adora • lookism

14. Karaoke

(warning: this is a warning. im not telling you what im warning you about, but i warned you. you can't say anything about not having been warned. as a precautionary measure, maybe also dont drink anything while reading the second half of this chapter. )

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"But if you're wearing that today, does it mean that you didn't wear it yesterday?" asked Mira, leaning closer to Ari so they could hear each other over Zack and the boys' rendition of Fantastic Baby.

"No way!" complained Zoe, also leaning in. She reached out to touch Ari's bare waist with a cold hand, making Ari squirm away to dodge behind an indulgent Mira. "Me and Mira worked sooo hard to make sure you look cute for your date!"

"I told you it wasn't anything like that," said Ari. She smiled and hugged Mira's arm close. "I'd rather look cute for my date with you guys."

Also... well, these clothes were a bit more revealing than what she tended to wear, the loose shirt cropped high enough to expose a large strip of her belly and waist. For Ari to wear something so out of character to meet a guy, wouldn't it give him unnecessary thoughts? Since her friends had spent so much effort to choose her clothes, she may as well show them the fruits of their efforts directly.

"Ah~ really!" said Zoe, grinning despite herself. "I'll let you off this time for your sweet mouth."

"Hehe." Ari rubbed her cheek against Mira's shoulder. Glancing up, she accidentally met the eyes of Daniel, who was watching them with a gentle smile. She smiled back instinctively, thoughtlessly.

Ari had been surprised to see him here when she'd walked into the room earlier. She'd completely forgotten that, with karaoke being pushed to Sunday, Daniel had more than enough time to come hang out and then go to his part-time job in the evening.

They were currently all gathered in a nice karaoke place in Cheongdam, Gangnam, which was coincidentally not too far from where OneMCN was located. Zoe had chosen this place specifically so they could enjoy good mocktails and cute decor, which was something you could be surest to find in such a trendy part of Gangnam.

"So how was the date?" asked Mira, lightly resting her head against Ari's.

"It wasn't a..." Ari sighed, deciding to save her words. They wouldn't believe it no matter how many times she said it. "It was fun, I guess. We got the thing I was helping him get, and then we ate, and then we went shopping at the mall for a bit cus he needed help buying a kettle."

"Who needs help to buy a kettle?" Zoe said, with a knowing look. "He was definitely just trying to spend more time with you."

Ari thought about Handsome Library Oppa's stiff face in the household electronics aisle. "No... I think he really did need help."

Seeing from the girls' expressions that the conversation was about to go into a direction she didn't feel like dealing with, Ari sat up straight and pointed at the karaoke screen. "Who put on Nonstop? I love this song!"

"I did," Daniel said shyly, from the side. "I like it too."

Zoe's head whipped towards him so fast that Ari momentarily worried that she would give herself a concussion. "I love this song too," Zoe gasped, dramatically. "Come on, we have to sing it—"

Ari smirked, proud of her successful misdirection, and got to her feet with a little wink at Zoe. "You guys go ahead, I have to step out for a second."

"Okay!" Zoe called, beaming back at her.

Ari waved off Mira's whispered, "Do you want me to go with you?" and pressed down Jay's shoulder to stop him from getting up. It would be best not to have any company while taking a work call.