Between Truths ║Dahkook║K.DH J.JK

perfect strangers

CHAPTER II

He stared at the small flimsy paper. It was a rectangle. But it had notbeen a perfect one. They must have used a ruler to cut out the small pieces. Hetwiddled the sides with his index finger and thumb, and felt them lightlyprickle his skin. 

Unbiddenly, the numbers on it swirled something distasteful in him. Everything that day seemed to. He watched the hall dispassionately. It was filled with students like him. And it buzzed with something warm and exciting. Fingers flew nervously over phone screens. They were dialling numbers given to them over torn pieces of papers. Most already had their phones close to their ears, and the cacophony of conversations painted the hall a wild marketplace. Loud and boisterous.

Jungkook could not bring himself to share the sentiments. But he should. Because it was orientation for college after all. But this reminded him that he could have experienced all these two years ago. He was accepted then, too. He had even gotten the scholarship then. But of course, it had been too good to be true. They had revised the scholarship right before the first term started. He was denied. He could not have afforded school and had to drop out before it even began. He had found out later, that it had been given to another student whose father was the college's gracious donor. It was easy to piece the puzzles together. 'Bullshit.'

He had run far from that ridiculousness, but he still could not change that most of his batchmates were two years younger than him now.

He hated it.

"Well, Jungkook...aren't you calling?"

"I am," Not.

"It's cool; don't you think? To have an excuse to be friends with someone you wouldn't have known. Well, someone in our year anyways. Did you know it's across different schools? It must have been a pain to organise it."

"Why aren't you calling?" Jungkook asked, non-committal.

"Unfortunately, I am not the caller. See? I don't have the paper," He made a show of his empty hands. Then, eyeing the slip in Jungkook's hand, he said, "You should call. Who knows? It might be a girl," eyes twinkling conspiratorially.

Jungkook fiddled with the paper that contained a stranger's phone number. It was stupid. What could be said between strangers? Still, he nodded. If only to thwart the new boy his nosiness. But his inquisitive attention did not ease. If anything, they became heavier.

Jungkook glanced at the paper as he pressed numbers. He did not need to. Because he was calling Yein. He knew her number by memory.

It rang and he waited. The glass was cold against his ears. His fingers drummed restlessly against his thigh. He resisted the urge to shake his legs with them.

No one picked up on the first try. Not on the second. Or even on the third.

"Not picking up?"

"No," Jungkook reluctantly confirmed. She must have been busy, he reasoned. She always was. But in his selfishness, he thought that she had wronged him.

"Give me that," the boy took both the paper and his phone, "No one ever not answers my calls," he claimed proudly.

There was no time for protest as the call went through on loudspeaker.

"Hello?" The question from an unfamiliar voice drove Jungkook to quickly snatch the phone back and switched it off speakers.

"A girl," As if the information a laden weight, the guy had remained seated, unmoving. Then, as if respecting the girl's sensibilities, he had mouthed the crude words, 'You lucky bastard.'