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Sooyoung doesn’t dislike school. Sure it’s not the most enjoyable thing out there, and she could easily come up with 10 other activities she’d rather do in a heartbeat, but it’s just not her motto to dread what’s already set in stone. Friends call her the happy-go-lucky chatterbox, and it’s a nickname Sooyoung embraces. That said, Sooyoung is far from a social butterfly, never attempting to fit into conversations she’s uninterested in. It’s no wonder that this girl –who would choose video games, lazing around and animals over fashion, makeup or boyfriends- found a comfy friend group far from gossip and popular cliques.

Sooyoung enjoyed her school life, exchanging insults with her best friends and swooning over big, fat pigs (they’re her favorite animals in the world), never crossing paths with any of the popular students. Therefore, it came as a minor surprise when she spotted the name “Taehyung” in the same social psychology project group as her. It was nothing to react over since the groups were randomly assigned and she merely hit that chance, but it was nevertheless interesting given the class size of 200 students. Not that it is a big deal; projects happen all the time.

"So let's go around the table and introduce ourselves real quick," Sooyoung initiated after the groups were given some brainstorming time. "I'm Sooyoung."

"I'm Minhae."

"I'm Anthony."

"And I'm Taehyung, which you guys probably already know," before flashing his signature puppy smile. He is pretty cute, Sooyoung silently acknowledged, but the harmless thought was soon forgotten. While Sooyoung and Taehyung shared 2 classes in common, she had never talked with him. Their social circles were just too different and Sooyoung held no fancy for the popular cliques.

That said, with all the glances Minhae has been subtly (and not very subtly) throwing at Taehyung, it isn't hard to guess what's on Minhae’s mind. Not that Sooyoung doesn’t see where she’s coming from, though; flirting is something most girls would do if offered an opportunity to be grouped with Taehyung. Realizing that they probably won't get anywhere, Sooyoung naturally takes the initiative and proceeded to facilitate most of the group discussion.

While splitting up the individual tasks, Minhae (without surprise) grasps every chance to work together with Taehyung, but chooses to skip out on the actual experimentation and data collection (which Taehyung, unexpectedly, is really interested in). Anthony isn't interested in the arduous and time-consuming task either, leaving Sooyoung to pair up with Taehyung on it. If you really think it through, this is actually the longest and most interactive process, so it would've been your best shot at getting Taehyung, Sooyoung thinks while glancing at Minhae. Well it is unfortunate she didn't think so far, but Sooyoung isn’t the type that likes being a busybody and connecting strings. Soon class ended, and satisfied with their progress, Sooyoung greets the three goodbye, receiving short greetings in response. Somewhere in between someone thanks her for the work today with a chill, as-expected tone. She gently nods her head in reply, accustomed. I'm in the mood for some quesadilla with chips today.

And that was all there was to it, so imagine Sooyoung's surprise when Taehyung just appears next to her locker the following day,

"Hey! You read On the Train too? I really like that book!”

Now Sooyoung has a habit of visiting her locker 10 minutes before lunch ends, but having a Taehyung pop out from nowhere, body leaning next her locker, brown orbs searching for an answer, is definitely out of the norm. As if sensing her confusion, Taehyung drops his gaze to the book in her hands for a split second before looking up again. This time, a lopsided grin appears on his lips, waiting expectantly for a reply. Unsure of where this is going, Sooyoung hesitantly replies,

“Yea… I do.”

Seemingly unsurprised by her reply, Taehyung immediately follows up, “What other books do you like to read?”

To Kill a Mockingbird. But Sooyoung isn’t all that sure if Taehyung reads such bookworm-type books. Also, there must be a reason why he’s starting this conversation and there’s no harm in cooperating.

“…I really like The Maze Runner too.”

Seeing his eyes light up, Sooyoung silently gives herself a hi-five. Observing people is one of her hobbies, and it’s always nice to see it work. Taehyung proceeds to share his thoughts, and while listening, Sooyoung momentarily looks past his shoulders, tracing the general direction he probably came from. That decision didn’t go unrewarded: she spots his group of friends and very briefly, catches Jungkook’s glance before he immediately averts his eyes - seemingly casually, but Sooyoung knows better.

She begins to have an inkling on what’s going on.

For the remainder of the conversation, Taehyung probes and responds enthusiastically while Sooyoung goes with the flow, paying attention to the direction they’re going. Weirdly enough, he didn’t seem to be suggesting anything, and soon the lunchbell rings.

“Oh, seems like lunch has ended! Let’s talk next time!” Taehyung says between smiles, waving goodbye before leaving.

Odd. Sooyoung had guessed that Taehyung’s sudden friendliness was somehow related to his friends, but till the end she didn’t observe anything that stood out. Well I guess that’s Taehyung for you. If he’s so easy to read then girls wouldn’t fall for him all the time. Paying little attention to the incident, Sooyoung closes her locker and heads to class. Time will tell.

However, the intention became clearer by the third day. Taehyung starts waving at her when they meet in the hallways, asks more questions during project meetings, and initiates short conversations time to time. Sooyoung is clearly not Taehyung’s type, and he had showed no earlier signs of interest either. That leaves only one possibility: he made a bet with his friends. Jungkook’s suspicious look from the other day only reinforces this idea, although Sooyoung doesn’t know the full details yet. What she does know, however, is how flirty and playful the boys are, and thus sees no point in being unnecessarily involved.   

Now one might think the easiest solution is to approach Taehyung straight up and reject him, but Sooyoung knows better. Those boys play not for the girls, but for the pride and excitement. Rejecting him will only arouse his competitiveness, and the last thing Sooyoung wants is to have a determined Taehyung flirting his way around her. Instead, she decides to play along.

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Author's Notes:

Sorry for disappearing for so long, I was too busy with school xD Finally finished the first chapter, woohoo! I appreciate any and all comments you leave, so please tell me what you think! Until next time! <3