Chapter 37: Rosé's Rumor Mill

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Upon opening her locker in the kitchen, Yiseul finds herself bewildered.

Doubting that she is looking at her own locker, Yiseul looks down at the key in her palm. Well, she did really open it so surely, it belongs to her.

How strange. 

Just then, the person who could clarify this situation walks in.

“Mino?”

“Yeah?” Walking over beside her, he peeks into her locker as well.  

“Did you do this?”

He smiles at his work. “The snacks I chose are great, huh?”

“You didn’t have to.”

“Yeah, but you didn’t have to give me your granola bars either. Besides, I wanted to share.”

“I really appreciate it, Mino.”

Her words widen his smile. “Those energy bars are great,” he randomly points out to her.

Her expression calls for an explanation.

“You’re gonna need some energy to handle the ‘situation’ with Jinhwan soon.”

***

“I suspect favoritism.”

Well, Mino did warn her to handle it soon. “That’s not it, Junhoe.”

Sliding into Yiseul’s path, Junhoe interrupts her cooking. Dinner may just be ready late tonight if she’s unable to reach the stove to actually start. 

“Then, how is Jinhwan getting away with having some stray cat in his room– also, I wouldn’t have taken Jinhwan as a guy who likes animals.”

“Because he’s not a wuss like you claimed?” Yiseul asks matter-of-factly. 

He puts his face down towards hers. “I’ve never said that.”

“Bobby was there too–,”

“Shh! Don’t let Jinhwan hear you.” He shakes a finger in front of his lips. “Anyways, if it were any one of us, you would have made sure the cat was gone.”

“Why do you think that?”

“Because you’re a stickler for rules,” he answers.

“Or maybe it’s because it’s Jinhwan,” Seunghoon enters the kitchen. “Would you want to be the one that tells him he can’t have a cat on the floor?”

Yiseul sighs. At this rate, everyone in the wing must know about the cat. She didn’t expect anything less if she were to be honest. But, if the other wings catch a hint of it, it’ll probably get troublesome.

“Make sure that Center body and East wing doesn’t find out about the cat,” Yiseul suddenly says.

“You’re protecting him now?” Junhoe asks, now he’s offended. 

“Junhoe, do you want the other dorm heads getting involved?” she asks in return.

He groans. “They’ll get annoying about it.”

She wouldn’t have chosen that word, but as long as he understands that they all want the same thing. 

“Leave it to me,” Yiseul says.

***

Well, she never did ‘handle the situation’ with Jinhwan as quickly as she would have liked. She didn’t know how to tackle with it and it was taking a bit of time to figure it out.

With thoughts wondering what to do with Jinhwan and the orange cat he had taken in, it makes sleep harder to visit Yiseul. So, she leaves her room quietly with the kitchen as the destination in mind. Walking through the doorway, she naturally freezes at the sight that welcomes her.

Jaewon looks up and Yiseul finally realizes that he was playing on his phone. 

“I’m not sleepwalking this time,” he says softly and with a smile. 

She nods and resumes her movements. “Why aren’t you asleep?”

He sighs. “Just can’t sleep.”

Yiseul opens up her locker and scans the various treats inside. “Want some tea?”

“Doesn’t tea have caffeine?” he asks with amusement.

She reaches for the box and reads the label. “Mino got me some tea that’s good for sleep.”

“Why would he do that?”

“He said I must have been unable to get sleep due to the noise on the floor.”

“Again, why would he do that? Mino isn’t the type to really think about other people.”

“Well, he must if he got me some tea,” Yiseul responds. 

Jaewon snorts and jokes, “I thought he only knew how to pick out alcohol.”

Yiseul smiles and turns to face Jaewon. Shaking the box in her hands, she asks, “So, would you like some?”

Seeing how there’s no reason to refuse, he nods. 

Yiseul works carefully to make as little noise as possible to not disturb the other residents on the floor. When the teapot boils, she pours the water into the cups. She carries them both towards the table and sits across from the boy, sliding his cup towards him in the process.

“Thanks,” he says.

“Are you stressed out? How is the balancing going?”

“Balancing?” he repeats. 

“Between sports and school.”

“It’s fine. That’s not what’s troubling me. Well, it kinda does…,”

“Is that why you sleepwalk?”

“How do you know that?”

“It seems more than coincidence when you would sleepwalk a few days before your games.”

He smiles. “You’re observant.”

She’s certain that she’s not the only one who has noticed. 

He takes a sip of his tea before setting the cup down. Gently leaning the side of his face into his palm, he hums before asking, “Then, can you tell me why I’m stressed out now?”

Yiseul takes a closer look at him. “I don’t know.”

His expression falls, slightly disappointed. “I thought you were gonna go into this whole big, enlightening thing.”

“I don’t know everything.”

He chuckles.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not tonight,” he responds softly with a genuine smile.

“Okay,” she accepts. “I just want you to know that you’re always welcomed to.”

***

“I saw something interesting last night.”

Yiseul leans her back against the kitchen counter to face Rosé and starts munching on her bagel. With a sly smile, Rosé looks into her direction as the others in the kitchen also perk up to hear what Rosé had to say.

“I saw Jaewon and Yiseul on a secret date in the kitchen last night,” Rosé blurts quickly.

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Sriracha31
Hi everyone! Just trying to get the message out as efficiently as possible- if you would like to connect outside of fanfics, follow me on instagram at staceface_art.

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Comments

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Wanderer_bj
#1
Chapter 62: Ohh how I miss reading something not so heavy like this. I just love this and the end was just perfect. 😍
peachyjoonie_
#2
God, I miss you. Thank you for writing.
WholesomeRain
#3
Chapter 62: I miss these characters so much I’m going to puke.
WholesomeRain
#4
Chapter 60: It makes me sick that they aren’t all real people 😔 (even tho they are, but you get what I mean haha)
WholesomeRain
#5
Chapter 35: Oh, I’m also referring to Jinhwan, of course✊💯
WholesomeRain
#6
Chapter 30: That post that says “girls don’t want real men, they want fictional men written by women’ but I’m solely referring to the versions of Hanbin that you write. (Rereading chapters, yet again)
Amsohappy
#7
Chapter 62: Wow! I finally get to finish reading this breath of fresh air. I love your style.
All through the earlier chapters, I was chanting girl stand up for yourself like a mantra. I knew it wasn't easy to just up and switch. It took time, but I'm glad she achieved it in the end. Thank you, for this refreshing read.
Amsohappy
#8
Chapter 52: Girl, that's the spirit.
I don't want to.
maysui
#9
Chapter 57: The way Hanbin gives Yiseul a space and choice for her to decide shows how much he respects her.

All this time, she can't say no and I can't blame her for that. I hope they can leave safely and live how they want to.
maysui
#10
Chapter 55: Manipulating? Brainwashed? seems to be talking about herself hahaha I'm so proud Yiseul is speaking up for herself!