Hey

In which Minkyung is desirable, Jieqiong is classy, and Eunwoo is not allowed out in public.

“Hey, I was wondering if…”

Minkyung set her phone down and smiled encouragingly. “If?”

Jieqiong bit her lip shyly. “If you’d like to have dinner with me?”

“What are you talking about? We have dinner together every night,” teased Minkyung. She slipped past the girl and rummaged through her closet.

“Right. Ha. Ahaha.” Jieqiong grimaced at her forced laughter while Minkyung’s back was turned. She shook her head and readied herself again. “Well I mean, would you like to eat outside? Like go out, to eat. You know. Together. Outside. For food.”

“I would love to,” beamed Minkyung.

“Really?” Jieqiong bounced on the balls of her feet excitedly. “I found this really nice place. It’s right by a lake and they have a live band on Fridays—”

“Wait.” Minkyung furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “You meant tonight? I’m sorry, I have plans tonight with my project partner.”

Jieqiong felt her heart crumble at another opportunity lost. “O-oh.”

“Yeah. He thought it’d be good for dynamics before working on the presentation. You understand, right?” Minkyung squeezed Jieqiong’s shoulder apologetically.

“Oh, pfft. Sure, sure. It’s no biggie,” Jieqiong scoffed.

“You sure you don’t mind? If you really want, I can cancel and—”

The phone buzzed repeatedly on the nightstand. The screen flashed as the message “Outside! ;)” popped up under the notifications.

Jieqiong swallowed the lump in and took Minkyung’s hands in hers. “No, of course I don’t mind. You have fun. We’ll, um, I’ll take you another time.”

“Okay,” said MInkyung in relief. She slipped on a leather jacket and swiped her phone off the table. “See you tonight.”

“See ya,” sighed Jieqiong. She banged her head against the wall as the door slammed shut.

~|~|~|~

“Eunwoo, don’t put your feet on the cat. Eunwoo, don’t leave your socks in the fridge. Eunwoo, don’t brush your teeth over the carnations. Eunwoo—”

“Don’t jab your lettuce everywhere to make a point.”

“Exactly!” Shouted Eunwoo. She stared across the table in awe. “Wow, you sound just like Yaebin. Ever thought about voice acting?”

“No,” growled Jieqiong. “I mean, don’t jab your lettuce everywhere to make a point!”

“Prove that I am!” Eunwoo challenged.

As she spoke, a green square flew off of her fork and landed on the velvet carpet. The signature house dressing smeared into the fabric as a serving trolley rolled past, the waiter’s shoe crunching down on the leaf a second time.

“Ah,” Eunwoo coughed as she set her fork down gently. “I think I’m done with this. Don’t want to fill up too much.” She nudged her salad plate away.

“Wouldn’t want that,” Jieqiong sneered.

“Ladies,” greeted a waitress. “Lobster bisque,” she said, placing the bowl in front of Jieqiong. “And Italian wedding soup.” She set the bowl down before Eunwoo. “Enjoy.”

“I can’t believe Minkyung said no to a place like this. I feel so fancy. Like pinkies-up fancy.”

Jieqiong rotated her spoon, observing her convex dejected reflection. “She didn’t see it was Seashells by the Seashore. I had a reservation and everything.”

“Which was great foresight.” Eunwoo pointed at the thick guest book on the host’s podium blocking the waiting area with twenty or so customers. “Not telling your crush slash roommate about it until two hours before, not great foresight.”

“Yeah, I can see that,” Jieqiong deadpanned.

“But hey. Good news for me because it’s your treat!” Eunwoo winked greasily.

Jieqiong stared back unamused. “Your hair is in your soup.”

“What? Oh.” Eunwoo hooted frantically as she yanked a long lock of chestnut hair out of her bowl. “Oh, oh, oh no. Oh dear. Oh.”

Jieqiong waited patiently as Eunwoo clamped her napkin around the ends of her hair and squeezed the broth out. A yellow splotch soaked through the pristine white fabric.

“Waiter, may we please have another nap—” Jieqiong and the waiter slowly turned their heads at the obnoxiously loud slurping.  Eunwoo froze with her hand held high above her head, her puckered lips suctioning the long thin noodle dangling from her fingers. Jieqiong exhaled slowly and smiled serenely at the waiter. “Make that two napkins, please.”

“Um, right away, Miss.” He scampered off to the serving station without a backwards glance.

Eunwoo shrugged as Jieqiong glared across the table, her manicured nails digging into the tablecloth. “What? It landed in my lap. Automatic bypass of the five second rule. That noodle alone must’ve cost five thousand won. I’m making your money worth it.”

Jieqiong pretended to admire the glimmering chandelier above and clenched her jaw to maintain her composure. She cricked her neck and thanked the waiter who returned with more napkins than she asked for, as well as their entrées and a sympathetic “Oh, sweetie.” The main course progressed well. Eunwoo only dropped her knife twice and requested a cup of bacon bits for her side of kale-infused gnocchi. But then she got thirsty.

“What kind of establishment doesn’t serve Pepsi products?”

“One whose drinks don’t come out of a carbonated fountain.”

“Unheard of!” Eunwoo her index finger in the air.

“And yet here we are. Please don’t start clanging your spoon against your water glass. Again.”

“It’s fun though!”

“No, it’s really not. Drop it. Now.”

“Fine. Fine. My spoon is too big anyway.”

Jieqiong paused mid-bite and set her fork down. “What do you mean your spoon is too big? Too big for what? Making a ruckus or to eat with?”

Eunwoo beckoned Jieqiong closer. She raised her spoon between them, held it in front of Jieqiong’s nose, and whispered, “My spoon, is too big.”

“I still don’t underst—”

“Shh, shh, shhhhh.” Eunwoo pressed a saucy finger to her friend’s lips. “My spoon, is too big.”

Jieqiong straightened up in her chair, Eunwoo mirroring her actions. She hummed in thought for a moment. “Do I need to run a drug test on you every time we hang out?”

Eunwoo chortled jovially. “Oh, you. Always asking the obvious questions. You tickle me pink.”

“And you make me see red,” Jieqiong said through gritted teeth.

“Well then!” Eunwoo raised a small cup in cheers. “It’s practically Valentine’s Day!”

“That’s the jus for my steak,” sighed Jieqiong. She swiped the dipping cup from Eunwoo’s hand before the girl could chug it down. “And that is not how things work.”

“Right, right. Valentine’s Day is when you’re going to take Minkyung out on a boat and force me to play the violin for your candlelit dinner.”

“I would never force you to play the violin for our candlelit dinner,” said Jieqiong incredulously.

Eunwoo placed her hands over her heart. “Aww, that’s so sweet of you—”

“Your atrocious instrumental skills result in barking dogs and crying babies, and you tend to light everything on fire besides the candles. I’m not letting you anywhere near my precious Minkyung.” Jieqiong scowled as Eunwoo helped herself to the bread basket.

“Fun fact,” sang Eunwoo. She waved a dinner roll in front of Jieqiong’s face. “Eating poppy seeds dings a screening for opiates. Bonus fun fact! Minkyung ain’t your girl.”

“That second one wasn’t very fun,” grumbled Jieqiong.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be your girl. Emergency calls only. I got things to Google, people to gawk at.”

“Ladies,” the first waitress greeted again. “For dessert, a crème brûlée for two. Made with Tahitian vanilla beans and topped with an Amaou strawberry from Fukuoka, Japan enveloped in a gold leaf. Enjoy.”

Jieqiong watched in trepidation as Eunwoo scooted her chair back and leveled her eyesight with the shallow ceramic dish. Her eyes crossed while focusing on the luxurious strawberry.

“Mama’s gonna be flushing like royalty tonight.”

Full premise: Jieqiong just wants to watch Pixar movies, eat ice cream at two in the morning, and make hot chocolate snowmen. Things start with a “Hey” and end with a “No, of course I don’t mind.”