Wasted Love

CHAPTER TWELVE

"Who was that pretty boy that walked you to work this morning?" My coworker, Linda, has been pestering me about Hoseok all morning.

"Yeah, " Anita replies, "spill the beans!"

I sigh, irritated by my fellow dancer's intrusive questioning. Linda isn't necessarily what I would call an acquaintance, and yet also not quite a friend. But Anita, on the other hand, is someone who is well liked by everyone but me.

Of course, that has a whole lot to do with the way she'd used me in order to get into Jimin's pants only a few months prior. I'm not sure what it was that she expected, but after her one night stand, and her failure to make Jimin her boyfriend, she'd been outright hostile to me for weeks.

"As if I had anything to do with it, " I snort to myself.

Just looking at her beady eyes and greedy countenance still makes me want to punch her in the face. And to be standing before me, acting as if she's ever been a friend of mine, doesn't help either.

"Not that it's any of your business, " I snap, "but he's just a friend."

Anita groans before walking off, clearly not interested any longer. Convinced that Jimin and I had something going, I'm sure she'd been hoping that I was out of the picture entirely. No matter how many times I say that Jimin and I are like brother and sister, she refuses to listen. I watch with irrigation as she saunters away, and quietly wonder to myself why she's even here when she clearly isn't here to be a dancer. Lord knows she's already slept with at least half of the staff at this point.

But Linda perks up, eyes shining brightly at the realization that Hoseok is not my boyfriend.

"So, if he's just a friend does that mean he's fair game?" She asks hopefully.

A part of me bristles at the question, and I silently berate myself for it. I have no intention of dating, not even Hoseok, so I have no right to be upset. My mood darkens considerably, and I become even more grumpy than I was to start with.

Linda seems to take notice of it, and smiles at me knowingly.

"I take that as a no, " she chirps. "You like him, don't you?"

I cough, sputtering for air thanks to her outrageous claim.

"Absolutely not!" I exclaim wheezily.

But Linda simply smirks, as if she knows something that I do not.

"I mean it!" I growl.

But it's a wasted effort to deny anything to Linda. She's always convinced that she knows everything and everyone, and this time won't be any different. I could argue with her till I'm blue in the face, and she would still find reason to refute my statement.

"Keep telling yourself that honey, " she drawls, honeyed-amusement coloring her tone as she walks away, hand held high in the air in dismissal. "But remember, if you push him away for too long it's only inevitable that someone else will snatch him up!"

I grumble my protests behind her retreating back.

The rest of the day passes by, as ordinary as any other day really. Nothing terribly exciting happens, and before I know it, it's time to go home. I stretch, then gather my belongings as my muscles groan in protest.

I watch as all of my coworkers leave, talking amongst each other excitedly. Nothing unusual, the other men and women are always much more energetic than I am. A lot more social too. I've always tended to stick to myself, a feat made easy by the fact that everyone else ignores me.

What is unusual is the way that several of the women giggle, eyes glued at something just beyond our studio's entrance.

I follow the crowd out of the door, and am simultaneously surprised and yet, somehow not very surprised at all, to find a gaggle of my female coworkers crowding around none other than Hoseok himself.

Linda's words from earlier echo in my mind, and my stomach clenches in sickening anger. I am appalled to admit that I know exactly what this feeling is.

Jealousy.

But he pays little to no attention to the women around him, something that inexplicably causes my chest to swell with satisfaction. Instead, his eyes are frantically scanning the mass of bodies exiting the building. His eyes light up as he spots me, and I blush in response.

"Avelyn!" He calls excitedly, pushing aside his admirers in order to navigate his way to me through the throng of onlookers.

I can feel eyes upon me, some envious, and some just downright hostile.

"I came to walk you home!" He exclaims, coming to a stop before me.

"Let me guess, " I deadpan, "Jimin was afraid I was going to head straight to his studio after work."

Hoseok pinkens slightly, shuffling his feet absentmindedly.

"Not just Jimin, " he replies sheepishly. "I was worried about you too."

I sigh in resignation.

"Well, I'm afraid that I still have no intention of going home straight away." I tell him firmly. "You're a dancer too, right? You have to understand that I need to practice."

He pauses, unable to deny my statement, though I can tell he wants to argue with me.

"How about this, " he starts, "why don't we practice together?"

Whatever I had expected him to say, it was not this. Caught off guard as I am, I struggle to come up with some sort of excuse.

"You're a hip hop dancer though, " I argue, "how would practicing together be beneficial for either of us?"

He hums thoughtfully, and then opens his mouth to speak once more.

"Well practicing alone clearly isn't doing you any good. Besides, you might be surprised."

He grabs my hand, completely oblivious to the way others are looking at us as he drags me away.

The walk to Jimin's studio seems much shorter with company, and I find myself simply listening as Hoseok rattles on about this and that. His adam's apple bobs enchantingly as he speaks animatedly, and I wonder if he's aware of just how very handsome he is. For the first time in my life I feel that I have something in common with my coworkers.

I too am unable to look away.