As expected, Kyungsoo doesn't see a lot of Sehun for the week that Luhan and Yixing are back. In fact, she can count using only one hand the exact number of times she saw him. Although if she hadn’t been cooped up in her room most of the time, she’ll probably see him more. But that’s not the point here. Sehun’s practically living there.

Jongin too, Kyungsoo sadly notices, is hardly at home. Even though she purposely sits out in the living room when it’s usually time for him to be back from work pretending to watch the news, the sound of a cheery I’m home! isn’t heard.

Well, there is but it’s just Kris and who cares.

She itches to just walk next door into the girls’ apartment and join whatever they’re doing, hopefully nothing involving any kind of –somes. But on the other hand, she doesn’t want to be there and be ignored by her housemates (Jongin really) who she thinks is worshipping the ground the girls walk on.

It frustrates her to spend the remaining of her holiday, which have been pretty boring so far, staying at home, worrying and imagining what’s happening just next door.

She knows she doesn’t have a lot of, if any, chance in the first place, Jongin’s admittance to her being just a friend still hurts like a beach, but knowing that there’s someone else that interests Jongin makes she feel even worse.

When it’s finally time for the models to leave again, to Japan this time Luhan says, Kyungsoo feels bad because they’re still her friends but she’s happy nonetheless. She can have her roommates back, yes even Sehun, who is grumpy, more than usual that is. But that can be fixed – with food of course.

For dinner, she decides to prepare something special. It’s been a while since the four of them eat together and she really wants to treat them.

So she makes the dish that not just Sehun’s, but is also Kris and Jongin’s favourite as well. She too thinks it’s the best dish she’s ever made and it’s wait for it - sundubu jjigae. 

Okay, that’s not her best dish. Kimchi spaghetti is, please, but they don’t have spaghetti in stock and she’s too lazy to go grocery shopping so she makes do with whatever they have.

Sehun can go to hell if he complains. Kris too. Jongin maybe can go to a desert, it’s still hot but he’ll live.

When they’re all seated at the dining table, Jongin on her left while Kris and Sehun sit across them, everything seems to go back to normal.

Seems. Internally, she’s struggling to remain composed as hers and Jongin’s arms accidentally brush every once in a while and Jongin’s smirks following them don’t help at all. At one point, he’s even playing footsie with her underneath the table and she lets out an audible gasp, attracting the attention of everyone on the table.

Sehun looks confused, so does Jongin and- wait, why is he confused? Meanwhile, Kris is smirking, obviously pleased with himself. As it dawns on her, she kicks the offending foot away, screaming at him, “Stop it oppa!”

Kris winks at her and pulls his foot back. Sehun just shrugs and focuses back on his food while Jongin looks back and forth at the two quizzically.

“What happened?” he asks, noting Kyungsoo’s flushed cheek.

Kris smirks again but doesn’t say anything, much to Kyungsoo’s annoyance because she doesn’t want to explain either, so she just lies, “Nothing.”

Obviously, Jongin doesn’t believe her, he’s an idiot if he does, but when Kyungsoo goes back stuffing herself with food, he lets it go, albeit hesitantly.

Halfway through dinner when the earlier incident has been forgotten although Jongin repeatedly glances towards both Kris and Kyungsoo, Kris jumps up slightly in his seat, suddenly remembering something, “Kyungsoo, there’s this formal dinner the company’s going to host and I have to be there, with a date. So-“

Whatever he’s going to say is interrupted when Jongin slams his glass down, swallowing the water in his mouth quickly, thankfully things doesn’t get ugly afterwards, “Why don’t you ask Yixing noona?”

Kris looks at him open mouthed, surprised that he was cut off before asking, “Why would I do that?”

“Because aren’t you two together?” Jongin asks hesitantly, because it’s something that seems obvious but at the same time, it’s not.

“No we're not,” Kris states nonchalantly, not affected by the question in the slightest, “Yixing is just a casual lay. And the feeling’s mutual.”

Kyungsoo and Jongin nod in acknowledgement, if Sehun’s paying attention, he doesn’t show it.

When nobody else says anything, Kris continues as an afterthought, “We haven’t slept together recently though.”

At that, all three of his roommates snort, very unattractively in Sehun’s case, not bothering to hide their disbelief.

“First of all, we don’t need to know that,” the youngest finally speaks up, “Secondly, yeah right. Whatever you say hyung.”

Kyungsoo grins as both Sehun and Jongin cackle with laughter.

“We really didn’t,” Kris whines, which really doesn’t suit him but he still does it, “Do you think I need that much?”

They all nod synchronously and consequently break into another fits of laughter while Kris looks on with a frown on his face.

“We were only talking in her room for heaven’s sake!” he says again in an attempt to control the situation but desperately failing as Jongin pants right, talking.

After a while, only Kyungsoo calms down enough so wasting no time, Kris grabs her attention, “Anyway Kyungsoo, as I was saying, can you-“

“Hyung.”

At the yet another interruption from Jongin, Kris glares at the boy, boy because he’s being immature and disrespectful at the moment. When Jongin stiffens visibly in his seat, Kris snarls, “What now?”

“Umm, w-when’s the dinner?”

Both Sehun and Kyungsoo look at Jongin curiously, no doubt wondering what’s gotten into him because he usually doesn’t care that much what Kris or anybody does.

“This Saturday.”

At the answer, the metaphorical gear in Jongin’s head starts working as he processes the information and when he sees everyone staring at him he clears his throat, suddenly acting indifferent.

“In that case, Kyungsoo won’t go with you hyung. This Saturday is her last one before school starts and I’m sure she wants to stay home and watch those cliché dramas she watches,” Jongin says, grinning as he pokes her cheek, “You know how she is - a lazy bum.”

Kyungsoo immediately punches his side, not so lightly she might add because he deserves it. Who is he to call her a lazy bum when he once spent the whole day sleeping?

“Yah, who says I won’t go? I’m not that lazy okay,” she retorts dramatically, hitting Jongin again.

Jongin retaliates by ruffling her hair, irritating her even more and in the end they continue back and forth with their assaults. Eventually her punches get lighter each time and his tousling stops in exchange for any stray hair back into place.

“Excuse me,” Kris interrupts finally, stopping their mini battle, “Can we go back to me, please?”

They know he’s struggling to compose himself and they applaud him for succeeding, but not wanting to push his patience any further, Kyungsoo and Jongin retract their hands, looking at him apologetically.

“Please don’t interrupt me again Jongin if you want to live to see tomorrow’s sunrise,” he warns, never breaking their eye contact “And Kyungsoo, listen.”

They both nod furiously because Kris can be very intimidating without even trying and he’s making an effort now, “I wasn’t going to ask Kyungsoo to be my date, please, I’m not that desperate-“

“Hey!” Kyungsoo cries but when Kris glares at her, whatever she wants to say get stuck in as Jongin comfortingly pats her knee underneath the table, smile threatening to break on his face.

When it’s silent once more, Kris continues, “I actually just wanted to ask for your friend’s number. Joonmyun is it?”

Oh.

Three jaws drop simultaneously, surprised by the statement. It gets even dramatic when Sehun's spoon falls out of his grip, making a large clanking noise as it hits his bowl. Everyone is definitely thinking did they hear him right?

So on behalf of everyone, Kyungsoo sacrifices herself and heroically asks, “What was that?”

“Your friend Joonmyun, I want her number,” he repeats, softly this time, Kyungsoo hopes she hasn’t gone crazy because she thinks she sees a hint of pink on his cheeks, “I want her to come with me to the dinner.”

Kyungsoo wants to laugh until her stomach hurts because this is just ridiculous. But she should cry instead because this is Kris – the playboy who has one-night stands with countless women and never see them again (minus Yixing), and now he actually wants one of those women to be his date? Pride is what Kyungsoo feels right now.

When Kris clears his throat, she realises they’ve all been quiet for too long so she quickly responds, “Yes, sure. I’ll text it to you.”

“Okay thanks.” Feeling awkward now that all his roommates are looking at him like he’s sprouted an extra appendage, he tries to explain, “It’s not what you’re thinking. I’d ask Yixing but she’s away. And Kyungsoo, well as I said I’m not that desperate. So yeah, Joonmyun then.”

Kyungsoo doesn’t have time to be offended because she’s too busy giggling when Sehun mutters, “Sure, whatever floats your boat hyung.”

--

The remainder of her holiday is spent much like the first week. She goes out a couple of times with her girl friends, including Joonmyun who surprisingly doesn’t mention anything about Kris or their upcoming ‘date’, assuming she accepts that is.

She also takes time to take Sehun out for a bubble tea date since she promised herself she would. She doesn’t mind losing a few thousand Won and wasting precious drama catching up time in exchange for hanging out with her youngest roommate.

Only because he talks a lot really. And she can ask about Jongin without him suspecting anything because he just doesn’t care. It helps also that Sehun works with Jongin so he knows more than she does.

“So what’s new with you?” she starts. Sehun may seem oblivious most of the time, she still has to be cautious and not be too obvious. Subtlety is the best way to go.

“Nothing much.”

“What about Jongin?” So she hasn't the most patience in the world, what's new?

He shrugs, “Nothing too I guess. Ask him yourself.”

“Come on, there must be something,” she pushes, her 4,000 Won must be worth it dammit, “He won’t tell me anything if I ask him.”

“Let me guess,” he looks up at her then, smiling cheekily and her heart goes badump badump because she might’ve been caught, “you want information to blackmail him?”

Not the brightest bulb he is.

“Yea sure,” Kyungsoo says, pushing the guilt far far away, “Anything on Jongin?”

She waits as he looks out the window, brows furrowed deep in thought before he replies, “It’s not exactly blackmail material but I can only think of this one.”

Kyungsoo gestures for him to continue because she really just needs something on Jongin.

“There is this girl-“

“What girl?”

“A girl from work.”

“What about her?”

“I was going to tell you if you hadn’t interrupted,” he hisses sharply, and she slumps back into her seat, not even realising she’d been anxiously sitting on the edge, as he continues, “there’s a girl from work who likes Jongin.”

Kyungsoo nods in acknowledgement, she’s not surprised by that really. Jongin is a perfectly good looking, fit, handsome, talented, gorgeous, and just unff, young man, so obviously he’s bound to have a few admirers, herself included. But what concerns Kyungsoo is that does he feel the same way for said admirer?

“Does Jongin like her back?” she voices her thought, making sure she sounds as casual as possible even though in truth, she’s nervous, finding herself on the edge of her seat again.

What if Sehun’s answer is a yes? She’s had enough competition as it is. She doesn’t need another tall, pretty girl and most likely a dancer as well to steal Jongin away from her.

Thankfully it’s in the negative, “No, I don’t think so. She asked him out a few times but he always rejects her each time.”

Hiding her smile behind her cup, the pearls out of her bubble tea, Kyungsoo nods.

Jongin probably has someone else on his mind already and Kyungsoo hopes it’s a not so tall and not so skinny girl who happens to cook extremely well. And oh, cute as heck.