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HEESEUNG & NI-KI 251225
୨ . 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 . ୧ ₊˚ !! 🌸
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Chapter Two: The Jealousy Problem
Lunch is usually your favorite part of the day. It’s the only time you can truly relax—sit with Haerin, enjoy your food, and forget the chaos of everything else. But not today.
Today, Minjae—possibly the nicest guy in the whole school—is sitting across from you, his smile warm as he slides a carton of strawberry milk toward you.
“I got an extra one. Thought you might like it.”
You smile back, pleasantly surprised. “That’s really sweet, thank you.”
Jisoo waggles her eyebrows. “Ooooh, how thoughtful.”
Minjae chuckles, rubbing the back of his neck, clearly a little shy. “Well, I—”
BANG. A tray slams onto the table right beside you. The cafeteria falls dead silent. You already know who it is before you even look up. Choi Hyun Wook. And he does not look happy.
You sigh. “What are you doing here?”
He doesn’t answer you. His eyes are locked on Minjae, sharp and cold. “You’re in my seat.”
Minjae blinks, confused. “This isn’t your table.”
Hyun Wook shrugs, unapologetic. “It is now.”
Jisoo sucks in a breath. You can feel the tension spike instantly. You don’t flinch. You calmly take a sip of your drink. “Hyun Wook, go away.”
Instead, he plops down right next to you like this is completely normal. Minjae tries to recover. “We were in the middle of a conversation.”
Hyun Wook leans back, draping his arm across the back of your chair. His fingers almost graze your shoulder. “And now you’re not.”
Minjae stares at him, brows furrowing. “Do you always have to be like this?”
Hyun Wook tilts his head, like he’s genuinely confused. “Like what?”
You already want to crawl under the table. But then Minjae turns his full attention to you, ignoring Hyun Wook completely. “Hey, um… I was wondering if you’d like to go out this weekend? Maybe for coffee?”
The world pauses. Jisoo gasps. Everyone freezes. You feel Hyun Wook stiffen beside you.
“You’re joking, right?” he says, his laugh low and humorless.
Minjae doesn’t even look at him. “I wasn’t talking to you.”
Hyun Wook goes silent. Completely still. You can feel the anger rolling off of him, his grip tightening around the edge of the table.
You keep your voice calm.” I appreciate it, but I’m really busy lately.”
Minjae’s face falls, but he nods. “Got it.”
Hyun Wook’s smirk returns—cocky, smug, irritating. “Tough luck, buddy.”
Minjae throws him a glare before walking away. You finally turn to the boy next to you. “Was that really necessary?”
He leans in, voice quiet enough that only you can hear. “You really think I was gonna sit here and watch some guy ask you out?”
You narrow your eyes. “You don’t own me.”
His expression softens. Not the smirk, not the cockiness—something else. Something gentler. “I know, not yet” he murmurs. “But I’m not gonna pretend like I don’t want to.”
Your heart skips before you can stop it. But you keep your face neutral and turn away. “You’re annoying.”
He grins, satisfied. “And yet, here I am.”
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You should’ve known your day was going too smoothly.
You woke up on time, avoided any run-ins with Choi Hyun Wook, and even made it through the morning without hearing his usual flirtatious nonsense. But of course, the universe couldn’t let that last.
“Alright, class,” Mr. Kang says at the front of the room. “For this project, you’ll be working in pairs. The topic is in your syllabus, but the research and presentation are up to you.”
Groans erupt around the room. You’re already scanning for someone you might actually enjoy working with, when— “I’ve already assigned your groups.”
You sigh, feeling a slight wave of relief. Maybe this way, you’ll avoid—“Choi Hyun Wook and Yang Y/N.”
Your heart sinks. You glance across the room, and sure enough, he’s already staring at you—grinning like he just won the lottery.
“Guess you’re stuck with me, princess.”
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Later That Day – The Library
You sit at one of the library tables, flipping through a textbook and doing your best to ignore the guy across from you.
Choi Hyun Wook isn’t even pretending to work. He’s leaning back in his chair, spinning a pen between his fingers, his eyes locked on you like the project doesn’t even exist.
You exhale and finally meet his gaze. “Are you actually planning on helping, or are you just going to sit there and waste my time?”
He smirks. “I don’t mind wasting time if it means I get to sit here and look at you.”
You roll your eyes. “You’re impossible.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing.”
You scribble down a few more notes, pointedly ignoring him.
“We need to divide the work. I’ll do the research and outline. You can do the—”
“I’ll do whatever makes you talk to me more.”
You close your eyes, inhaling slowly like you’re praying for patience.
“I don’t know how people are afraid of you when all you do is flirt.”
He chuckles, leaning forward. “That’s because I’m only like this with you.”
Your chest tightens, but you push the feeling down. You slide a book across the table.
“Read.”
He raises an eyebrow.
“Seriously?”
“Yes. If we fail, it’s on you.”
He groans but opens the book anyway, flipping lazily through the pages.
“This is the worst. I’d rather fight someone.”
You glance up, expression unimpressed.
“You fight too much as it is.”
Something shifts in his eyes.
“You don’t like it?”
You hesitate. No one’s ever asked you that before. No one’s ever cared what you thought about him like that.
“No,” you say quietly. “I don’t.”
He looks at you for a moment—really looks. All the teasing is gone for just a second. His posture changes. His face softens.
But it doesn’t last.
“So you do care about what I do,” he says, smirking again.
You groan and toss your eraser at him.
“Focus.”
He catches it effortlessly, laughing. And for once, the library doesn’t feel quite so heavy.
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