afterglow ‣ s.jy

002

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JAKE

Jake's cousin, Hana, continued to laugh as she heard the story of his sudden outburst during his math class.

He rolled his eyes when she kept going and going until she was all out of breath. He looked around the restaurant, and thankfully no one was staring at his laughing cousin.

"You can stop now." He said, and she did, taking a breath first before continuing once more.

Given that they are both the same age and grew up together, Hana is the closest person he has to a sister. Apart from Hyejin, Hana was present in every moment of his life, from when he first began to walk to when he learned how to drive. She is his constant, the only person who will surely stand by him even if the world falls apart.

"I'm sorry! It looks like Siyeon triumphs over you today." Hana says while she sliced the meat on her plate.

"Please don't remind me. I hate admitting it to myself." He said, burying his face in his palms as he stopped himself from screaming.

She chuckled. "Looks like I'm going to be hearing a lot about Siyeon now that she's sitting next to you. You ought to be careful. You know what they say—"

"Don't continue that Hana. You're going to give me the chills." He said, making her laugh even more than she already was. "And you already know who I'm in love with."

"Yes, yes. Aunt already has your wedding planned since you and Hyejin were both 10." She answers. "And, of course, I am more than prepared to be the godmother of your children and spoil them."

It was his turn to laugh this time. His family has always been like this, as has Hyejin's, and the only thing the two friends could do was smile or laugh when they behaved like this. The last thing either of them wanted was to rush into something that didn't need to be rushed. It wasn't like their feelings were going anywhere, especially since their future was already bound.

"Just finish your food, Hana." He said, causing a teasing smile to surface on his cousin's face. "I mean it, by the way, when I said finish that plate."

Hana then scoffs. "Always babying me."

Jake smiled after, finishing his food as well while they both continue to talk.

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It was the beginning of class when Jake noticed Siyeon was carrying a bag that seemed to be heavy because of how she struggled to carry it to her seat. He, of course, only stared at it but managed to stop his nosy self from asking her what was inside.

He allowed his arm to carry the weight of his head once class began. It's not that he was lazy, he was just sleepy. Fortunately, he managed to keep himself awake by constantly saying in his head that if he falls asleep, Siyeon would see and she would have something to use against him. He glanced in her direction and she was busy taking notes, her eyes going back and forth to her notebook and the whiteboard in front of them.

He immediately takes his eyes off of her before she could catch him. The last thing he wanted was to give her any wrong ideas.

"It seems Siyeon and Jake have been getting along well since I put them together." Their physics teacher says as he enters the classroom. "Have you two become friends now?"

"Nope." He answered.

"Never." She says, simultaneously with him.

"Apparently not." The teacher, later on, adds after hearing their responses.