don’t have time for you to make-out right now. i have a dinner to attend and i don’t want to be anymore late than i am. and if i miss the bus, i’ll make sure the two of you won’t hear the end of it,” you say, clapping your hands and sharpening your glare.
sunghoon releases jake from his grip, jumping slightly to mimic a sailor listening to his captains command, “aye-aye captain!” he says, pulling jake along with him to match your strides.
all this while, jake hasn’t said a word. his hands stayed clenched at his sides, and his jaw clenched slightly. all that good mood from earlier disappeared within five minutes.
you wave the two boys off with a small smile, when you get on the bus. they watch the bus begin to move before walking back home together. normally, it’s loud, chaotic and filled with teasing each other about something dumb. but right now? it’s a one-sided conversation.
sunghoon is the only one contributing to the noise, talking about something dumb that happened in a league match between him and heeseung. jake doesn’t miss the way sunghoon keeps glancing at him, but he cannot find it in him to act normal.
five minutes into the walk, sunghoon stops, grabbing jake’s elbow and forcing jake to turn towards him. “okay, we aren’t doing this. what’s going on? you were fine like sometime ago. what crawled up your ass in the span of fifteen minutes.”
jake just huffs, rolling his eyes, “i don’t know, maybe you were too busy to realise.” he begins to walk, leaving sunghoon standing there alone.
he catches up with two long strides, “what’s that supposed to mean?” he asks, genuinely confused.
“you,” jake replies, without turning to look at his best friend.
“me?” sunghoon repeats, pointing at himself. “what did i do?”
jake glances at sunghoon, releasing an irritated breath, “don’t act stupid.”
sunghoon just stares at him, bewildered. then, like someone flipped a switch, understanding dawns on his face and a sly grin forms.
“jakey-poo, are you jealous?” he snickers. jake turns towards his best friend so fast, his neck cracked.
“what? no.” he pauses, “why the hell would i be jealous. you can do whatever you want with her. not like you haven’t already,” he raps out, his ears turning bright.
“uh-huh. then why are you so pressed?” sunghoon asks, but he’s speaking like he already knows something jake doesn’t. he’s withholding some information. and that pisses him off more.
“i’m not actually. i’m perfectly chill,” jake says, trying to make himself sound casual. but even his own ears don’t believe it. sunghoon just raises his eyebrow, questioning it.
“oh really? that’s why you said ‘not like i haven’t already’? then tell me– if it doesn’t bother you– what i did.”
jake clicks his tongue, refusing to speak. “c’mon puppy boy, i can wait for you all day.”
“you’re all so– so close, yeah? two days ago at their house, today. whenever. i don’t know.” jake spits out.
“jake, my darling, my dear bestfriend. we’ve always been so close.” sunghoon says, his tone dramatic as always.
“so?”
“so? why does it bother you know?”
sunghoon only meets with silence. jake still isn’t looking at him and he waits, before he continues.
“it didn’t bother you last year. hell, it didn’t bother you half a year ago,” he pauses, letting his words sink in. “so what changed now?”
jake’s steps falter for a moment, before he resumes walking. he couldn’t even say anything. because it was true. sunghoon and y/n have always been close. and it was also true he just started becoming aware of it. before? he never batted an eye when she hugged sunghoon, or laughed with him, or teased him. but now? it brings something mean inside him.
“jake, you don’t get jealous because she’s around me. you get jealous because you wish she was around you, instead.”
jake stops. just stops walking. his fingers clutch the strap of his bag a little tighter. because sunghoon wasn’t speaking bullshit, he was confirming something jake already subconsciously knew.
and sunghoon, he just waited patiently beside jake. watching him, carefully. but made sure not to pressurise him into anything.
the road seems to quiet for a moment. “oh.” was the only sound that left jake’s mouth. and at that, sunghoon smiles and claps him on the back, “took you long enough,” he laughs. and jake? couldn’t help but laugh too.
“i’m sorry i got annoyed, it was weird of me.” jake apologizes.
“dude, don’t worry about it. it happens, not to me obviously– i’m too perfect for all of that, but–” and he was cut off by jake elbowing him in the ribs and the two of them burst out laughing.
over the next few days? your crush on jake seems to grow.
not because he suddenly did something new. it just felt like he was a little more intentional with his actions and words. but you were pretty sure you were imagining it, because jake’s a nice guy. and you’re just confusing it because you like him.
he walks you back home– or to the bus stop– more often these days, always saying he was going the same way anyways. but then again, with how often he was at your house– it just might be true. the way you seem to catch his eyes in the hallways more often. the way his gaze always found you, when he entered your house, before sending a bright smile towards you.
and suddenly, you were more aware of the way he remembered things about you. he remembered the way you take your coffee– extra milk, less sugar– but he’d seen you order it for years, the specific brand of pens you like, the fact that you always forgot a hair tie somewhere. but it didn’t mean anything. right? jake was just observant and kind to everyone, he did it without ceremony and without thought. he did it like it was effortless, and as simple as breathing.
sometimes, at home, when the guys are around, every time you laugh, you feel his eyes on you. not in a weird way. but just a quick glance, before looking away again.
maybe you were just noticing it now because of your stupid little crush.
so when he joined you on your walk back home on a friday evening, you didn’t think anything of it. the sky was cloudy, and gloomy. and the weather was your favourite. so you chose to walk back, instead of taking the bus. and jake? he just followed, because you assumed he was going the same way.
he followed you, unquestioning, when you walked past the bus stop– despite knowing neither of you had carried an umbrella and could get drenched in the rain.
the walk was quiet today. none of the regular banter the two of you usually shared. and strangely enough, you were very grateful for it.
then without much ceremony, the rain begins to fall. not pouring, but enough for their clothes to start getting wet. and enough to make you smile. you laugh feeling the rain on your skin. stopping for a moment, just basking in the feeling of the water hitting your skin.
and jake stops beside you. smiling, as he watches you enjoy the rain. he doesn't seem to care that he's getting soaked too. his attention never leaves you.
he stands there, arms crossed in the rain watching you twirl around, hair let loose and getting soaked in the rain.
then you stop, “what?” you ask, catching him watch you.
he just shrugs, smile widening. “nothing,” he says.
you just tilt your head at him, but the grin? it never leaves your face. and jake? his heart started to melt.
“actually,” he blurts out.
you wait, watching him. and he feels your attention on him. he sighs before speaking.
“i was going to wait for a better time, but i guess you had other plans,” he starts.
“me?” you ask, confused.
jake laughs, “yes, you, y/n.”
“what did i do?” you ask.
“you made me fall for you.” he says, like it’s the simplest thing in the world.
you freeze. “what…” was all you could say.
and jake’s heart drops to his ass. oh no, did he just ruin years worth of friendship? was this going to make it awk—
“are you joking?” you interrupt his inner monologue. you ask like you’re genuinely shocked. like it’s something you never ever considered before.
he laughs awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck, “no, uhm, i’m not. i really like you, for real. and uh, it’s okay if you don’t like me ba–”
“jake.” he stops, looking up.
“shut up.” he starts panicking, overthinking everything.
“you dumbass, i’ve liked you for so long too. since– since the movie incident actually.” you say.
jake lights up hearing your words, like you just handed him the world. “the movie incident? like the one where you accidentally fell asleep on me?” he’s smiling now, the teasing grin and tone back.
“shut up, don’t remind me” you say, rolling your eyes– but you can’t stop smiling. his grin widens, and he steps closer. “hey! you brought it up,” he says, laughing and he offers his hand to you.
you take it, intertwining your fingers. you gasp and stumble against him when he pulls you closer. he laughs as you hit his chest with your free hand.
he spins you around, and you giggle. and you’re suddenly aware of the way his eyes are on you, unwavering and filled with so much admiration. his arm sneaks around your waist, pulling undeniably close. his eyes flicker to your lips for a second before settling back on your eyes. your hands finds its way onto his chest.
his gaze lingers for a moment, searching yours before asking, “can i?” and the world around you seems to quiet.
he waits as you try to find the words, but they get stuck in your throat. so you nod. and he smiles, “thank you,” before leaning towards you slowly, giving you every chance to pull away.
you don’t. instead your hands wrap around his neck, and you stand on the tips of your toes as you meet him half way. his free hand cups your jaw as he finally kisses you.
his lips are warm despite the cold, and it’s so gentle– like he’s still in shock that this is all real. the kiss is everything you hadn't realised you'd been hoping for. soft. unhurried. gentle enough to make you wonder why you'd spent so many months pretending you didn't like him.
his forehead rests against yours for the briefest moment before he closes the distance again. this kiss is a little surer than the first, lingering just long enough to make your heart race. his thumb brushes lightly across your cheek, and you smile against his lips.
his arm around your waist tightens ever so slightly, steadying you as your knees threaten to give out. and god, you're suddenly very grateful for the hold he has on your waist. you're pretty sure he can feel your heart pounding against his chest.
when you finally pull away, you’re still in his embrace and your arms are still around his neck. you're both smiling– small, almost disbelieving smiles.
“hi,” jake says quietly.
and you laugh, unable to stop yourself. “hi.”
“okay, i have something important to ask you,” jake asks, still smiling.
you hum, tilting your head upwards, watching him, “yang y/n, will you do me the honour of letting me be your boyfriend” he says, like a dork.
you burst out laughing, “why would i even say no?” you say. and he places a small kiss on your forehead, muttering that he just wanted to be sure.
that’s when it starts pouring, and the two of you laugh. he grabs your hand as you sprint towards your house. still smiling, still feeling his lips on yours.
when you burst into the house, soaking wet, giggling, hands still intertwined, dropping your soaked bags by the entrance, you're met with six pairs of eyes staring at you.
silence follows. sunghoon, the one closest to the two of you, looks at your hands, then back up. and all hell breaks loose.
“ABOUT DAMN TIME” sunoo and ni-ki scream.
“right? i was starting to wonder whether i’d have to force them to confess or they’d do something before” jay says.
sunghoon here, is taking all the credit, claiming he orchestrated this moment and heeseung laughs, shaking his head.
and jungwon stands there pinching the bridge of his nose, “seriously?” he says. but there’s no bite to it, he’s smiling as well.
“okay i need the deets.” sunoo says. you and jake share a glance before laughing and join the group.
“who confessed first?” jay asks.
“me,” jake says, but he was looking at you. not at jay.
“ATTA BOY. THAT’S MY MAN. NI-KI PAY UP,” sunghoon screams as ni-ki groans and collapses on the ground.
“you placed bets?” you asked, laughing in disbelief.
“in my defense, i had faith in our lover boy over here.” sunghoon replied.
“you called me a dumbass yesterday?” jake shot back immdiately.
“well, you are an idiot. and idiot in love” heeseung says, laughing as he dodges a pillow thrown by jake.
ni-ki asks, “okay, but the important question. did. you. kiss.” and the silence and red faces was enough to send the whole house in screams.
“wait!” sunoo suddenly disappears into the kitchen before returning with a handful of cans of soft drinks, passing one to everyone.
sunghoon pops open the can, and toasts, “to the best twenty bucks i’ve ever made,” sending the whole group to fits of laughter. with a small echo of “to jake and y/n!”
tags : @ikeu05 @wonscrchy @jaehyp @kristynaaah @wonubug @hyuckzcult @sjynlvr
