solace | heejake.

000.

"c-can i get a tall latte?" a short girl asked giving it her all to act cute and feminine.

jake scoffed in his mind and whispering to himself if he may 'definitely not my type.' but jake shrugged that all of and answered with a subtle 'sure' and flashed that forced smile for the nth time.

the girl then gave her payment shyly and intentionally touched jake's fingers. he almost cursed, he hates that kind of girl.

when the girl left, he was reminded on who to blame why is he in this kind of situation. mentally rolling his eyes and cursing kai and taehyun for this punishment.

he could only sigh that the long line has vanished. since the day he started to work here, the customers increased. mostly, teenage girls from their campus. obviously, not for the food but for the one and only ash jake sim.

the top student and student council president, working at a cafe just because he lost on their bet with his friends, is a rare sight to see.

'i'm really gonna take my revenge once this is over, just you wait blake and riguer', as his eyes darted to the corner of the place where taehyun and kai sat laughing at him as he does his punishment.

you wouldn't imagine how many times he told himself not to loose his sanity every single time he sees the two doing that. he badly wanted to curse and beat the hell out of 'em.

they've always done this. bets and the loser gets a punishment. it's usually kai who loses but their previous bet gave them a bit of twist.

"iced latte for gabriel!" jake announced and he immediately saw a guy stood up and headed to the counter.

he stretched out the drink in his hand but before the drink was out of his sight, he noticed that the name was misspelled but he couldn't give a damn and just let the guy have it.

the guy looked pissed, actually, he was expecting a complain but he guess it doesn't matter for the guy.

jake took a glance on his wristwatch and smirked. he told his co-worker that he's off so he immediately left and ended his shift.

"the owner of the shop must've been so happy with the increase of sales. just look at all the students here." blake then took a good look around the shop.

kai then nodded with his eyes closed, "jake sim sure does bring in a lot of money wherever he goes."

"it's ash's third day, he's really doing well and i'm a bit disappointed that this will only be just for two weeks." blake continued on with their teasing.

"but what disappointed me the most was he didn't even talked to the basketball team captain ethan gabriel lee?" kai added, blake nodding in the background.

so that's why the name gabriel sounds so familiar. it indeed was their infamous campus basketball team captain, ethan gabriel lee.

jake just scoffed, "oh please shut up, i'm not interested and i'm still annoyed how you guys set me up into this? i freaking hate the both of you."

"c'mon aj, it's the captain. who wouldn't want to take a chance?"

"me. end of discussion, alright? let's go."

"sure, pres." kai and taehyun answered with sarcasm.

they made their way to the parking and just when they are about to enter their cars kai spoke his eyes glued to his phone, "hold on, jay park has came back? and his cousin sunghoon is hosting a welcome party for jay tonight."

"so what about jay park?"

"gosh, jake sim. how are you even the council president?" he looked at taehyun who's now also looking at his phone. "lorenzo jay park, valuable member of the basketball team. also, gabriel's friend and--"

"oh please, spare me the lecture, kang." jake then proceeded to opening the door of his car, leaving the door open as he checks his phone.

1 new message from sunghoon earl park

just as what kai and taehyun received, an invitation. they often-- no, they always get invited to parties. kai would go for the fun, and taehyun would go for the tea. jake, he don't do parties much but he always gets dragged by the two.

"well then, would you like us to pick you up, pres?" kai asked.

jake sighed, "i'm not sure, mom--"

"i got you, she can never say no to me." kai said with his eyes sparkling.

'at least, i tried.' jake thought.

"no need for that, kai. i'll be there, just make sure to wait for me by the gate."

taehyun smirked, "well, it's settled then. see you both later."

jake just nodded and closed his car door and drove home. as much as he wanted to rest at his so called home, he knew more stress is all he can get there. he never really liked his home, more like the people and the environment in it.

his life would've been perfect, jake certainly got the looks, intelligence, and money. but nothing's really perfect so god sent him his parents. oh, and he lacks personality. contrary to what everyone seems to know, jake doesn't have it all. he doesn't have the ideal loving and caring parent every child could've wished for.

it would be always 'strive harder, jake' 'you can do better, push yourself a little more' 'it's still not enough' and not 'you did well' 'regardless of your small mistakes, i'm really proud of you' 'you gave it your all, that's why you get this high results'.

for his parents, nothing seemed to be enough or the best. it's always just okay or better. heck, maybe it wouldn't still be enough if he gave his life.

jake let out an airy laugh as his gripped on the steering wheel tightened, his pace also speeding up. he gritted his teeth as he calmed himself down, he reminded himself that it would just be another disappoinment of his parents if he couldn't drive properly.

it wasn't that long until he reached his home. he got off of his car leaving it by the main door and greeted by the valet, he gave him his car key and went straight to his room.

jake's parents usually come home late so he's sure he's all alone in this house if it weren't for the maids and helpers here.

he laid on his bed immediately not bothering to change his clothes or taking his shoes off. he just feels like he needs to lay down for a bit. it's been exhausting.

yeah, seeing different faces and talking to them is exhausting for an introvert like him. well, he's kinda getting used to it. he meant by having short conversations to people he doesn't know.

he's the student council president after all. everyone greets him, he usually ignore those but if he's in a good mood, you might get a nod or if you're luckier you might get a greeting back.

good thing, his schedule was pretty unoccupied so he didn't feel like he's wasting time doing his punishment. his job as the student council president is hard enough alone and now he needs to work 2-3 hours a day at a coffee shop because he lost to their bet. he's also amazed at how he can even handle those.

"i would've slept if it wasn't for that damn party. couldn't care less even if the lorenzo jay park came back." he uttered to himself with thick sarcasm.

for sure, it'll be crowded. that's the thing jake hates the most. because if there's a crowd, there's a noise. and he also hates the noise.

sighing, he got up and decided to get change into a comfy clothes. he still have two or less hours left, he decided to cook something for himself just to past the time.

jake felt exhausted but with that, he felt like his day is just starting.