Slamming the door as he marched his way into the student council office, Jinyoung let out a loud groan, catching the attention of Bambam, JB, and Mark who were lounging around the table while playing video games loudly. It was their usual hang out spot since all four boys were currently officers of the student council. They spent a lot of time in the office during their breaks and even after classes.

Looking up from his phone, Bambam beamed but quickly masked his expression upon seeing Jinyoung’s disgruntled one. Sneaking a glance at JB, Bambam cleared his throat. Jinyoung took a seat next to Mark and his eyes closed as he took a deep breath to calm himself. JB finally spoke up once Jinyoung opened his eyes.

“Problem?” JB asked, tilting his head to the side in curiosity. He rarely sees Jinyoung losing patience so something big must have happened for him to lose control like this.

“Yes and the problem’s name is Kim Jisoo.” Jinyoung muttered through gritted teeth.

Hiding a smirk, Mark asked, “So, what is it this time?” 

“I asked her very kindly to stop covering my posters with hers and you know what that girl did? She smiled at me then covered my poster with hers while looking at me!” Jinyoung let out another sigh of frustration.

“I don’t get what’s the big deal about the school election. It’s not like anybody cares about it except the grade-conscious students.” Bambam commented, turning his attention back to his phone.

“Exactly—the grade-conscious ones cared. I need to win this election again because it’s our final year and whatever we do right now would reflect on our records. You know I need to get into the top university!” Jinyoung said in a whining tone as he covered his face with both hands.

“Yes, we know. But aren’t you putting too much pressure on yourself?” JB asked, keeping his tone light knowing his friend is sensitive over his academic standing.

“I know, but I just can’t let this go.” Jinyoung said, sounding defeated.

Clearing his throat, Bambam chimed in, raising his hand. “Permission to say something brave.” 

Raising an eyebrow, Jinyoung gestured for him to go on.

With all three’s eyes on him, Bambam’s expression slowly changed as he snickered. “You can’t let go of this because it’s Kim Jisoo you’re up against.”

Heavy silence fell upon the four of them as Bambam’s words slowly sunk in. Jinyoung stiffened and stood up, making JB and Mark jump from their chairs to get in between him and Bambam. 

Putting a hand on Jinyoung’s chest lightly, JB let out a chuckle. “Okay, okay. Calm down now. Bambam’s just joking.”

Bambam’s tried to answer but his words were muffled by Mark’s hand that covered his mouth to stop him from saying anything. Laughing, Mark said, “Okay, forgive Bambam. You know he hasn’t always been the brightest crayon in the box.”

“I’m really gonna kill you someday for actually saying that.” Jinyoung said, backing off and plopping down on his chair again.

Once Mark and JB went back on their seats, Bambam opened his mouth again. “Why don’t you just admit that you hate Jisoo because of what happened with you two before?”

JB’s eyes widened as he asked Bambam, “Do you really have a death wish?”

Shrugging, Bambam muttered, “What? It’s true. Everyone knows their history.”

“No, . Only we and Jisoo’s friends know their history.” Mark replied, throwing his water bottle at Bambam which the latter quickly dodged.

“Okay, I’m done talking with you guys.” Jinyoung sighed as he stood up and made his way to the door.

“Wait, where are you going?” JB asked, standing up to follow Jinyoung.

“I need a breath of fresh air. It hurts my brain to communicate with you three.” Jinyoung was already reaching for the doorknob but Mark called out to him.

“Hey, we still need you here!”

“Let me guess. You need to copy my English homework?” Jinyoung said, smirking.

Bobbing their heads like obedient pets, the three looked at Jinyoung expectantly. 

Jinyoung smiled at them before his face turned blank. “Try again next time.” Then he went out of the office, slamming the door on their faces.

Glaring at Bambam, Mark let out a groan. “Look at what you did! Now, he’s pissed and we’re surely going to flunk English!”

Rolling his eyes, Bambam huffed. “But did I lie? Everybody knows what happened between him and Jisoo.”

“That’s not the point, . You didn’t have to bring it up, you know?” JB said, slapping the back of Bambam’s head as he walked past him.

“Well, it’s not my fault that he’s still not over her and the girls gossip about it all the time.” Bambam snickered.

Nodding his head slowly, Mark said, “To be fair, it’s true that our girls always talk about it. I always hear Rosie and Lisa teasing Jisoo about it when I drive them to the dorm.”

With a sigh, JB agreed. “Jennie talks about it with me too. She’s worried because she thinks Jisoo’s acting strange and getting more competitive than she should be.”

Bambam perked up upon hearing what JB said. “So, you mean to say, both Jisoo and Jinyoung are way too affected by this election that nobody even cares about?”

Rubbing his chin, Mark gave a voice to his thoughts. “Maybe they’re not affected by the election itself—“

“They’re affected by each other.” JB finished, meeting Mark’s eyes.

Nodding his head in agreement, Bambam said, “They’re still not over each other, I’m telling you.”

“But we still can’t do anything about it,” Mark replied, marking the end of their conversation as the bell rang.

 

 

As soon as their classes ended, Jisoo, Jennie, Rosie, and Lisa headed to their favorite coffee shop two blocks away from the school. They would usually go there during their free time to do their homework or just hang out. 

“So, how are you and Jinyoung doing?” Lisa smirked as she took a sip from her milkshake.

Giving the youngest a deadpan expression, “The same with you and Bambam.”

“There’s nothing between me and Bambam!” Lisa said defensively, her voice rising.

Smirking, Jisoo took a sip of her tea before saying, “Exactly.”

Giggling, Rosie chimed in as she played with the straw of her frappe. “I told you Jisoo won’t let you live if you mention J to him.”

“Oh, so we’re going by initials now?” Jennie butted in, taking a seat beside Jisoo as she placed her milkshake on the table.

“Not you too, Nini!” Jisoo whined, her eyes closing in exasperation.

Giving a little shrug, Jennie commented, “We wouldn’t tease you about if you weren’t making such a huge deal out of. You even covered his election posters with yours. Really, Kim Jisoo? You’re playing dirty now?”

Blowing the bangs off her forehead, Jisoo muttered under her breath, “It’s not like he’s an angel either. Did you see my posters in the cafeteria? They’ve been vandalized.”

“How old are you guys, really? You’re both acting like kids.” Jennie said, shaking her head.

“Thank you for your opinion I didn’t ask for, Ms. Kim.” Jisoo remarked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Just then, Jennie’s phone on the table buzzed and she quickly snatched it to check who messaged her. “Oh, my boyfriend’s coming here.” 

“Heh, can’t you guys live without each other? You might as well just live together since you’re spending all your time with each other.” Lisa commented with a smile sneaking into her face.

“Well, I’m sorry Bambam’s a coward and can’t even ask you out.” Jennie shot back with a saccharine smile.

“That’s foul!” Lisa whined, crumpling a tissue paper and throwing it at Jennie who quickly dodged the tissue.

“Hey, don’t throw things around! It’s bad enough the earth is dying.” Rosie interrupted the two.

Jisoo’s giggle was cut short when she heard the sound of the wind chimes followed by the heavy footsteps. Looking at the direction of the sound, her jaw slightly dropped upon the sight of JB and his friends.

The girls also took notice of the guys walking towards them and Rosie raised her hand to catch their attention. Looking at Mark, she called out, “Baby, here!” 

Scanning the coffee shop, Mark caught sight of Rosie and instantly brightened up, waving at her. He quickly headed towards the girls’ table, followed by the three others.

Quickly sneaking a glance at Jennie, she hissed, “You didn’t tell me Jinyoung would be here!”

“Well, you didn’t ask me.” Jennie smiled, looking like she wasn’t the least bit concerned about what would happen.

As JB, Mark, Bambam, and Jinyoung got closer to the girls’ tables, Jisoo cleared , catching the girls’ attention. “I forgot I have something to do at home.”

Just as she was turning around to reach for her bag, the guys also reached their table.

“Trying to escape, Kim Jisoo?” Jinyoung asked, raising an eyebrow.

Looking over shoulder, Jisoo gave him a smile so sweet it would put chocolates to shame. “I’m just looking for my phone.”

“Don’t worry, I’m pretty sure no one would want to message you.” Jinyoung smiled widely, trying to get into Jisoo’s nerves.

The guys took a seat in front of the girls, leaving Jinyoung to sit in front of Jisoo. With a grunt, Jinyoung dragged the chair in front of her and sat down. His cold stare met hers.

“Do you really have to sit in front of me? I don’t have the patience to deal with you today.” Jisoo said, a hard edge masking her voice as she crossed her arms in front of her chest.

“I’m not having a day that great either after I caught someone covering my posters with hers.” Jinyoung said through gritted teeth, crossing his arms as well.

Trying to break the ice, Rosie spoke up, “So, how about going to Mark’s guesthouse?”

All heads turned to Rosie as she chuckled nervously.

“My guesthouse, Baby?” Mark asked, an incredulous tone surrounding his voice.

Discreetly, Rosie kicked Mark’s leg under the table, making the latter yelp. 

“Ah, right, my guesthouse. We can all hang out there. It's out of town,” Mark amended.

Clapping her hands together, Jennie exclaimed, “Perfect! Let’s go once the exams are over. We can bring drinks and food too. It’s going to be fun! Right, Babe?” 

Realizing that Jennie’s forcing him to agree with her eyes, JB quickly nodded his head and added, “Yeah, we need to relieve our stress after the exams anyway. You’re up for it, right?” JB asked, turning to his side to look at Bambam who’s a bit slow to catch on.

When Bambam took a while to respond, JB hit him with his elbow but Lisa already spoke up. “Of course, Bambam and I will be there! Jisoo?” 

Looking from Jinyoung to their friends who were all waiting for her response expectantly, Jisoo slowly nodded her head in affirmation.

“Jinyoung would go with us too.” JB said with finality ringing in his voice.

Jinyoung whipped his head in the direction of JB in surprise. “Who said I would?”

“I did. Look, we haven’t been spending that much time together these days. It would be a good way for us to bond.” JB reasoned out as Jennie gave him a subtle thumbs-up.

Mark butted in to added pressure. “You’ve been so preoccupied with the election. Come on, hang out with us!”

“Jisoo would be there,” Bambam added, causing Lisa to kick his leg under the table.

Bambam grunted in pain as the three girls smiled sweely at Jinyou