Dibs
Nayoung/Minkyung/Jieqiong

“We’re grad students!”

“Uh huh,” says Minkyung, “your point being?”

“She’s an undergrad.”

Minkyung leans closer, “So? I was an undergrad once.”

“T-That was different! You approached me!”

“Good point. But you can still talk to her,” Minkyung smirks, “Undergrads don’t bite. Well, not all of them do.”

“I know they don’t bite,” Nayoung whines.

Minkyung leans in, “see, she’s looking this way.”

“W-What?”

“Ooh,” Minkyung’s grin widens, “She has nice eyes. I like her. If you don’t want to go up, don’t mind if I do.”

“That’s not fair,” Nayoung whines again, “that’s not fair, Minkyung.”

“Well, if you’re not going to do anything and you don’t let me do anything, she might go off dancing with Mr. What’s His Face over there.”

“...you didn’t say she was straight.”

“I don’t know anything about her,” Minkyung laughs, “besides her name. How am I supposed to know if she’s straight?”

“Then why do you want me to-”

“Ah ah, I don’t want you to do anything, you know you want to. Besides, the way she’s watching us doesn’t scream straight to me.”

“She’s watching us?!”

“Yes,” Minkyung smirks on Nayoung’s skin, before pulling her into a kiss, “oh yes, she is.”

Jieqiong feels go dry.

She had not been meaning to look over in that direction. It was more a coincidence than anything but then she meets the eyes of Kim Minkyung, one of the grad students in her grad elective, watches as Minkyung’s gaze drops, realizes with a start that she is herself watching Minkyung’s lips as they place themselves on the skin of someone else.

Oh god.

Jieqiong needs a drink. Right now.

She gently tugs her hand out of some guy’s, not remembering when that had actually happened, laughs airily at the “Babe, where are you going?”

Babe.

She does not even know his name.

And you don’t know theirs either but it doesn't stop you from looking.

Her eyes flick back.

They’re kissing.

God, she hadn’t been planning on getting drunk tonight but maybe it would be a good idea, if only to get the thoughts of those pairs of eyes on her skin and those two lips on hers out of her head.

“Well,” Minkyung smirks, “I don’t think she’s entirely straight, even if she did come in with a guy.”

Nayoung Minkyung’s lip balm off her lips, “What?”

Minkyung laughs, “Oh, I don't know what to do with you, Nayoung. Seriously. Just go up to her. I think she went to get drinks.”

“Where? Should I just…”

Minkyung raises her eyebrows, “Nayoung, it's just talking to a- Wow. You're serious huh.”

“I mean-I- Stop teasing me!”

Minkyung laughs, “Oh this is going to be good. She's in the other room. Just go.”

Nayoung whines. Minkyung just shoves her (gently) away, and takes a sip from her own glass.

“I can't.”

Minkyung turns around to see Nayoung without Zhou Jieqiong in tow.

“Wait what?”

Nayoung’s look is mournful, “you didn't tell me she was foreign. I don't speak Chinese.”

Minkyung chokes on her pretzel stick, knows that Zhou Jieqiong is in her economics class and speaks fluent Korean. Then she sees one of the other Chinese students heading out of the room and puts two and two together.

Ah.

“Minkyung,” Nayoung says, “You speak Chinese right?”

Uh.

Minkyung smirks, finishes the pretzel stick.

“You bet I do.”

(No, she doesn't. Not really. But Nayoung doesn't need to know that.)

“Are you Jieqiong?”

Jieqiong turns.

Holy. . She's even more gorgeous up close, when she's not kissing Kim Minkyung, whoever this person is.

“Yeah, that's me,” she says, only now registering that she was spoken to in Chinese.

Oh.

My.

God.

Jieqiong did not believe she could melt but is discovering now that it is possible.

“Are you Chinese?”

The taller girl looks visibly alarmed. Ah. Maybe they're learning. Jieqiong has had enough experience with language learners (easiest way to earn money tutoring - just chat about your week in your native tongue, what could be easier) to know that it takes courage to speak in the language.

She smiles, slows her words down, “Are you learning Chinese?”

If possible, the other girl looks like she is about to bolt and Jieqiong wants to squee and also squeeze her really adorable cheeks but that's not what you do to someone you just met at a party.

“Chinese?” she asks.

“Nayoung,” says the other person.

Jieqiong bites back a snicker and a you're adorable, holds out a hand, “Jieqiong, it's nice to meet you.”

“Uhm,” Nayoung's brows furrow and a look of intense concentration comes over her face, “I uh, I'm Nayoung and I love you?”

Jieqiong's jaw drops, then she works it out and bursts out laughing, “Sorry darling, we just m