The Real Us

. chapter 16 .

After she finished her breakfast, a bland rice porridge, Kim Taeryoung rolled herself up in her comforter like a burrito and shut her eyes. But before the girl could drift off into a nap, she heard her phone buzz on her bedside table.

She slowly reached her hand out of the warmth of her blanket burrito and tapped the screen. 4 new notifications.

Hanyuk Homies

Hyejin:
Hey guys!! Guess what?

Nayoung:
Hye, what's with the group chat name?

Hyejin:
That's not important right now
What's important is that a Lee Hyunjoon's new movie FINALLY came out today

Jay:
And you're telling us this because..?

Hyejin:
Because I was able to get tickets for the movie premier!!
Perks of being an influencer hehe
I was wondering if you guys wanted to come with

 Yuri:
REALLY?? I WANNA GO

Sunoo:
I'll go 

Nayoung:
I'll go too!!

Hyejin:
Ok so, so far Yuri, Sunoo, Nayoung, and Jay
Jungwon and Heeseung already told me they're busy today

Jay:
Hold on, since when am I going?

Hyejin:
Since I decided you were going.

Ni-ki:
I'll have to check but I think I can go

Hyejin:
Ok. What about Taer, Jake, and Sunghoon?

Jake:
I can't go, I have to take Layla to the vet later

Taeryoung:
I can't go either :(
I have a cold

Nayoung:
What? Are you feeling ok?

Taeryoung:
I'm ok, don't worry

Hyejin:
Aw :c I hope you feel better soon, Taer
Sunghoon, can you come?

Sunghoon:
I can't sorry
I have stuff to do

Hyejin:
Don't worry about it
So Jay, Nayoung, Yuri, Ni-ki (maybe), and Sunoo

-

As the others discussed their plans in further detail, Taeryoung received a separate text.

Sunghoon:
Are you ok?

Taeryoung:
I'm fine, just hungry

Sunghoon:
Hungry? 

Taeryoung:
Mhm
My family all left either to run errands or go to work and I don't know how to cook T.T
read at 10:00 am

Geez, what's with him and leaving me on read? The girl thought as she bundled herself up in her blanket once more. She laid down restlessly for a while before finally giving up on taking a nap. She had begun to feel a bit better after taking medicine that morning, so she decided to go downstairs and watch a movie or something to take her mind off of her condition.

She endlessly scrolled through movies and dramas but none of them seemed to interest her. She was about to settle on finishing her rewatch of "My Love From Another Star", but her phone buzzed with a new message.

Sunghoon:
Come outside
read at 10:44 am

Taeryoung confusedly glanced out the window. Sure enough, Park Sunghoon was standing in a sweatshirt and shorts holding a white take-out bag.

The girl brushed her fingers through her hair before opening the door. "What are you doing here?" she raised her eyebrow at the male.

"You said you were hungry so I got you katsu." He shrugged as he walked past the surprised girl into her own home. "Hey, wait!" She called as she watched the male taking off his shoes in the doorway. "Don't come in. What if I get you sick?"

"Eh," he responded as he made his way to the table positioned in between the couch and the TV. "If I do then I might get to skip school for a couple days." 

"You sure are something, Park Sunghoon," Taeryoung reluctantly sighed, not having the energy to argue with him.

The girl made her way to where the male was sitting, legs crossed, on the floor in front of table, and sat down beside him. "How did you know I was craving this?" she eyed the food as her mouth began to water. 

"I had a feeling." The previous week, when Taeryoung had fallen asleep while on the phone, the boy had heard her talking about katsu in her sleep. He let out a chuckle recalling her mumbles over the phone.

"What are you laughing at?" the girl scoffed as she elbowed the male beside her. "Hey, is that anyway to treat the person who just went out of his way to bring you food?"

"It's not like I asked you to," the girl huffed as she bit into the crispy pork. "Have you seen this show?" she turned to the male who was eating his own katsu and gestured to the TV screen.

He shook his head. "I'm not really one for romance dramas," he scrunched his nose as he spooned rice into his mouth. She scoffed again, "You really are unbelievable," she shook her head with a disappointed expression. "No wonder you don't know how to deal with your admirers."

"Who said I didn't know how? I just don't want to."

"Hmm, have you ever dated anybody for real?" the girl asked, purposefully placing extra emphasis on the last two words.