“Okay, this one is super easy. Which economist came up with the invisible hand theory?” Jisoo looks over her girlfriend Jennie, who’s visibly struggling to find the right answer, pursing her lips and staring up as if the answer will magically fall from the sky.

“Wait, I know this one! I’m sure I know it. It’s Adam something..” she taps the table repeatedly and stops in glee. “Oh yeah, It’s Adam Sandler!”
Jisoo frowns “Jen, that’s an actor.”

“Adam Levine?” she tries again, but Jisoo’s frown deepens.

“He’s a singer. Maroon 5?” Jisoo explains matter-of-factly, and Jennie smiles guiltily.

“Then, it’s definitely Adam Warlock!” Jennie says cheerfully, thinking she got it right but quickly pouts when Jisoo throws her an unimpressed look.

“Jennie baby, I love you but you’re ing dumb.” Jisoo deadpans, ignoring Jennie’s pleas and whines.

“Please don’t give up one me unnie! I don’t want to fail this class!”

“Oh you’re definitely failing, tell her Chaeng.” when she doesn’t hear the younger reply she turns to see her staring elsewhere pensively, a stupid grin plastered on her face.

“Chaeng?” she tries again, but Chaeyoung doesn’t budge. She shares a strange look with Jennie and they both turn to see what got their friend in a trance. Their eyes fall on a girl two tables away from them, talking animatedly about something she’s clearly passionate about to the guy next to her, who has his arms around her waist, a smitten look on his face as he’s sitting there, admiring the girl he’s holding.

Jisoo smirks knowingly as Jennie lets out a high-pitched shriek that brings Chaeyoung back to reality. She tilts her head when she notices her friends’ eyes on her, a playful smile on their lips.

“What?” she asks innocently, the smile completely wiped out of her face.

“Who is it?” Jisoo asks, confusing her even more.

“Who is who?”

“The guy that got you all smiley and mushy.” she explains, Jennie leaning closer with a wide teasing grin.

Chaeyoung blinks, a little taken aback “I- What- t-there’s no guy. What makes you say that?” she tries to play it off but her friends can see right through her, if their mocking expressions is anything to go by.

“You’re so obvious Chaeyoungie” Jennie comments “you always stutter when you’re hiding something, and-” she points at Chaeyoung’s hands. “You always rub your fingers together when you tell a lie.”

Chaeyoung glances down at her hands and is surprised to find that Jennie’s right. She quickly hides them under the table and pouts. Screw her friends’ observation skills. “You guys are the worst.”

Jisoo shrugs in acknowledgement “We know. Now dish, bish.”

She steals one last glance at them before she sighs in surrender. “Okay, fine.” she fiddles with her fingers, thinking of how to phrase her words. “So,” she starts, the two girlfriends leaning closer in anticipation. “There’s this guy that’s been coming to our bookshop lately- well, it was only two times actually, but-” she stares at the lovey dovey couple again, her eyes softening as the guy casually leans in to kiss her. “I can’t stop thinking about him”

Her friends coo at her words, Jennie resting her head on Jisoo’s shoulder and clutching her heart. “Our baby is all grown up Unnie.” she looks up at her girlfriend who’s pretending to wipe fake tears in happiness, making Chaeyoung roll her eyes. Is it too late to ask for new friends?

“Why are you making a big deal out of this? I’ll probably never see him again.” her voice weakens at the last part, an unexpected wave of gloom enveloping her. She shakes her head lightly and smiles to mask her feelings. “It was nice while it lasted.” she whispers to herself but Jisoo heard it loud and clear.

“What makes you so sure he won’t come back again?”

“Did he say that?” Jennie adds.

Chaeyoung shrugs “I don’t know, it’s just- ugh, it doesn’t matter.” she waves them off frantically “Let’s just forget about it, okay?”

Jennie and Jisoo share a look before they both get up to sit beside Chaeyoung, each claiming a side as they stare in intent at her, making the younger confused.

“That’s exactly what we won’t do.” Jisoo says

“ ‘Cuz we’re gossipy es and we love tea.” Jennie quips

“But also because we care about you and we don’t want to discard your feelings.”

“But it’s mostly the tea.”

Jisoo levels her girlfriend a hard look “Babe.”

“Right, your feelings are what matters the most. Definitely not the tea.” Jennie utters in the most unconvincing voice making Jisoo sigh heavily. Chaeyoung looks between them before she bursts into a fit of giggles. Jennie beams in victory and clings to Chaeyoung’s arm, scooting closer to her. “Tell us. What is he like? what does he look like? what made you interested in him? wha-”

“Woah woah, slow down.” Chaeyoung nudges her lightly, but that only makes Jennie whine more.

“I wanna know! this is the first time I’ve seen you hung up on a guy, that’s rare!”

Chaeyoung falls silent for a second, contemplating what Jennie just said. It’s not like she isn’t looking for love, she’s very open to the idea, she’s just not that desperate. Although she admits, watching the loving relationship her brother and his husband have sure makes her feel a little lonely, but nothing too extreme. She believes that love shouldn't be forced, it has to flow naturally for it to be genuine and nourishing, so she doesn’t go around searching for it. If her time comes it’ll come in full bloom.

“I kind of felt something when we first met. A spark, I guess? I don’t know what to call it.” she lowers her head, feeling a little shy. “He came into the shop and just started casually browsing through the books, and I couldn’t help but stare.” she’s full on blushing by now and her friends’ teasing squeaks are not helping. “He had this mysterious alluring aura to him that made it hard to look away, and when I saw him check one of my favorite books, without thinking I approached him. It was a sudden uncontrollable pull that I couldn’t control. It was weird.”

“Of course you’d fall for a book nerd. Of course.” Jennie wails, earning a light slap on the arm from Chaeyoung.

“Wow Chaeng, didn’t think you’re the type to fall at first sight.” Jisoo comments, poking her rosy cheek.

“I wouldn’t call it falling for him, really.”

“Sure Jan.” Jennie mocks her again, this time getting a flick in the forehead.

“And? what happened after?” Jisoo implores, and Chaeyoung’s thankful that she’s not teasing her like Jennie.

“We talked and I liked it.” she tucks her hair behind her ears, smiling to herself. “I had his attention and it felt nice. Really really nice” she pauses momentarily, mustering the courage to say what’s on her mind. “The guys I’ve liked in the past, they never seemed to care about what I said. They talked to me because they saw me as a pretty thing, but then, they’d see my brother and suddenly I’m not worth their time anymore.” she feels Jisoo’s hand caressing her back, the touch immediately soothing her. “I know it’s dumb, but I’ve always felt inferior to Jimin. I’ve always been jealous of how he can have people instantly turn their heads towards him because he’s that special, you know? while I struggled to hold conversations, he easily maneuvered his way in and made everyone fall for his charm.” She purses her lips for a moment, staring at the distance, the smile returning to her face “Jungkook was different. He made me feel seen the moment we met.”

“That’s actually cute.” Jennie coos, patting Chaeyoung’s head lightly.

Her smile drops and is replaced with a pout “Yeah, but I doubt I’ll ever see him again.”

“Don’t say that. based on what you told us, he seems to like you too.” Jisoo reassures her with a smile but Chaeyoung simply nods, not wanting to get her hopes up.

“Chaeyoungie when should you go to the bookstore?” Jennie asks suddenly

“At 4, why?”

“We’ll walk you there, I don’t want you going to work looking so sulky.” she squishes Chaeyoung’s cheeks and smiles, her gums showing. “We’ll keep you company.”

“You guys don’t have to, I’m fine-”

“Nonsense.” Jisoo interjects defensively “we’ll go with you. Besides, we haven’t hang out in a while because of stupid midterms, might as well have fun, right?”

Chaeyoung eyes soften and she nods happily, her friends enveloping her in a group hug.

“Ah!” Jennie shouts in realization, startling the other two. She snaps her fingers and smiles “Adam Ravioli! that’s the correct answer right? right?”

Jisoo blinks once. “You just made that up, didn’t you?”

Jennie smiles bitterly “I’ll just humbly accept defeat.”

----------------------

He stares at the rampage unfolding in front of him, hands coated in blood and ashes, breath caught in his lungs. He tries to get up but his legs betray him, and he falls helplessly on the broken ground.

“Guess this is it.” the voice behind him says. A long pause stretches between them as they look at the countless bodies lying lifeless in the open. He shudders involuntarily.

“Was this your plan all along?” He finally asks as he turns around to stare at Skelter.

“Nothing was ever planned, kid. I simply set the rules and people played with them.”

“That doesn’t make it right.”

“What makes it right then?”

He’s mocking him. Kean could tell from his abrasive tone and the curl of his lips

“Letting people make their choice in the first place.” he sits upright, eyes boring into the man in front of him. “You can’t give something in your own terms an not expect people to riot.”

Skelter doesn’t spare him a look as he answers “I set the rules, but I gave them the choice to submit to them or not. It’s not my fault people like to alter everything to their needs.”

“So you’re not going to own up to your mistakes?”

This time, Skelter looks at him. “The only mistake I made is trusting humankind.” he takes a step closer to Kean and squats down to meet his eyes “I’m not responsible for people’s choices. They ruined their freedom because of their greed, so don’t play the victim card here, kid. You’re just as guilty as them.”

Kean stays silent, his mind running haywire. He’s always believed that ideals and morality rule over Society; Society being an entity built on cohesion and uniformity, but the sight before him begged to differ, and suddenly these ethical beliefs don’t make sense anymore.

Skelter could see the distress on his face but he doesn’t comment on it. “Humans are built that way. They seek what they can’t have and reach for the unattainable, then blame each other when things don’t work out for them. Leave them to their own devices or govern their every move; either way, humans will find a way to destroy themselves.”

Kean ponders over the elder’s words and lets himself be driven by their implication.

There was no answer. No matter what the world may plot, the equation remains unchanged. Normal society or reverse society; there was no answer, just a lot of questions.

Jungkook closes the book carefully, eyes wide as a euphoric shrill runs down his body. He gives himself a few seconds to let the high rush of excitement die down and sighs contently, smiling as he reads the back cover for the nth time.

The poor are highly thought of

Minorities are privileged

Decision makers are takers

Money is never a problem

Welcome, to reverse society.

It’s insane how invested he got in it. He devoured it in two days, which was nothing to avid bookworms who can finish books in one setting, but to a hard-to-please guy like him, that was a new record. He’s sold. This Kim Namjoon guy is one hell of a storyteller.

“If I recall, I hired you to work not to laze around.” Jimin gives him a disapproving look as he cleans the shelves, careful not to stain the corners of the book pages with the wet towel he’s using.

Jungkook eyes his surroundings and shrugs “There are no customers though. There’s nothing to do.”

Jimin throws the towel at him and Jungkook thanks the lord for his fast reflexes “Now you do.” he grins smugly, earning a scowl from Jungkook.

“When’s Chaeyoung coming?” he asks as he starts wiping the hidden corners of the shelves.

“Is that all you care about?”

“Yes.” his blunt answer doesn’t surprise Jimin, the latter smiling in amusement.

“Are you always so honest?”

Jungkook shrugs “Don’t see the point in lying.”

Before Jimin could say anything, familiar giggles and chatters fill in the shop. They both turn around at the sounds, the younger brightening up as he spots Chaeyoung. She doesn’t see him at first, too caught up in one of Jennie’s stupid crazy stories until their eyes meet and the air suddenly gets knocked out of her lungs. Her friends look at her weirdly but once they catch sight of Jungkook smiling sweetly at her, they both smirk.

“Hey girls, good to see you.” Jimin casually greets, Jennie and Jisoo waving back at him with kind smiles.

Chaeyoung stands still, too shocked to say a word. Jungkook approaches her cooly, hands in pockets, his smile slowly turning playful. It was a little too much for Chaeyoung to process.

“You’re late.” he says, his shimmering eyes doing stupid things to her heart.

“W-why-” it comes out breathless so she clears “why are you here?”

Jungkook tilts his head “I told you I’ll be back, right?”

She can hear her friends muffling their screams, her cheeks suddenly turning pink. “Oh, okay.” she tries to sound nonchalant, trying to ignore the fast beats of her heart.

“You must be Jungkook.” Jisoo beams from beside her.

“Yeah. Do I know you?” Jungkook asks and this time, Jennie answers him.

“No, but Chaeyoungie told us about you.”

Chaeyoung wants the earth to swallow her right this moment. She doesn’t dare look at his face, opting instead to glare at her friends, her blush getting worse.

“Really.”he hums, a pleased smile on his face “I’m honored.” he stares at Chaeyoung, who’s still avoiding his gaze. Jennie snickers and puts her arm around her blushing friend.

“I’m Jennie by the way, and that’s Jisoo.” he nods at both of them in acknowledgement. “We’ve known Chaeyoungie for a long time now but this is the first time I’ve seen her act so shy in front of a guy.” Chaeyoung, if possible, grows even redder and slaps Jennie’s arm with a loud hiss. “Please take care of our little baby.” Jennie continues regardless and loops her arm around Jisoo’s with a victorious smile. “We’ll take our leave now.”

“You’re leaving already? You just got here.” Jimin asks, making his presence known.

“There’s no need for us to stay anymore. Besides,” she glances at Chaeyoung with a mischievous grin. “We don’t want to get in your way. Take care!” she chirps before she leaves with Jisoo.

Am empty silence follows after, broken by Jungkook’s chuckles “I like your friends.”

Chaeyoung grunts, still a little embarrassed to face him. Jimin simply sighs, feeling like an intruder “I’ll be at the back if you need me. Don’t try anything funny.” he warns Jungkook before he disappears. Now that they’re left alone, she can feel herself relax a bit, finally able to meet his gaze.

“You were right.”

“Huh?”

He grabs the book he left on the contour and shows it to her. “It is a masterpiece.”

Chaeyoung immediately brightens up, just like she always does when it comes to her favourite books, Jungkook noticed. “You finished it already?” he nods in reply. “It’s amazing, isn’t it?” she snatches the book from his hand and hugs it to her chest. Jungkook coos internally. “Namjoon has this wonderful ability to build wondrous worlds from scratch and make them believable. He showcases reality through fictional settings and crafts his characters into these genuine beings that you really can’t help but dwell in his words.”

Jungkook hums in agreement, too caught up in her radiant aura to say anything.

“Reverse Society is a perfect example of that. Skelter was painted as the bad guy from the start but he's never really done anything cruel if you think about it. He created his own society with his own rules and let others in it, but never once did he abuse his power. It was the people that abused their rights and Kean was too young to understand the dynamics of it all, so-” she goes on, her voice fading in the background as his mind wanders elsewhere. He doesn’t say anything, can’t say anything to be exact. He just stares intently, admiring the way her lips part to utter words, the way her eyes shine as she speaks of this book she holds dearly and her endearing hand movements to emphasize a point.

“-agree, Greed is a dangerous thing. Don’t you think so too?”

“You’re seriously out of this world.” the words leave his lips before he can think twice, but he doesn’t regret them, especially not after Chaeyoung blushes so prettily and covers her face.

“Why do you always say stuff like that, it’s embarrassing!” she whines softly, earning a chuckle from him.

“I mean it. You’re unreal.”

“Jesus, stop flirting.” Jimin’s scolding voice surprises them both, turning their attention to him. “Get back to work, both of you!” he orders before he disappears again. Chaeyoung grimaces sheepishly before her eyes narrow in confusion.

“You..work here now?” she points at Jungkook who simply smiles.

“Jimin didn’t tell you?” she shakes her head, reality finally dawning on her.

Jungkook. her. together. bookshop. enclosed space. Oh god, please have mercy on her heart.

“W-why did you decide to work here?” she asks hesitantly.

“Well, Jimin asked me to.”

Ah. Jimin. Of course.

She tries not to show the disappointment on her face, nodding with a fake smile. “Ah, because of Jimin? that’s cool. Jimin is really charming, right?”

She’s so naive, she shouldn’t have got her hopes up, shouldn’t have entertained the idea in the first place. It was too good to be true anyway. She’ll always be second to Jimin. Always the second choice out of the two. Always.

God, it hurts.

Jungkook notices the flicker of hurt in her eyes and the fabricated stretch of her lips. It doesn’t take him long to put two and two together.

“Jimin asked me  but I agreed because I want to be with you.” he mutters, and like a spell, his words turn her sour expression into a hopeful one. The sudden change warms his heart, bringing a smile to his face. “I like listening to you talk about your favourite books and the way you smile so bright when you do so. I like being around you, you know. You're a joy to be with.” Jungkook expects Chaeyoung to turn shy and hide her face again, but is surprised when she flashes him the softest smile he’s ever seen,

“Thank you.” she whispers faintly, her gaze thankful and genuine, and suddenly he’s reminded of the first time they’ve met: how her beautiful smile got him lost in his thoughts, how her eyes held millions of galaxies as she spoke about his poetry, how her whole being shone brighter than the sun.

How one look at her made him want to write a thousand poems.

Realization dawns on him then.

She steps away, waddling cutely to join Jimin in the stockroom, leaving him in a daze.

Without much thought, he takes out his phone to text Hoseok.

                 >Hyung

                >I found my muse

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AN: I apologize for the long absence! I got busy with finals then after I grew tired and didn't feel like writing, so I had to find my motivation to go back to this story! I'm sorry I left so suddenly :( I'm not really satisfied with this chapter but I promise to do better next time!

Btw, if you want to reach me, you can find me on twitter @beautifulakumas .

Thank you all so much for your kind words about my writing even though I don't think it's good at all, but I try to improve!

Lots of love <3