Tuesday Evening, Week 6

Student Lounge Study Rooms

It had been a couple days now since the encounter at the practice rooms but Chorong was still thinking a lot about the events of that night.

She was supposed to be practicing her lines with Eunji for an upcoming theatre audition but her thoughts kept wandering.

"Unnie? You're zoning out again." Eunji sighed.

"Sorry Eunji-ya…What was the line again?" Chorong asked wearily.

This was now the 5th time she'd forgotten the line and Eunji's patience was running out.

Eunji sighed and put down the script.

"Unnie are you really serious about this audition? I don't even think you'll make it in as an extra if you keep this up."

Chorong rubbed her temples. It was getting a bit late and she could feel a slight headache coming.

Eunji gave her a worried look.

"You're overthinking again."

She wasn't wrong Chorong thought as she reached for her coffee and took a sip.

Changsub seemed to be doing much better, having returned to his usual flavor of mildly grouchy with a dash of weird. And yet she found herself constantly thinking about the new level of closeness they'd shared that night.

Well, the closeness itself was not the problem. It actually felt quite nice to help Changsub and get to know him better. The real problem was Bomi being obnoxious again about dating him.

Chorong sighed. There. The overthinking. She was doing it again.

"If I could just stop thinking for one day…"

She took another sip of her coffee and studied her script again.

"Unnie I think you should give it a break. You look tired." Eunji said from across the table. She started packing her things into her backpack.

"Going back to the dorm?" Chorong asked.

Eunji nodded.

"Yeah I've got laundry to do."

She got up to leave.

"Don't stay too late unnie." She said looking at Chorong with concern.

"I won't." Chorong said.

Eunji eyed her suspiciously then sighed and left the study room.

Not two seconds later the door opened again and Eunji stuck her head back inside.

"You're going to stay late aren't you?" She scolded accusingly.

"Aish just go I won't be here all night." Chorong said shooing Eunji away.

"Aigoo…unnie you're going to give me gray hairs." Eunji said shaking her head before leaving again.

Chorong waited until she was sure Eunji was gone before looking at her script again.

She sighed as she looked at the cover. This year's production was going to be Little Women.

She had decided to try out for the part of Jo March. It was quite an ambitious role. Perhaps one of the other March girls would be a bit easier but she was rather fond of Jo's strong character.

Her phone buzzed.

It was Changsub.

She answered the phone.

"Hey."

"What's up?"

"Nothing much, just studying."

"Where are you?"

"The study rooms."

"Can I come bother you?"

Chorong sighed. Did she want to see him right now? Hmm…

"Sure."

"Cool, I'll be there in a few."

He hung up.

Chorong put down her phone and picked up her script again.

A few minutes later Changsub walked into the student lounge. He looked around searching for the right room and finally spotted her. He walked over.

"There you are." He came in and set down his bag.

"Hi." Chorong said looking up.

"What's that?" He asked sitting down and nodding to the script she was holding.

"It's for my audition." Chorong replied.

"Audition?" He asked curiously.

"For the acting department's theatre production."

"Lemme see that." Changsub said.

Chorong handed him the script.

He scrutinized the cover.

"Little Women…" He mused. "What's this about? Midget girls?"

Chorong facepalmed.

"No stupid, Little Women. The book. Ever heard of it?"

Changsub shook his head. He opened the script to a random page and started reading.

"…I've loved you ever since I've known you Jo, couldn't help it, you've been so good to me. I've tried to show it, but you wouldn't let me. Now I'm going to make you hear, and give me an answer, for I can't go on so any longer..." He looked up from the page.

"Yah what is this cheesy bull."

"Give me that." Chorong said trying to grab the script back from him.

Changsub held the script out of her reach and kept reading.

"…I only loved you all the more, and I worked hard to please you, and I gave up billiards and everything you didn't like-"

"Changsub-ah give it here!"

"…And waited and never complained, for I hoped you'd love me, though I'm not half good enough…"

"I said stop it Changsub-ah!"

Changsub kept reading, now with a fake girly voice.

"…I don't know why I can't love you as you want me to. I've tried, but I can't change the feeling, and it would be a lie to say I do when I don't…"

"Lee Changsub I swear to god!"

"...Oh, Teddy, I'm sorry, so desperately sorry, I could kill myself if it would do any good…"

Chorong was now visibly irritated as she made another grab for the script.

Changsub finally stopped reading and looked down at Chorong.

"Yah are you seriously going to be acting this out?" He teased.

"Aish!!" Chorong swore angrily.

Changsub finally let her have the script. She snatched it from him with a glare.

He chuckled as he watched her trying to straighten the now slightly wrinkled script.

"You're cute when you're angry." Changsub said without thinking.

Chorong's face faltered slightly.

"Don't say stupid stuff like that." She huffed.

"Did he just call her cute?"

She grabbed her coffee and sipped it irritably.

"You're an insult to Louisa May Alcott." She said.

"Who?" Changsub asked teasingly.

Chorong sighed. She gave Changsub a scouring look but inside she almost wanted to laugh.

He really had a way of lightening the mood.

"Idiot."

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A/N  The Little Women excerpts were cracking me up I can't believe how accurate…oh no…no spoilers here. Absolutely nothing to see here. Ehe….