Believe

CHAPTER 22: Staircase

"You cannot make someone understand a message they are not ready to receive." —Anonymous

**

IT'S ABOUT sunset on a Saturday at the rooftop where they usually hang out. Jisoo and Taehyung set up two chairs and a table they found lying around the building and decided to study there. They agreed that it will be their own personal lair from now on.

"Wow, you actually answered 43 out of 50 correctly, this is a great start!" Jisoo uttered while marking his paper with her pen. Then, she looked up towards him, "I'm surprised, you're quite sharp if you actually try and if you stop complaining," she commented.

Taehyung scorned, "I'm surprised I actually learned something from someone who usually acts like a middle school kid."

"Hey!" she frowned at him, "We need to fix that rude attitude of yours," Jisoo nagged while pointing her pen to his face.

"I'm not rude," Taehyung raised a brow at her.

"You are. You should not insult people, okay?" she continued lecturing him, "With me, I don't mind because I know you are just a tsundere," she added and laughed.

"A fucking what?" his forehead creased. Somehow, he felt insulted even not knowing what the word means, "Are you cursing me in another language?" he asked but Jisoo tapped his mouth softly with her pen, as if scolding him.

"What the?!" he backed away and held his mouth in shock.

She's getting bolder every day.

"You're the one who's cursing all the time!" Jisoo nagged and she put out her palm in front of him. He stared at her extended hand and looked up to her face with a smile of menace.

"Ugh, I didn't even agree—"

"Come on," Jisoo pushed her hand in his face more, "A dollar. Gimme."

"Tsk," Taehyung sighed deeply and brought out his wallet while glaring at her. He gave her a dollar which she quickly took.

Jisoo clapped gleefully and guffawed, "I'll be a millionaire in no time!"

She's an angel, they said. She's a saint, they said.

"Didn't you propose this to help me out of my habit of cussing? You should not celebrate milking me like this," he complained while watching her examine the dollar like it's a pot of gold.

"This is extortion," he flicked her forehead to get her attention.

"Meh," she simply shrugged and playfully placed a hand on his shoulder, "I accept you for who you are. Even if you're a cuss machine."

"Then let's call the deal off," he told her and squinted his eyes. She shook her head seriously.

"But we all should know at least basic conversation manners and respect," Jisoo said while laughing at him. She's clearly enjoying their agreement that for each curse word he says, he needs to pay her a dollar.

Originally, it is supposedly insults he says but he'll go bankrupt on the first day so they decided with curse words. She scolded him about being too harsh the other day so he ended up getting scammed in this deal. Taehyung rolled his eyes, groaning while slouching on his seat.

"Now, now, we still have two subjects to finish," she uttered in a professional tone as she snapped her fingers in haste, "We're starting on this page," she continued and flipped through the book.

"I hope the university just burns and all the records become ashes," Taehyung lazily said with his head on his hand, yawning lethargically.

"Taehyungie!" Jisoo gave her a warning stare.