Crushes and Hate Mail

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[Posted April 22, '21]

Kai almost ran back to her dorm. All she could think was, I have to get home, and out of this rain. She had a wild thought: everyone in the street must've noticed how this umbrella was way, way too big for her.

Can everyone tell that... this umbrella is... not mine? she thought.

At a crosswalk near the Gaffigan Dorm, she stopped, waiting for the stoplight to change. Droplets of rain trickled down the ribs of Lukas's umbrella, down around her feet.

Sigh. This whole thing! The rain. The umbrella that the senior student put her under, like a force field. The scent that was clearly his—

She didn't know what to think.

. . * * * * . . . . . .
. . . . * * * * . . . .
. . . . . . * * * * . .

Kai's curly-haired roommate was back in their dorm room, swaddled in a bathrobe and cozily nestled in her bunk bed. Her glasses were balanced on the tip of her nose.

"Kai!" Lilly said, looking up. "How was intro psych?"

Kai shook off her wet shoes. "Confusing," she answered, hesitantly. "How are you?"

"I'm— I'm falling in love. Wanna see who my crush is?"

"Oh! Yes!" Snapping out of her trance, Kai remembered. You're one tiny person in the world, Kai. Your own feelings are just one of billions of feelings.

So Kai settled into the bunk bed beside her roommate. Looked at the laptop open in front of them.

Lilly said, "OK. I know he looks a bit scary. But just give me a chance to explain."

And Lilly pushed her glasses up her nose and loaded up a TikPics account.

Soon, she scrolled down to the face of a boy. Grinning, she wrapped one of her curls around her finger, and leaned her head on Kai's shoulder with a loopy look on her face.

"This is... Taeyong Yi."

Kai's eyes widened

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Kai's eyes widened. He looked, well.... not like the guy she imagined Lilly having a crush on. He has the vibe of... a mafia leader. But doe-like eyes, too. At the same time—

"I can understand why you'd like him," Kai said.

"He's beautiful, right?"

"He is."

Drawing away and frowning at Kai, Lilly interjected, "But don't steal him from me! If you ever got dressed up and revealed your full-on ninja beauty, none of the rest of us'd ever have a chance."

Kai hit her roommate, "You're more likely to steal my future crushes from me!"

Future crushes...? Like who...?

Before Kai herself could think any further, she quickly asked, "Have you guys met in person—you and this Yi Taeyong guy?"

"That's the thing," Lily said, her eyes dreamy. "I was walking across Chapel Street and dropped five dollars. And I was going to bend down to pick it up, and fell! But then— before I hit the ground, this arm reached out. Picked me up. I look up and... it's him! And it was literally like a K-Drama scene. We looked into each other's eyes for a second— Or was it a minute?

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