Work Text:
*.❤︎₊ ⊹
If there’s anything you hated the most about college (aside from the ever surmounting tuition fees), it would be mandated group projects. It was a lose-lose situation; a group of strangers almost never divided the work fairly, and you’d found that even working with friends often strained the relationship until the dust settled. The most offensive group projects of them all, in your opinion, always included randomized group members that you’d be stuck with for the entire term.
So when you walk into the second session for your Intro to Material Science class and see group project spread across each week’s coursework plan, you feel like crying. Even worse, you see that group selection occurred during the last class period, which you missed due to a doctor’s appointment. At the time you’d thought that missing syllabus day wouldn’t hurt, but for once that had been the worst timing possible.
Professor Jang lectures for half of the class period before flipping to a slide that just reads Group Time!
“Now,” your professor says with a clap of his hands. “I am giving you the rare but useful opportunity to work on your group project in class with your groupmates. Remember—if you haven’t already exchanged contact information, please do so. While these groups will also be your small groups for in-class discussions and problems, I will probably not be giving you a lot of chances to work on your actual project during class.”
You slink up to your TA as the other students shuffle themselves into their groups.
“Hi,” you say with a nervous laugh. “I was gone last class, could I have some help finding my group?”
“Sure!” Your TA says with a smile. When you’ve given her your name, she scrolls through a list on her laptop. “So it says right here that your partners are Jeong Jaehyun, Lee Mark, and–”
You hear a familiar voice shout your name, and all the hairs on your neck stand on end. You turn around slowly, and sure enough—
It’s Jungwoo waving you down to his table at the far corner of the room. His energy far exceeds the enthusiasm of the other two group members, who tap through their phones in bored scrolls.
You’d first encountered Kim Jungwoo on the very first day of college. You’d stumbled into your first Intro to Engineering class scared of your impending course load and nervous to meet new people. You’d claimed a safe enough seat—not too close to the front, but also not in the dead back—and been caught off guard when your seat partner immediately turned to introduce himself. At the time Jungwoo had been a welcome source of social relief, especially when you ended up being paired in a group project together in that same class.
It wasn’t that Jungwoo had a bad work ethic or couldn’t grasp the concerts. He was simply too smart and involved for his own good. Among a wave of socially awkward engineering students, he was quick to take charge and transform the atmosphere into something more comfortable. Guys loved him, and you could see girls developing crushes on him in real time.
While his charisma was something you’d usually appreciate in the midst of meeting random people, he always seemed to enjoy messing with you in particular. He looped you in as the butt of the joke constantly with the guys. When you had to split into pairs and girls would turn to him with a hopeful sheen in their eyes, you would see their hope transform into hatred when he would turn to trap you as his partner. In your small bubble that was desperate to make friends in your own major, Kim Jungwoo was the reason why the girls hated you and the guys couldn’t take you seriously. As if it wasn’t bad enough, he outperformed you on nearly every single quiz, homework assignment, and exam possible.
On top of it all, you’d been paired with him in at least one group project every term since that very first class together. In your third year, this most recent project would now tally into a grand total of nine projects together. Nine projects and zero new friends.
Jungwoo continues waving until you’ve reached the group’s spot. “I’m surprised you didn’t see me earlier. I was trying to wave you down before you walked up to the TA.”
You shrug. “I was too focused, I guess.”
The other two group mates at the table look up from their phones when they hear your voice.
“My name’s Mark,” the first guy says while extending his hand. He has a slight baby face that makes you pause.
“You’re a third year?” You ask, the shock protruding through your voice.
He slouches. “First year.”
“He already took all of the early math requirements before enrolling, so he’s taking all the classes with no prerequisites,” Jungwoo explains. Intro to Material Science was one of the few engineering classes with no prerequisites, but most people took it in their last two years since there weren’t many upper division classes that required it either.
“You must be smart, then,” you smile.
Mark mumbles something under his breath that you don’t catch.
You’re about to ask him to repeat when the second guy at the table extends his hand. “Jaehyun. In my last year.”
You gulp. Jaehyun is what you would typically describe as your type, down to his deep voice and strong features. You stammer through your name and year before opening your laptop in the desperate hope of concealing your brain short circuiting.
You feel Jungwoo’s stare as you stumble through your introduction. His eyes don’t leave your face, even as you’re pulling up the project description from the course website. When it starts to make it difficult for you to focus on what you’re reading at all, you whip your gaze over to meet his.
“Why do you keep staring at me?” You hiss at him as Mark and Jaehyun are engaged in some sort of conversation about music. “Do I have something on my face?”
“No.” His face is uncharacteristically blank.
“Then what?”
“Nothing,” he says, turning away.
It’s the most terse he’s ever been with you. Of all the times you’ve wished he would stop talking, of course he ignores you when you actually want him to speak on something.
For once, you’re the one taking hold of the conversation with your other two groupmates. You find out the three of them are actually old friends and that both Jaehyun and Mark are taking the class as part of a minor.
“Ah, I was wondering how I’d never met either of you before,” you say as you lean back in your chair. “Although, now that I think about it, I somehow haven’t met any of your friends outside of our engineering major—right, Jungwoo?”
“Yeah,” Jungwoo replies without glancing up. He’s typing on a slide titled Busy Dog Incorporated, which is supposedly the fake company name your group mates had settled on for the project. “Weird.”
Mark and Jaehyun exchange a look.
“He probably knows that we’d make him look bad in front of his engineering friends,” Jaehyun jokes.
You’re grateful to Jaehyun for saving you from a completely awkward atmosphere yet too intimidated to maintain eye contact with him. You look back down at your laptop with a nervous laugh. When you work up the courage to peek around at the group again, Jungwoo’s gaze is lasered back in on you.
His stare is so unexpectedly intense that it makes your heart jump in your chest. You’d always seen Jungwoo as a guy too chatty and goofy for his own good, but you’re taken aback by the seriousness in his eyes. Had you done something wrong?
You’re relieved when you hear the sound of zipping and shuffling as people start to leave, and you quickly follow suit. It’s only when you pack up your things that you realize your next class is specific to mechanical engineering students, which means you and Jungwoo will in fact be heading to the same destination.
Not wanting to be rude, you face Jaehyun and Mark. “It was nice meeting you both,” you say with a polite smile. “I’ll see you guys again next class?”
Jaehyun opens his mouth to say something, but he’s interrupted as something hooks onto the top handle loop of your backpack. Your torso is lifted up and turned around in the complete opposite direction.
“Let’s go.” The tone in Jungwoo’s voice is back to normal in its casualness, but his grip on your bag is ironclad. “We’re gonna be late. See you guys!”
You barely have time to turn around with a final wave before Jungwoo marches you out of the lecture hall like a puppy being dragged by its scruff.
Outside of the room’s double doors, you tug yourself free. “Jeez, chill out. I can walk by myself, you know.”
“I was just making sure we left on time.” He shrugs. “You missed the first lecture for this class too, but he announced that we have a quiz for attendance at the beginning of class today.”
Your eye twitches in irritation. “Why didn’t you just say that?”
The two of you are sprinting across campus in the next instant.
He’s laughing and shouting absurdities into the wind, and you’re staring at him like he’s a crazed wild animal. Your mind struggles to compare his current hyperactiveness with the intensity from earlier. Did something happen? Why on earth was he being so weird today?
*.❤︎₊ ⊹
You look forward to your materials class with a cautious optimism about the possibility of developing new class friendships. Jaehyun had spoken to you easily, after all, and Mark seemed friendly enough. There was a lower chance of the conversation being swept away by Jungwoo’s charm, since they seemed to know each other well already.
When you scan the seats in the lecture hall and only find one empty seat next to Jungwoo himself, you feel your heart sink.
“Your friends couldn’t make it today?” You ask as casually as possible.
Jungwoo shrugs. “Mark had to study for another class, and Jaehyun had work.”
“He scheduled work during class?” Jaehyun seemed relatively laid back, but not that relaxed.
“This class is just for their minors, and attendance isn’t mandatory.” His eyes slide to yours. “Why? Did you need to talk to him?”
“I–no.” You trip on your own words. You were not about to admit that you had gotten excited about the mere prospect of class friends. “I was just curious.”
You figure their absences will vary like any other busy college student, but you’re proven wrong the next class when neither show face yet again. Or the next week.
It’s the strangest project dynamic yet. Sure, you hate randomly assigned group projects, but you also prefer that your groupmates show up. Both guys complete all their work on time and respond almost instantaneously in the group chat, which perplexes you even more. Since they were at your every beck and call virtually, they could very well just come to class.
You try to go around the attendance issue by using the group chat to schedule a casual project meetup outside of class. It’s giving them the benefit of the doubt, really. You’re outside the doors of the meeting place–your favorite cafe on campus–when your phone vibrates three times.
Jungwoo’s first. Just sat down :)
Mark’s message pops up next: Can’t make it today guys, I have to go back home this weekend :( Sorry about the last minute cancellation, lmk if I need to update anything on my side!
Jaehyun follows within the same minute: can’t make it either, had to pick up someone’s shift as a favor.
You throw the cafe door open and march inside. When Jungwoo waves from a table in the far corner, you change direction and stomp towards him.
“Did I do something to piss off your friends?”
“Uh, hi to you too—”
Your nostrils flare as you release your temper. “I’m being serious! Why are they being so flaky?”
“Hey, I have no idea what you’re talking about.” He throws his hands up. “Are they not coming anymore?”
You flip your phone around to display the group chat, too impatient to wait for him to take out his own phone.
He reads the messages before sighing. “I promise I didn’t know.”
“You really promise?”
“I didn’t!”
You glare and scan him for any trace of dishonesty. Nearly three years of group work together had exposed you to most of Jungwoo’s mannerisms, down to the minute changes in his facial expressions and body language. In this case, his wide eyes and frozen shoulders speak for themselves—he genuinely had no idea that they would cancel.
“Fine,” you sigh. “We can still go over what we need to. Let me order my drink first.”
“Oh,” Jungwoo gestures at the two drinks on the table. “I already got yours.”
You place your things down across from him and take a careful sip of the drink. The taste is familiar and pleasant—your favorite. “This is my order?”
His lips twitch upwards. “Yeah, I know. That’s why I ordered it.”
“How did you know which one to get?”
“Most of our group project meetings have been here or at other cafes across campus.” Jungwoo types away on his computer without looking up, but the tips of his ears redden at the line of questioning. “You get the same thing every time regardless of the place.”
He’s right. You typically don’t deviate away from your usual order, unless there’s a promotion that really catches your eye.
“Why didn’t you order any for Mark or Jaehyun?” You ask. “Before you knew they weren’t coming.”
“I’ve never gotten coffee with them,” he shrugs. “I don’t know their orders.”
You think out loud. “Do I know yours?”
He lowers his drink out of sight so that you can’t peek. “I don’t know, do you?”
Even though you posed the question, the answer comes out of your mouth naturally. “Iced Americano?”
Jungwoo smiles and raises the dark drink from below the table up to his lips. “I would’ve left if you got that wrong. You would’ve been the only group member left.”
You roll your eyes and call his bluff. “Liar. You don’t have the resolve to do something like that.” You open your own laptop and start clicking through the course website. “I’m telling you, all of this is a sign that we spend too much time together.”
A brief pause. When you glance upwards from your work, Jungwoo’s lips are curled upwards in a slight pout.
“I wouldn’t say that,” he says.
“I don’t think there’s been a single semester that we haven’t been paired together in some form,” you point out.
“Yeah, but it’s not like we see each other that much outside of class stuff,” he mutters. “So I wouldn’t say it’s too much time.”
His words make you pause. Being in the same major and projects had ingrained Jungwoo’s presence in your classes as a constant, but it’s only now that you realize how intertwined Jungwoo is in your daily life. You don’t remember when you had unconsciously memorized his drink order—let alone when you’d picked up the ability to read him so well based on the smallest habits and expressions.
On that topic, from the way he pouts and slouches in his seat, he’s clearly upset with you. When you think about it, he has been sulking much more than usual.
Despite his childish and borderline annoying behavior, you find yourself resisting the urge to lean across the table and smooth out the crinkle between his brows. His transparency is almost cute.
You shake yourself from the sudden thought. It must be the lack of sleep—you only slept three hours last night while cramming for tomorrow’s exam. You can begrudgingly accept that Jungwoo is the closest thing you have to a class friend, but seeing him as cute is so startling that you push it to the back of your mind.
Willing yourself to focus, you’re able to easily redirect the conversation toward the group project. Jungwoo participates with ease, but he never quite loses the slight pout in his expression. He’s like a deflating balloon, losing energy as the time moves on.
When you’re satisfied with your progress, you shut your laptop closed and stretch your arms overhead. “Looks good for now.”
“Nice,” Jungwoo yawns and mirrors your stretching. “Any other plans for today?”
“Probably just gonna go home, nap, then study more for our statics test tomorrow.” You feel a slight pang of guilt at not offering to study together, so you add, “I think that’s the plan, anyway. It’s also my roommate’s birthday, so I’m not sure if she wants to celebrate today or tomorrow.”
“Sheesh, glad I’m not you. You’re packed.”
The feeling of guilt dissipates immediately. Your eye twitches. “Thanks. I am well aware.”
He shrugs. “You’re smart, so you don’t have anything to worry about.”
“Uh, thanks?” Your heart jumps a little at the unexpected praise. Did he always compliment you this easily? It’s been a while since you’ve spent one-on-one time together outside of small partner work in class; you can’t remember what the dynamic is usually like with just the two of you.
If he senses your confusion, he doesn’t show it. “Don’t forget that we have that mini presentation Friday morning for Fluids. Should be easy, but I think we all still need to prep our slides.”
You wave him off as you’re both packing up your things. “Should be fine. Once I sit down and do it, I should be alright.”
Your chatter continues out of the coffee shop and towards the nearest bus stop. It’s a continuous train of thought between the two of you—upcoming events, complaining about professors, the whole works—and you’re still chatting until the campus bus passes on the opposite side of the street, signifying that it’ll make its final U-turn in a few minutes toward your stop.
You unzip your bag pocket to take out your transit card mid-vent. “That’s why I can’t stand working with Cathy on projects anymore. She’s so—wait, are you not getting on?”
Jungwoo looks amused. He reaches into his pocket and dangles his keys in front of you. “I drive myself now, remember?”
“What? You never told me that!” In previous years, you’d oftentimes run into him on the same bus line leaving campus. Depending on the timing of overlapped classes in your schedules, there were some semesters where the two of you would walk to the bus stop straight after class and sit together on the way home.
“I definitely did. Two weeks ago, when you were making googly eyes at Jaehyun–”
“I was not—wait,” you squint at him. “If you’re driving, why did you walk here with me?”
Jungwoo shrugs, sticking his hands back in his pockets. “It’s getting late.”
“So?” NCIT and its surrounding area was known as one of the safest college campuses.
“So, I didn’t want to make you walk and wait alone in the dark?”
“Very chivalrous,” you tease, “but not a very white knight thing for you to wait at the bus stop with me and then flex your new car without offering a ride.”
“And would you have let me give you a ride if I offered?”
“No.” You hated the feeling of being in debt to someone else’s good deeds.
“Right.” He rolls his eyes. “But yeah, I actually only walked you here just to brag about my car.”
“Obviously.”
The bus finally turns back around the corner, and there’s a sparkle in Jungwoo’s eyes that you don’t understand until a mischievous smirk spreads across his face.
“Well, for the record,” his voice lowers, “just text me if you need a lift. You can take a ride anytime.”
Your jaw drops, and you’re about to ask what the hell that means when you hear the bus doors open. The bus driver glares at the both of you.
“See ya!” Jungwoo’s voice is back to its chipper tone as you rush onto your bus.
You swipe through random apps on your phone in an attempt to look unaffected, but you still can’t resist peeking at Jungwoo’s waving figure until it disappears in the distance.
*.❤︎₊ ⊹
“He wants you so bad it’s embarrassing,” your roommate Lucy calls from the bathroom as she does her makeup.
“But I’ve never felt these…vibes from him before,” you frown from your place on the couch. You’ve put effort into tonight’s look, but Lucy always takes longer to get ready.
“Um, that’s wrong.” You can hear her eyes rolling from here. “I’ve been telling you that he’s been interested for years!”
“Okay, but your intuition sucks. You were wrong about that one barista, that guy from my writing class, Daniel–”
“I’m not immune to making mistakes, but you’d have to be blind to not see this one.”
“We’re not like that,” you insist as Lucy walks out into your shared living room.
“Yeah, yeah,” she rolls her eyes as she pours a round of four shots. “A socialable and cute guy in engineering gives you his undivided attention and bends to your every will? His one bad trait is that he's sometimes smarter than you? How horrible.”
You open your mouth to double down, unwilling to let the subject go, but the topic is cut short as there’s a knock at your door.
Lucy’s previous birthday celebrations had included tame activities such as group dinners or game nights. Drinking was never out of the question, exactly, but it was almost never the main focal point of the night. Lucy had decided to change course for this year, specifically requesting to go out to bars with her other close friends. You’d carpool with Marie and Jenny since they lived in the same apartment building, but the rest of the main group planned to meet up later.
“Is this your first time at college night?” Jenny asks with a smile during the Uber ride over.
“Unfortunately,” you grumble as Lucy whips around to glare at you. You’d successfully evaded attending college nights at your local bar—in general, you dislike running into people you know during nights out—and Lucy had taken it upon herself to weaponize her birthday as a way for you to break your soft boycott.
“You just hate drinking in public because you’re a drunk crier,” Lucy says with a smug smirk.
Jenny’s eyes widen. “You are?”
“I wouldn’t have guessed that,” Marie echoes.
“I’m not!” You insist.
“You’ll be fine,” Lucy says over the music. “There’s nothing happening at the bar that could possibly be tear-inducing anyway.”
Walking into the bar, the atmosphere itself immediately reminds you of why you generally stopped going out in the first place. The speakers are blasting with loud, bass-boosted music, you can barely see anything in the darkness, and, even if you could see anything, there’s so many people that it’s nearly impossible to move around.
“First round?” You manage to hear Lucy’s voice to your right.
“You’re lucky I love you,” you sigh as she tugs you along towards the bar.
Before you know it, the birthday girl herself has convinced you to take drink after drink until your head feels light and warm. You’re giggling and dancing with your girls without any pretenses, and your carefreeness relaxes even more when groups start to trickle out of the building. You can’t remember the last time you’d gone out and not felt any rush of social or academic anxiety ambush you.
When someone’s put it through your head that jello shots are somehow the next move, it’s your turn to wait at the bar until you can catch the bartender’s attention.
“I can help who’s next.” A familiar voice asks from just outside your field of vision. “What can I get you?”
You turn your head to lock eyes with a face you haven’t seen since the first week of classes. “Jaehyun?”
Jaehyun looks equal parts shocked and guilty. To his credit, he recovers quickly with a smile. “Been a while. Are you out with friends?”
Emboldened by the alcohol coursing through your system, you cross your arms over your chest. “Um, yeah, it’s been a while—since you stopped showing up to all in-class and out-of-class group meetups.”
“Right.” He swallows, his smile turning more sheepish.
“I thought you picked up shifts during class? Unless this bar is open in the morning, too?”
That seems to give him more confidence. “Would you believe me if I said this is my second job?”
“I’ll believe you a little more if you give me a round on the house as an apology.”
Four free jello shots later, you return to your group with a victorious spring in your step. You’re feeling considerably less on top of the world, however, when the jello shot sends you just over the side of being too drunk. Lucy and the rest of the group have been there, as they’re overall more lightweight than yourself, leaving you to remain reliable through your own haze.
You’re not doing a great job, as you lose the other two after the DJ plays Gasolina, which leaves you to manage an incredibly intoxicated Lucy.
“Let’s get you water, then I’m calling the Uber. With or without those two,” you command as you try to lead Lucy from a table and back toward the bar. It’s an empty threat to try and get her to behave–you’d never leave them out to dry like that–but it has the opposite effect.
“I don’t wanna,” she whines as she refuses to budge. “We all have to go together.”
You use all of your restraint to refrain from shaking her by her shoulders. “If I promise to find them, will you stay here without moving?”
She nods wordlessly.
You take off towards the bar while swearing under your breath. You take a quick look around for the other two to no avail.
Luckily, Jaehyun’s the next available bartender again. You show a group picture to him on your phone. “Have you seen either of these girls?”
He squints at the screen. “They were here maybe a few minutes ago? Went back that way?” He points from the direction you came.
You groan. Of course you barely missed them. “Two waters, please.”
“Coming up,” he laughs. Jaehyun slides the two cups across the counter, but not before his eyes flicker to something over your shoulder. He grins. “Here to close out your tab?”
A voice sounds right near your ear. “Very funny, Jaehyun.”
Your neck snaps around so fast you think you may have given yourself whiplash. Sure enough, Jungwoo stands right behind you, his shocked expression mirroring your own.
“Hey?” He blinks, and his brown eyes roam over your face as if you’re an illusion that could disappear at any moment. He’s wearing jeans paired with a simple t-shirt and black jacket over the top. His hair is slicked back in a hairstyle that you’ve never seen on him before. In fact, under the dim bar lighting, Jungwoo looks like a completely different person.
It’s so different that your mind blanks, and out comes the first thing that your drunk brain thinks of.
“Are you stalking me?!”
He freezes, and you realize that, for once, you’ve rendered Kim Jungwoo speechless.
“That—that was supposed to be a joke. I meant,” you try to recover, “that I wasn’t expecting to see you here. It’s as if you were stalking me.”
Jaehyun doubles over with a deep roar of laughter, which makes your face heat in embarrassment.
Jungwoo clears his throat. “Jaehyun’s car is in the shop, so I’m picking him up from work. We live together. I know you said you might go out for your friend’s birthday on Thursday, but I didn’t realize it would be here. So no, I’m not stalking you.” Even in the low lights, a dusting of red is visible on his cheeks. “Are you drunk?”
“No,” you snap. You remember the two water cups on the bar and try to snatch at them, but you almost knock them both over in the process.
Jungwoo reaches over your arms and plucks up the cups before you can try again. “Where’s your group?”
“Over there,” you say with a small jerk of your head, “but I’m fine. I’m the most sober one, actually.”
That draws a laugh out of him. “I’m sure you are,” his smile warms your entire body. He nods to Jaehyun, who you’ve completely forgotten is behind the counter. “Does she have an open tab?”
“No. She blackmailed me for free drinks.”
“Free jello shots,” you can’t help but correct.
“She blackmailed me for free jello shots,” Jaehyun echoes with a pointed look at Jungwoo. The two seem to be having a silent conversation that you’re not privy to, which makes you all the more impatient.
You pry the water cups from Jungwoo’s hands while he’s distracted. “I can hold these, thanks.” Your drunk strength squeezes too much force on the right cup, causing some of the liquid to dribble over the edge.
“Good lord,” Jungwoo mutters. His hand moves to steady your elbows to support the drinks in your hands as he gently guides you back to your table. “Are you sure you don’t want to drink one for yourself? I think you should.”
“Nuh uh,” you say as you power through the crowd. “Not drunk.”
Miraculously, Lucy is sitting down obediently at the same place you’d left her, and the twins have magically popped up next to her. Lucy’s posture straightens immediately when she sees the two of you.
“Jungwoo’s here!” She points at him while shouting.
You nod, but the expression you shoot her screams For the love of god, please shut up.
Jungwoo pauses. “Have we met?”
Just through word of mouth. And your public instagram page, you think.
“Jungwoo, this is my roommate, Lucy.” You shove one cup of water into her hands and slide the other to be split by the twins. “Please drink these.”
Thankfully, she does as she’s told. It’s all going smoothly, and you’re one confirmation of payment away from calling the Uber when a waitress comes around with four shots on a tray.
“Happy birthday!” She sings with a dazzling smile.
You accept the drinks graciously to her face, only to whip around and unleash your fury on the group. “Who the hell ordered these?”
They all look away.
The beginnings of a headache thump behind your eyes. Despite the heat pooling in your cheeks and the slight dizziness buzzing around your head, you know what has to be done.
“Happy birthday,” you glare at Lucy as you place one shot in front of her.
Considering that you suspect at least one if not both twins just threw up in the bathroom, you don’t even consider giving either a shot. You are not willing to risk an Uber disaster tonight. Instead, you turn to Jungwoo with a stone cold expression.
“I need a favor.”
As if reading your mind, Jungwoo nods and slides a shot in front of himself. “I got you.”
That leaves the third. You want to take the last one—if anything, just to be courteous to Jungwoo, since he’s helping you out anyway—but your stomach lurches when you catch another whiff of alcohol. In the end, you and Jungwoo opt to split the last one in half. The first shot goes down smooth enough—or you’re so out of it that your sense of taste has completely checked out.
“Cheers,” you grimace as you pinch your nose and take half of the remaining shot. When you reach out to directly hand the shot glass over, Jungwoo pauses, his eyes darting between your lips and the rim of the glass.
“What is it?” You shout over the music, but your voice is too loud even to your own ears. “Take it!”
A faint pink flushes into his cheeks, but he does as you say. His nose wrinkles as he tilts his head back and drinks the remaining liquor. “It’ll be fun to feel the consequences of this during our presentation.”
“I doubt a shot and a half will affect you at all—” you cut yourself off as you process what he said.
Our presentation. Meaning, tomorrow morning's presentation. The same Friday presentation, you’re realizing, that you’ve completely forgotten to finish your designated slide for. Your heart drops to your ass.
It’s stupid. Logically, you know that one short presentation won’t tank your grade. However, coupled with your less than optimal first quiz score, it does make you feel like shit. You feel so terrible for leaving your group out to dry—what if they needed a good score to keep them from dropping down a grade?
“Don’t hate me,” you say sullenly, tears pricking at your eyes.
Jungwoo’s brow furrows. “Huh?”
You know you’re too drunk right now and you should think twice before airing out your insecurities, especially when you’d be airing them out to the classmate that consistently outperforms you. Even so, you can’t stop the single tear that betrays you by slipping down your face.
“Shit,” Jungwoo scrambles for a napkin, but your tears are too fast. He shifts to performing immediate damage control by wiping away at the tears with the pads of his thumbs instead. “Shh, no, everything’s okay. I could never hate you. Why are you crying?”
“I forgot to do my presentation slide for fluids,” you sob. “I totally forgot and now I’m gonna be too drunk to do it when I get home. I might still be drunk by the time I need to leave for class.”
A pause.
“Pfft.” He turns his head away and tries to cover his mouth so you can’t see him shaking with laughter. “Nerd.”
You shove at his arm. “Don’t laugh at me!”
“I’m not,” he deadpans, even as the lines of his face look considerably more relaxed. He dabs at your drying tears with his sleeve. “It’s almost three in the morning anyway, so it would’ve been pretty ambitious for you to try and sober up in time to actually complete it.”
That makes the tears come back in full force. “I’m sorry that I’m a bad group member!” Without thinking, you bury your face into Jungwoo’s shoulder as you cry.
You feel the muscles on his shoulder stiffen before they relax. One hand comes out to stroke the back of your head, while the other rubs small circles on your back.
“You’re not. You’re one of the smartest people I know.”
“You already said that the other day,” you hiccup.
You feel his chest rise and fall with a huff of laughter. “I wouldn’t just say that if I didn’t mean it, dummy. This presentation isn’t even a big deal. Your part is like two slides. You’re smart and a hard worker, so stop calling yourself a bad group member. I wouldn’t like…working with you so much otherwise.”
That’s enough to make your crying subside. When you finally pull away, he wipes again at the smeared makeup on your face.
“Don’t worry about your section of the presentation tomorrow. I’ll do it. Just stay home and I’ll tell our professor that you’re sick–which I have a feeling it won’t be a lie, so don’t argue with me right now. Does all of that sound okay?”
You nod with a sniffle. “Thank you. Really.”
The corners of his eyes soften. He reaches his hand to smooth out a rogue hair; this time, you catch his outstretched hand and lean your head into this open palm.
“Ah,” He turns his gaze away suddenly with a strangled cough. His face glows a bright red. “It looks like your friend’s Uber is here.”
Lucy stands at the bar entrance with a knowing smile on her face. The twins are sitting on the curb a few feet away outside of the bar, looking away. You hadn’t even noticed that the three had snuck out sometime during your conversation with Jungwoo.
Jungwoo still walks the short distance with you to meet her. Lucy holds back laughter as you both hover around the entryway.
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” you say shyly.
“I better not—well, I mean that in the sense that you shouldn’t come to class in the morning.” His arm reaches to scratch the back of his head. “You know what I mean. Text me when you get home.”
“I will,” you laugh as Lucy tugs you away.
“I told you,” she brags with a smug grin plastered across her face. “You’re a drunk crier, and he’s down bad.”
*.❤︎₊ ⊹
When you wake up, the time on your alarm flashes back at you: 11:27am. Two and a half hours past your normal Friday morning class.
You squint and ignore the pounding in your head ignited by the light flooding from your phone’s display.
Your phone is flooded with message notifications, the oldest starting from Lucy at 2am last night and the most recent being seven messages from Jungwoo (intro to eng).
Heart racing, you click on Jungwoo’s chat first.
[8:15am]: morning :) hope you’re feeling ok
[8:16am]: in case you forgot, do NOT come to class today
[8:16am]: I already made ur slide
[8:16am]: so coming would just make it awkward for both of us
[9:15am]: presentation went well, I convinced prof to not require a makeup assignment for u
[9:25am]: lmk when you’re alive
[9:36am]: don’t forget to drink water :)
His messages draw a sleepy snort of laughter from you. He knew you so well — if you had the physical capability to wake up on time this morning, you probably would’ve tried to fill out your slide in a panic and charge over to lecture. Too bad you’d snoozed your alarm in your sleep. It was nice to know that he still had your back, even after drunk you had lowkey terrorized him.
I drank water when I got home, you text back, but someone should’ve told me to drink some at the bar.
The response is almost immediate. I did. You’re stubborn when you want to be.
You roll your eyes. And this is new?
Guess not. Are u planning on coming to materials lecture?
Your head pulses as you sit up in bed. For all intents and purposes, there’s no reason to push yourself to attend your Intro to Material Science lecture today. Jaehyun and Mark don’t show up anyway, and you know Jungwoo would cover you in case it was an issue.
Still, it’s the inexplicable giddiness in your chest that causes you to reply yep, see ya later.
A heart reaction appears over your message, leaving you humming as you tap on your chat with Lucy.
Immediately, your fingers freeze in place over the screen. Two images capture the latter half of last night. The first shows you walking toward the table with water cups in hand, Jungwoo spotting your back. All of that feels familiar; what does not is Jungwoo’s hands guiding you along, one hand on your right elbow and the other hovering close to your waist.
You’re sure that he didn’t touch your waist at all, but the angle of the camera misleads your eyes and makes your skin prickle as if he did. It sure looks like it.
The next picture captures your crying session at the tail end of the night. Jungwoo’s hands cradle your face to wipe away your tears. What you hadn’t been able to see through your waterworks, however, was his face as he looked at you. Startlingly, it’s an expression that you recognize on him — mouth curved upwards, eyes warm, and attention rapt on you. Even so, the softness lining his features triggers your heart to leap. If you were an outsider looking in, you’d describe it as tender.
Down bad, Lucy’s text says below the text.
You’re so shocked that you forget to dislike her message. You text back: what the fuck?
I’m talking about both of you btw, she replies, and you’re about to press her further when her last picture pops into the chat.
It’s still your crying session, mere moments after the first picture, but one glaring thing is different. Not only is Jungwoo’s back to the camera, but you’re the focal point of the lens. Your head leans into Jungwoo’s open palm, and you gaze up at him through thick lashes that look almost siren-like.
You nearly launch your phone across the room. You immediately exit out of the messages.
You refuse to allow yourself to dwell or over analyze it. You go through the motions of getting ready as usual and dart out of the apartment before Lucy can goad you further.
At materials lecture, Jungwoo keeps the seat next to him open for you, as always.
“Hey,” you say as you slide into the seat.
“Ah, hey,” Jungwoo ruffles through his bag and holds out a water bottle. “Need it?”
“Oh–I have one. Thanks, though.”
He slides it over anyway. “Eh, take it for later.”
“Are you sure?”
His eyes crinkle at the edges, and there’s a warmth in his eyes as he grins mischievously. “I think the odds of you needing it over me are higher.”
“Whatever.” Your voice sounds cool enough, but your heart betrays you by thundering away in your chest. The look in his eyes exactly mirrors his expression from Lucy’s photo last night.
He doesn’t pick up on your stiffness, instead leaning back in his chair and tapping the edge of his pen against his desk. “Professor Jang is pretty late today, no?”
As if on cue, other students collectively groan and start muttering amongst themselves. A few people get up first before the rest of the class begins to follow.
Jungwoo straightens in his seat. “Whoa, what’s happening?”
On intuition, you check your email. Sure enough, there’s a recent message from Professor Jang:
Hi MAT101,
Class will be cancelled today, as my kid is throwing up everywhere.
Thanks,
Jang
Sent From My iPhone.
“Ugh, we were all already here,” you groan, flashing the message over to Jungwoo. “And we have our next class after this.”
He nods and puts his things in his bag. “Want to check out some of the pop-ups around campus while we wait?”
“Sure,” you shrug. “There’s an event today?”
“Seemed like it, but no idea what it’s for,” he shrugs back. “Should be chill enough, I think.”
When the two of you stroll outside and turn towards the rows of booths, it immediately becomes apparent that things are not chill. The booths are covered with colors of pink, red, and white. Heart and cupid designs sprinkle the front of at least half.
“Uh, Jungwoo? What day is it?”
He taps his phone to turn on the display, and the resulting date confirms your suspicions: February 14th.
“How did I not even realize it’s Valentine’s day?” You ask yourself, massaging your temples.
“Well, you were in a pretty rough state last night,” Jungwoo offers.
You glare at him. “Gee, thanks.”
He nudges your shoulder. “Come on, let’s check it out anyway. It’s just a theme.”
He strolls towards each booth without a care in the world. You trail behind him, incredibly self-conscious. You wonder if, to the average passerby, the two of you look just like any other browsing couple.
And would you hate that?
You can’t think further into it, as Jungwoo calls out your name from the other end of a vendor tent. “Come look at these candles.”
The candles all look the same physically: pink wax within a heart shaped ceramic. It’s cute enough to pique your interest, and you hold one titled Slow Burn.
“Whoa,” you sniff again. The main scent is a light citrus, with other fruity notes that you can’t quite discern.
You hold the candle up to Jungwoo. “I’m smelling citrus and…mango?”
He leans in. “Definitely mango? Potentially passionfruit?”
You’re sold. You wait in the line, ready to purchase your candle, until you rustle through your bag and realize that you’ve forgotten your wallet at home.
“Ah shit,” you mutter. “I have to put this back.”
Jungwoo cocks his head. “Why? I thought you liked it.”
“I forgot my wallet,” you sigh. You’re one step out of the line when Jungwoo tugs at your arm.
“I’ll spot you,” he says while prying the item out of your hands.
You shake your head. “Please don’t, you’ve been too nice to me lately. I’m already too far deep in debt with all the favors you’ve done for me.”
“Well…” He ignores you, handing the candle back to the cashier. It ends up wrapped in a dainty white bag, which he holds out to you. “What’s another one?”
The cashier smiles at you both. “Please also feel free to take advantage of our photobooth over there. It’s free with the purchase.”
It’s one of those electronic photobooth cameras that sends the image to you directly; currently, there’s no takers, and all of the nearby props are still neatly organized on the display. Clearly, no one’s used it.
“Let’s go,” you whisper, but Jungwoo’s already at the display table rifling through the accessories.
He settles on a puppy ear headband before glancing over at where you’re standing with your mouth wide open. “Pick a prop!”
After overcoming your initial reluctance, you settle for a headband with hearts on it as well as a classic candy heart cutout that says Be Mine.
He’s already setting up the photobooth to send a copy to each of your emails. You fidget in the frame, trying not to look as awkward as you feel.
“Alright, let me start it…oh wait,” he leans back to the table to also grab a candy heart cutout. “Okay, now.”
Thankfully, it’s only set up for one picture; the camera flashes and you immediately receive an email notification: Access your Cupid Candle Photos Here.
You click the link as you both make your way to the main walkway. As expected, you’re both smiling at the camera with your headbands on.
What you don’t anticipate is that, next to your Be Mine cutout, Jungwoo’s reads I’m Yours.
Your feet ground in place.
You’re not an idiot completely unaware of your own feelings – you’re simply just good at ignoring and pushing them away for later – but no amount of compartmentalization can obscure the truth from these images literally staring you in the face and the butterflies frenzying within your stomach.
You have feelings for Kim Jungwoo.
In truth, you can’t even pinpoint exactly when they started. You know him so well that it doesn’t feel like a sudden fall head-over-heels. Like him, it’s steady and supported by a deep sense of respect and fondness.
That doesn’t make admitting it to yourself any easier. You’d fallen for him now, of all times, years later?
“Hey,” you feel a tug on your arm. Jungwoo’s eyes scan you with concern. “You okay?”
“Yeah,” you lie. “Just felt a little dizzy.”
He frowns. “Give me your bag.”
He takes it before you can reply and doesn’t stop there. He pulls your arm so it loops into his, and the two of you continue towards your next lecture linked.
The close proximity does make you dizzy, and you cling to his arm in earnest.
You may not be able to say when you fell for him, but god are you in deep.
*.❤︎₊ ⊹
Something shifts. Your next few days are all filled with Jungwoo–walking to class together, grabbing meals, and texting during the times you’re not together. It almost alarms you to realize how easy it is with him.
You’re separated for what feels like the first time in days during one of your classes, where you’re randomly paired up with your classmate, Mina, to work together on an in-class problem. It goes by easily enough, although you can see Jungwoo sneaking peeks at you mid-assignment. He really has nothing to worry about, as both of you have been paired with smart people.
You and Mina end up being one of the first pairs to finish, turning in your papers and waiting at your desk for others to finish. You spin a pen around in your hand in boredom.
“Waiting for Jungwoo?” She asks.
You nod. “He’ll probably throw a fit if I leave before he’s done.”
“I meant to ask,” Mina whispers as if sharing a secret. “Are you and Jungwoo dating?”
“What?” Your pen spins out of your hand and over your shoulder. “No, we’re not dating!”
She raises an eyebrow. “Talking, then?”
Your mind races. Sure, in the literal sense, you see him during and after nearly every class, study together on the weekends, call him when you struggle with problem sets, and text him random things in the interim. But all that isn’t talking talking—right? Something definitely has felt different this week, but your newfound awareness of your own feelings muddle any objective clarity you had before.
“No,” you manage to rasp out. “We’re not.”
“Ah, damn.” Mina rests her head in her hands. “Some of us have been waiting for you guys to get together since first year.”
“Really?” Your voice comes out shrill.
“Yeah, you guys just seem to really get along and work together the best. Natural chemistry and all that.”
You laugh. “Oh, that’s interesting.”
“Would you, though?”
“Would I what?”
“Be interested in him at all,” she clarifies, leaning in.
You should laugh it off, lie, and leave it at that. You definitely don’t owe any of your classmates any information about your love life, but your nerves make you start blabbering whatever comes to mind.
“Yeah, that’s funny you say that, I really couldn’t stand Jungwoo for a while. In fact, he was picking on me so much that I was basically cursing his name every class because we always get matched to work together.”
“Uh…” Mina’s eyes widen.
“It probably seems like chemistry since I’m used to him being a weirdo around me all the time. So no, we’re not dating, and good luck to his future girlfriend, I guess—ow!” You cry as Mina kicks your shin.
“Shh,” she hisses.
You hear a cough behind you.
“You dropped your pen,” Jungwoo says with absolutely no trace of emotion on his face. He drops the pen onto the desk in front of you and turns to leave.
You’re out of your seat and running after him in a split second. When you catch up to him, you grab at his sweatshirt sleeve. “Jungwoo—!”
“Don’t,” he says as he tugs his sleeve out of your hands. “It’s fine. Really.”
“No, really–”
“Leave me alone, okay? Maybe I don’t want you around me all the time either, if we’re stuck together so much.”
You let him go. Later, you try to text and call him, but all of your messages bounce back. He’s absent from all of your shared classes despite the fact that he’s barely missed a single class within the entire time that you know him.
When you show up to your materials class the following Monday, Jaehyun and Mark are sitting in your usual spot. Jungwoo is nowhere to be found.
“Wow, look at who finally showed up in person. Welcome back,” you say flatly.
The two exchange a look that you don’t even care to interpret. You plop your bag on the ground next to Mark’s seat and start taking notes without another word.
When Professor Jang reaches the end of his powerpoint early and announces time for group work, you’re already packing your things up. There was no reason for you to be there; your project presentation was almost completely done, and Jungwoo was definitely ignoring you. You’d lost access to the shared docs last night anyway, so you can’t work on anything even if you tried. You don’t even know why the other two had finally bothered to show up.
“Wait,” Jaehyun says.
You turn to him in surprise – more for the fact that this is one of the few times you’ve heard him initiate, well, anything. “Yes?”
Jaehyun thinks for a moment before answering slowly. “Just give Jungwoo time. He just needs to sulk about it.”
That comment does little more than stoke the flames of your building irritation. He’d been talking to his friends about you?
“Well maybe I don’t want to talk to him either,” you spit out without caring about how childish you sound. “It’s fine, since we’re both sick of being paired together time after time.”
Jaehyun exhales in what you think is a laugh. “I don’t know what he said to you, but he definitely isn’t sick of that.”
Mark elbows Jaehyun in the ribs. “Dude!”
“Um.” Your eyes narrow. “What do you mean?”
“He’s just saying random stuff,” Mark babbles, but Jaehyun’s already talking over him.
“Do you know the odds of being randomly paired with the same person over and over again?”
“Uh, low?”
“For this class alone, you had a 3/199 chance, which would be around 1.5 percent likelihood. To calculate the probability of a second project in a similarly sized class and project group you would multiply 3/199 by 3/199, which would give you…” He types the numbers into a calculator. “...a 0.023 percent chance of being paired together in 2 independent projects.”
“...And?” You aren’t sure why Jaehyun is flexing his statistics skills right in front of you. Respectfully, you didn’t know he could do math like that.
“If the likelihood of being paired together in only one class is 1.5 percent, and the probability of being paired together in project after project only lowers each time…” He stares at you. “Do you really think that’s completely random?”
In the midst of his awkward delivery, that’s when you finally get it. There’s a flutter of hope in your chest that makes your heart race.
“How were groups chosen for this class?” You ask while barely containing your smile.
“Choose your own groups,” Jaehyun grins. “There was an uneven number since you were gone, so Professor Jang said there would need to be one group of three to take the missing person–”
“–and Jungwoo fought off anyone else trying to join our group!” Mark finally bursts in, unable to keep himself out of the conversation. “He told everyone else that your spot was already reserved.”
The verbal confirmation sends a wave of heat climbing up your neck. You clear your throat. “And how long am I supposed to wait for him to stop sulking?”
There’s a long pause as Jaehyun thinks. “Probably a week.” A mischievous grin spreads across his face. “But I have a way for you to speak with him sooner.”
*.❤︎₊ ⊹
Sooner turns out to be the following Wednesday. You pause in front of the door of the address Jaehyun sent you. Your hand shakes as you knock three times in succession.
The music inside goes silent, and there’s some shuffling on the other side for a few minutes before Mark pokes his head out of the doorway. His face relaxes when he sees you.
“Hey!” He swings the door open for you. “Sorry for the sudden silence. We thought you were Jungwoo at first.”
“All good,” you fake a smile and hope it’s convincing. “How have you been?”
You don’t really listen as Mark leads you through the house, and you fail to retain any names when he introduces you to new people here and there. You could figure it out later when you’re much less nervous.
Jaehyun turned out to be more conniving than you expected—he’d concocted this plan in lecture with you, detail-by-detail, although you were starting to get the sneaking suspicion that he had this in mind all along.
The main setting central to his plan: the surprise party. As his housemate, Jaehyun had already planned a surprise birthday party for Jungwoo with the rest of their friend group. What he hadn’t prefaced in advance was how overly male their friend group was, and you stick out like a sore thumb.
“He’s turning into the neighborhood,” a voice announces from the other side of the house.
”He’s gonna know immediately,” you hiss to Jaehyun as people start finding their hiding spots.
He gestures to the back of the room with a nod of his head. ”Follow me.”
There’s a couch toward the back of the room that faces away from the entrance. You plop down on the cushions. “I fail to see how this helps.”
“I’ll hide next to you, pop out, then leave. You’ll stay.”
”Okay?”
”I’m willing to bet that he won’t even think to walk over here,” Jaehyun explains, ever patient. “Let alone look at who’s sitting on the couch.”
It seems utterly ridiculous, but you’re not in a position to be arguing. This is his house and his plan, after all, and you didn’t have any other bright ideas of your own to begin with. Jungwoo’s made himself impossible to reach, and you’re desperate.
You hug your knees into your chest and press your back into the cushion. Jaehyun settles next to you facing the opposite direction.
The house is completely still as the lock jiggles and the door swings open. Everyone keeps their cool until you hear Jungwoo switch on the lights to the kitchen. Click.
“Surprise!” Everyone except you jumps up from their respective hiding places. You stay in place from your seat on the couch as Jaehyun floats back toward the front of the room.
Some of the other partygoers drift over to your side of the room and startle, shooting the occasional confused glance in your direction, but you don’t care. The ultimate goal is to catch him off guard after his inhibitions have been lowered.
The first step of Jaehyun’s plan unfolds: you hear someone yell “Shot!” accompanied by the mass pouring of cups followed by a group of cheers. The lights turn back off after the group shot, which makes it difficult to discern what happens next without potentially breaking your cover. You’re hiding out on the couch for at least twenty more minutes until you feel a tap on your shoulder.
“It’s been done,” Jaehyun plops down on the cushions next to you. “I think someone else might have roped him into a third and potentially fourth shot, though.”
Your head tilts. “He seems like he can hold his liquor decently enough, right?”
Jaehyun bursts out into a fit of deep laughter. “God, no. He was probably just trying to look cool in front of you. He ended up bugging me at the bar for at least an hour until he sobered up at the very end of my shift, and then I still ended up driving his car home–”
“Jaehyun!” You hear Jungwoo’s voice drawling over the crowd.
“Look, I should probably warn you…” Jaehyun ducks so that his head isn’t visible from behind the couch and lowers his tone so the music drowns out his words. “Jungwoo’s always funny, but when he drinks he gets a little–”
“Jaeeeehyuun!” A pair of arms fling from behind the couch to engulf Jaehyun into a loose hug. Jungwoo’s forehead buries into Jaehyun’s left shoulder. “Why are you hiding from me? Who are you talking to?”
Jungwoo’s head spins around to peek at you, his position on Jaehyun’s shoulder so close to you that your noses nearly brush each other. At point blank eye contact, you witness his brown eyes widen with recognition.
“Oh,” you whisper, afraid to break the tension. “Surprise?”
He jerks away, head bobbing between the two of you on the couch. “You brought her?”
Too late, you and Jaehyun both realize the assumption firing through his brain.
“Wait–” you start.
“Woos–” Jaehyun sighs as he stands up, but Jungwoo has already fled somewhere deep into the house.
The two of you shake your head at each other and move in unison without exchanging a single word. Jaehyun leads the way, knocking and peeking into rooms for signs of Jungwoo. The other attendees in the main room are relatively useless in the search, as they’re currently engaged in some sort of drinking game.
When you finally open the final bedroom door, Jungwoo looks up from the edge of the bed with a wide, shocked expression.
“Found you,” you joke softly as you let yourself inside.
You look at Jaehyun with raised eyebrows. You’ll take his word for whatever he says, at this point–after all, he seems much more familiar with the mannerisms of drunk Jungwoo when compared to you, but he simply shrugs and flashes a thumbs up at you.
“You got this,” he says before slipping out of the room.
Thanks a lot, Jaehyun, you think.
“Hey,” you say as you step forward. It’s ridiculous, the way you approach carefully like he’s a feral dog that might run away at any moment. Regardless, you’re able to slink up and settle next to him on the edge of the bed. “You feeling okay?”
“I’m fine.” He avoids eye contact. “Why are you here?”
You know that he’s been openly avoiding you, but the blunt question stings you nonetheless. “I was invited to your surprise party.”
“Jaehyun brought you as his date for my surprise birthday party,” he grumbles.
You shake your head. “Jaehyun invited me because you won’t show up to class, text me back, or answer my calls.”
Brief silence. “I’ve been busy.”
“Jungwoo, you blocked me on gmail. I can’t even access or edit our group presentation because you’re the owner.”
“I didn’t want you to see my cursor active on the shared doc,” he mutters.
You resist the urge to roll your eyes. Of course you’d end up falling for a guy who could match your pettiness up to a T. With him, the best approach is to be as direct as possible.
“Jungwoo, please let me apologize.” You struggle to squeeze the words out. “I know why you’re ignoring me, and I definitely deserve it, but I miss you.”
That seems to catch him off guard enough that he forgets to evade eye contact. His gaze squints at you in open caution, but a glint of curiosity lies behind it. “…I’m not going to run away or anything.”
Doubtful, but you resist the urge to comment.
“I shouldn’t have said all of that to Mina,” you start, “and I didn’t really mean it in the first place.”
“...That’s kind of hard to believe, when you were willing to say all that to someone you don’t know as well,” he responds. The discomfort in his face makes your chest squeeze. You’re really feeling the worst, to be the one making him so obviously uneasy.
“I know, and I’m really sorry.” You fidget uncomfortably with the fabric of your clothes. “Look, in the past–I thought you were messing with me, like, all of the time. I was having a really hard time making friends, so I just redirected my frustration at you.”
He frowns. “I always considered you my friend.”
“I know.”
“I always tried to include you in conversations because I could tell you get nervous meeting new people.”
“God, I–yes, I realize that now,” you groan. “I didn’t even believe it anymore when I said that to her.”
“If you didn’t feel that way anymore, then why did you still say it?”
It’s a more than valid question, but he doesn’t realize the slippery slope it’s leading you down. “Well…she was asking a lot of nosy questions?”
His brows furrow. “About what? Our friendship?”
“About…” It’s so difficult to say what you want to–it’s like the words are caught in your chest, suspended in place. However, he deserves honesty from you, after everything you’ve said. “...whether or not we’re dating?”
“Oh,” his voice flattens. “And the idea is so ridiculous that you had to reassure her that you’d never date such an annoying guy?”
“No!”
“Then what?”
“God – can you let me speak for two sentences without interrupting?”
“I’m not interrupting! Just tell me what she said!”
“You just interrupted me again!” You shriek. “She asked me if I was interested in you, and I didn’t want Mina from ENG 150 to be the first one to find out I was!”
Jungwoo’s about to interrupt with another comeback when he finally processes your words. He freezes in place, eyes wide, and the tips of his ears turn a bright shade of red. “You’re what?”
“Interested in you,” you say unflinchingly, even though you can feel the heat rising to your own face. “I like you, Jungwoo. A lot.”
His mouth opens, then closes, then opens again. “Oh.”
You take the opportunity to scoot closer to him. Your hand grabs his. “I’m sorry that I said all of that to Mina. I didn’t mean it. I’ve only just been figuring out my feelings, and I didn’t know what to do with them. I totally freaked out.”
You’re patient as you let him sit through his thoughts. The expression on his face stays in shock, relaxes into slight confusion, and then eventually, to your surprise, twists into a smile.
“You like me,” he grins.
Your face burns. “I do.”
His smile widens. “Enough to crash my birthday party.”
“Ugh–yes.” You hide your face in your hands. “Telling you this today wasn’t in the plan, by the way.”
“Liking me was just that irresistible?”
You scoff. “Well, at least I wasn’t the one rigging all of the group project assignments.”
He jumps to his feet. “I’m going to kill Jaehyun–”
“Hey,” you yank him back down on the floor next to you. “Can you at least say it back to me before you fight your best friend?”
He looks away, but his thumb rubs absentmindedly at the top of your hand. “Isn’t it obvious?”
“By the way you trapped me as your project partner for three years? Yes,” you smile, “but I still want to hear it from you.”
“I just wanted an excuse to be close to you,” he pouts. There’s a slight pause as his eyes connect with yours. “I’ve liked you since the day we met. I thought my feelings would go away since you weren’t interested, but they never did. If anything, they got stronger.”
His vulnerability makes the mood shift. There’s something about his parted lips and the flush across his face that kicks your soft affection into sudden desire. You swallow thickly as your eyes slide down the length of his neck and on the exposed collarbone peeking through his disheveled shirt.
He whispers your name, which sends another volt of electricity down your spine. “What’s wrong?”
It’s the small, lingering trace of alcohol on his breath that snaps you back to your senses. You feel like a complete and utter pervert; the possibly most lightweight person you’ve ever met was clearly in a vulnerable position, and all you could think about was kissing him?
“Let’s get you back in the main room for some water,” you say gently as you begin to rise from the end of the bed.
His arms envelop you, slamming you both down on the bed. “Don’t go,” he whines.
The force of his hug alone has you laying on your back with Jungwoo’s arms around your waist, effectively anchored in place with his head resting on your stomach. You press your hands to your face, which feels flaming hot to the touch.
Despite your racing heartbeat, you manage to laugh. “I thought you were the one avoiding me.”
“We both know it wasn’t going to last long,” he mumbles. His mouth lies mere inches away from your stomach, his hot breath warming your skin through the fabric of your shirt. It sends a wave of heat through your body. “I just thought you hated me. And maybe liked Jaehyun more than me.”
You laugh again, but your heart melts. It takes all of your willpower to not get lost in the atmosphere. You allow yourself to run your hand through his hair, which is just as soft as you thought it would be. “Jungwoo?”
“Mmm?” His eyes close at your touch.
“Get up.”
He’s confused but finally follows your directions to sit up. Long lashes blink up at you expectantly.
“I don’t hate you,” you say through a suppressed grin. “And I certainly don’t like Jaehyun more than you.”
He grabs your hand from its position in his hair, holding it over his heart. “Promise?”
“Promise.” Knowing there’s a chance his memory might be muddled tomorrow, you add, “I wouldn’t remember just anyone’s coffee order, you know.”
Jungwoo lifts your hand and presses a kiss to the back. Then, his eyes lock onto yours, and suddenly he’s leaning in closer and closer–
You turn your face at the last minute so that he kisses your cheek instead.
“Not now,” you say firmly as you finally rise to your feet. “I don’t want our first kiss to be like this.”
“I don’t mind,” he grumbles, but he pulls his hands back into his lap.
“Well, you’re drunk. Off of maybe three shots of soju, may I add?”
“It was four, but I see your point.”
You pause. His pouting face is so endearing that you can’t fully resist; you lean forward and cup under his chin with both hands, pressing one kiss to his right cheek, left cheek, and finally his forehead.
“Happy birthday, Jungwoo,” you whisper against his skin. “Now let’s go.”
You lead Jungwoo by the hand out of the bedroom and through the main area of the house until you spot Jaehyun; you launch your drunk crush into his arms on sight. “Please take him.”
Jaehyun raises his eyebrows. “Went well?”
“We’re perfectly fine. He’s just a clingy monster when drunk.”
“Tell me about it.”
“Hey,” Jungwoo murmurs from Jaehyun’s shoulder. “Don’t get too friendly with her.”
Your face warms.
“I won’t.” Jaehyun smirks. “But don’t worry, Woos. I’m sure you’ll be very happy tomorrow.”
*.❤︎₊ ⊹
You wake up the next morning to a single text: Good morning
You laugh to yourself and repeat the sentiment back.
I want to see you, Jungwoo texts. Wanna get coffee?
An hour later you’re walking towards one of your favorite cafes on campus. Your heart quickens when you see Jungwoo waiting for you at the entrance.
Before you can even think about what to say, he interrupts first while holding a drink out to you. “Your usual.”
You crack a smile. “What if I wanted something different today?”
”You don’t.”
“Yeah, I don’t.”
His shoulders relax. “Would you be okay with just walking around?”
You nod and follow his lead. The two of you stroll down one of the many walkways, the rest of campus serene and still.
You break the silence first. “Not too hungover?”
”Well,” he grimaces. “I’ve had better days, but it could be worse.”
”I’m surprised you’re doing okay in the brightness, then.”
“Well, like I said, I wanted to see you.”
The honesty causes your face to feel hot. “I see.”
There’s another stretch of quiet. The two of you are in the engineering area of campus now, and you see a familiar building on your right.
“That’s where we had Intro to Engineering, right?” You ask.
He nods. “Sure is.”
You can’t bear beating around the bush anymore. “You actually liked me from the first day? This class?”
“This class.”
“You’re kidding.” You stiffen despite yourself. It feels like an entirely new thing to hear it again from sober Jungwoo’s mouth.
“Not kidding. I remember thinking you were the most beautiful girl I’ve ever seen.” He shoves his hands in his pockets, looking at the ground as he kicks a pebble down the trail. “I couldn’t believe my luck that we got paired together. Then I found out you were beautiful, smart, and funny.”
You find your gaze drawn to the ground now too. “It’s just a little hard to believe.”
From that first day of college, you’d never been the most secure in your identity, whether it be your looks, personality, or abilities. It always seemed like there was another student with better grades or better internships. Even three years later, you’ve never been able to fully shake off the desire to prove yourself. It’s almost too much to know that, this whole time, there had been someone seeing you and believing in your best potential.
You swallow thickly. How were you supposed to explain that, while he’d been seeing the best in you, you had returned the favor with a one sided grudge. “Jungwoo, I—“
“Don’t apologize.” His head raises sharply. “I know you thought I was annoying.”
“…a bit. And overachieving.”
He quirks an eyebrow. “‘A bit’ doesn’t seem like it would cover cursing my name every class.”
Hot shame flushes to your face. “I thought I believed that for a long time, but I was just jealous. Everything just came so easily to you—grades, friends, even our professors always liked you instantly. I felt like I worked my ass off just to barely have the grades to show for this entire program.” You take a deep breath. “So seeing you all the time just rubbed it in my face.”
“And I’m sure it helped to have me request you for almost every project?”
Your throat dries. “So you did do that.”
He shoots you a pointed look. “You said Jaehyun already told you.”
“Well, he alluded to it, but he wasn’t that specific. He kinda just guided me to put two and two together.” You don’t mention Mark exposing him for this semester’s class. You’re sure that the kid deals with enough from that friend group.
“I did.” The tips of his ears turn bright red, but he pushes through his embarrassment. “At first it was to catch your attention. When I realized you weren’t interested, I kept doing it because of your work ethic.”
That leaves you nearly speechless. “What?”
“Well,” he sniffs, “unlike some people here, I thought we were friends.”
“My work ethic,” you echo. “No other reason?”
He rubs the back of his head. “I guess I always told myself that I would go for it if you ever seemed interested, but that was it. I didn’t think you’d actually look at me like that, but–” he stops abruptly.
“...but?” You prompt him.
“And then you looked so starry eyed with Jaehyun that it pissed me off enough to start aggressively flirting with you.”
“I wasn’t—ugh, whatever. You won’t believe me.”
”I won’t.” He smiles, but it’s genuine.
“I’m glad you did, though,” you admit, “or else I probably never would’ve gotten my head out of my ass.”
”When did you realize that you liked me?”
”I honestly don’t know,” you admit. “You crept up on me.”
He hums, but it doesn’t seem to surprise him.
You turn back around suddenly, walking down the path until you’re in front of the building of your first ever class. The same lecture hall that you met in.
This will look so stupid if the door isn’t unlocked, you think, but the door slides open without resistance.
The lights turn on from your movement. Jungwoo slips in behind you. “What are you doing?”
You spot your unassigned assigned seat, right on the end of one of the middle aisles. You climb up the steps until you reach it and seat yourself.
Jungwoo stares at you from the bottom of the steps before catching the hint and settling next to you. “Feeling nostalgic?”
“Yeah,” you say, resting your elbows on the surface. “It’s just crazy that the first day started everything with us.”
“Yeah,” he agrees.
You hold his gaze and smile, leaning forward, but he stays fixed in place looking at you.
”Um,” you say finally. “Are you going to kiss me now?”
“Here?” Conflict crosses his face. “Isn’t it a little…”
“Sentimental?”
“Musty.”
You roll your eyes. “Fine, we don’t have to—"
You’re cut off as Jungwoo tilts your chin with this hand and leans forward to press his lips to yours. Your lips push and pull in slow, languid motions; even through his lips and hand cradling your face, he touches you with intention.
“I wanted to kiss you somewhere romantic,” he huffs when you pull away. “On a real date.”
“Yeah, yeah,” you say, pressing a peck to his cheek. “Next time.”