SAVING MR. PARK | PJM

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↳ ❝THANK YOU, sexy.❞

she approached his desk rather sleepily, eyes drooped down and a yawn escaping her lips. after her brief nap at the beginning of class, she woke up feeling more exhausted than she had been before it. not to mention, she was met by the other students' icy and judgmental stares.

was it an actual sin to fall asleep during class or something? she had woken up to find the majority of her female peers scoffing at her when she'd glance their way or when she'd raise her hand to answer a question. last she knew, she was on good terms with every single one of her classmates, so why had they been so bitter about her damn nap?

"miss parker," the literature professor quirked an eyebrow at her, acknowledging her unusual sincerity. "what are you thanking me for?"

"you don't have to act so humble about it, mr. park. i just came by to make my gratitude personally known to you," she flashed him a heartfelt smile, not really in the mood to tease him this time.

it was as though she was out of it today. she kept telling herself that it was the weird classroom vibe that still lingered in the air, but she couldn't exactly place her finger on the real cause of her abnormal behavior.

"i genuinely do not know what you're on about, miss parker. believe me, i wouldn't be 'so humble' about my helpful service if i knew exactly what it is that i did," he firmly set his elbows on the surface of his desk and intertwined his own fingers, chin now resting atop his hands.

"thank you for defending me, mr. park," she clarified, her weariness fading away as she watched a flash of surprise overfill mr. park's dark irises. "i found it sweet. pathetic teenagers like isaac and sam can only fantasize about being with girls like me. but i do understand why they said such things. they spoke out of ... frustration. i get it."

"you aren't seriously siding with them, are you, miss parker?" he instantly rose to his feet, realizing that she was referring to the two foul-mouthed boys that he sent to the principal's office two days ago. "and how did you hear about this?"

"stories spread faster than wildfires in this school, mr. park. it's almost terrifying. and i'm not siding with anyone. i'm just saying that i've heard worst things said about me. at least they complimented me in a sense. that i'd be the 'best fuck ever,' right? yeah, that's nothing compared to the heartless slander i used to deal with back at my old school. not that it ever got to me, anyway. as i like to say, there's no such thing as bad publicity," jay winked as she flaunted a confident lip bite.

it's true, though. she was always taught to ignore other people's hateful criticism. if her jealous schoolmates made fun of her for wearing an (obviously fashionable) cardigan, for example, jay would simply take pride in the fact that she was relevant enough to be thought about. as her mother liked to point out, if she didn't occupy people's minds, in any sort of way which also included being baselessly judged, she was doing something wrong.

"so, what are you saying?" mr. park furrowed his brows in bewilderment. "you thank me, but then you imply that my help wasn't needed."

"basically, what i'm trying to get at is that, although i truly appreciate it, i think it's better if you isolate yourself from matters that involve my name. students are very nosy, and, soon enough, they might start thinking. now, we both know there's nothing going on, and that, despite my occasional teasing, our relationship is strictly professional. but if you keep doing things like this,—defending me, letting me get away with things, overreacting because a boy touched my hands,—unwanted gossip will start up. and i know you don't want that."