♡

rumors

kai/krystal. g. romance/general. 1764 wc.

soojung didn't really care about that boy jongin. except maybe she did.

the first time soojung saw him, she didn’t really care for him -- at all. all that really happened was a brief introduction, and soojung didn’t really think that they’d be friends.

their “friendship” started mainly because of the dinners they have with joonmyeon and sooyeon at least thrice a week. soojung is forced to come to said dinners just because her sister (sooyeon) liked to drag her to hang out with joonmyeon (who likes to pay for everyone’s meal). it’s not like she wanted to talk with jongin. it’s because she’s forced to talk to him every time joonmyeon and sooyeon forget their existence.

soojung didn’t really interact with jongin much outside those dinner escapades. she concentrated on vocal lessons and dance lessons. she didn’t really hang out with anyone other than jinri and some other girl trainee (sunyoung?), and she likes it that way.

it was only a few months after jongin joined the company that the rumor started.

“i heard that kid, jongin, is a gangster,”

“oh! i heard that too! i heard he used his gangster influence to bully joonmyeon-hung to buying him food,”

soojung flinched. she didn’t really believe most of the rumors that goes around. spreading ridiculous rumors is one of the things that some trainees do when they feel threatened by another trainee. she liked to think she didn’t really care much, but she knew that a part of her is curious.

soojung was walking towards her vocal lessons from her dance class when she bumped into jongin.

“hey,” soojung caught herself saying.

“hi,” jongin greeted back, surprise evident on his face.

“so... gangster boy?”

“huh?”

soojung sighed, “you should stop bullying joonmyeon-oppa to buy you food.”

jongin was silent for a while, absorbing what soojung was saying. “wait. you believe those too?” he said, and laughed (a little bitter if soojung heard it correctly, but she wasn’t really sure).

“later, gangster boy,” soojung shrugged as she heard her name being called by sunyoung.

that night, soojung accidentally saw jongin practicing alone at an empty dance room. she didn’t mean to watch him for long but the way he moved entranced her. she didn’t even notice that she clapped her hands when he stopped. she quickly closed the door when he whipped his head to her direction.

soojung didn’t sleep well that night. she kept on replaying jongin’s precise dancing on her mind and think that maybe, just maybe, she’s in love.

soojung saw jongin the next day with moongyu, taemin, and some of his classmates. she was just waiting for jinri to come out of school when they passed her.

“hi soojung!” taemin called out.

“soojung! jongin says hi!” moongyu laughed.

“shut the ing hell up you s,” soojung heard jongin mutter, “damn s.”

soojung winced and decided that maybe she really is not in love with him. jung soojung doesn’t fall in love with guys who swear (she thinks they’re scary), after all.

they still go out for dinners with joonmyeon and sooyeon (though it’s only once a week now because sooyeon’s schedule is steadily getting busier).

soojung realized that jongin liked to ... a lot. she tried her best to look like she wasn’t affected by it because she liked seeing the defeated face of jongin every time he fails.

they started hanging out more outside the dinner escapades after soojung realized that he likes hanging out with jongin (despite the occasional cuss words and scary faces).

jongin loves to dance, and he always stay back to practice some more in order to debut early. that’s one of the first thing soojung learned about him.

it was a random night when she chanced upon a dancing jongin on an empty dance room again. this time though, she entered the room clapping, instead of running away. she laughed at his shocked face and sat down the corner.

“you’re a really awesome dancer,” soojung said.

“thanks,” and jongin smiled.

soojung would’ve squealed like a fangirl there and then if it wasn’t rude (but it was, so she didn’t), because jongin has one of the prettiest smile she had ever seen. instead, she opt to just shrug and mumble let me get some water for you.

as weeks pass by, they grew closer, and soojung learned a lot of things regarding jongin. they hang out almost every free time they have. soojung found herself getting hit by a pouting jinri saying you’re not hanging out with me – with us, anymore. soojung just smiled at her apologetically before running out to find jongin.

rumors started to fly around the company again, but this time it’s regarding the new boy group that the company is planning.

soojung saw the hopeful glint on jongin’s eyes as he told her the rumor. she sighed and wished him luck and told him that he should work even harder now to get noticed.

jongin just nodded happily and ran to the nearest empty dance room to practice.

this time, soojung found jongin on an empty dance room again but with the lights closed. she entered the room and walked silently to jongin’s slumped form by the wall.

“i didn’t get in,” jongin mumbled.

soojung nodded. she didn’t really know what to say, so she just rubbed circles at his back, letting him ramble.

“taemin got in. and i’m happy for him, really. i just thought --”

months passed and soojung saw jongin training harder and harder and harder. she watched as jongin lost more and more weight. they still hang out, but not as much as they used to.

the day that the company announced f(x)’s debut, soojung felt excited yet heavy.

she went to the dance room that jongin frequents, half-wishing that jongin is there because she wants to talk to him, and half-wishing that he’s not there because she can’t face him yet.

“hey soo—oh wait, it’s ‘krystal’ now, right?” jongin laughed, “you’re debuting now!”

“yeah, we’d still hang out though, right?” soojung replied with a smile bordering pitiful and hopeful.

jongin just shrugged and walked away. that’s when soojung felt like something inside her broke.

it was months after krystal (and f(x))’s debut that they got to hang out again. and soojung thinks that it felt like nothing has changed between them.

jongin took soojung (complete with the disguise jongin brought. because you can’t be seen around with a guy! you just debuted! is what jongin said.) to a small café.

soojung just nodded at whatever jongin was saying because she missed this. she missed being with him. she missed jongin.

“—and then there’s this rumor about this new trainee–“

“hey gangster boy,” soojung said, a smile on her face as she remembered the past.

“what did you say?” jongin groaned, bewildered.

“just shut up,” and soojung smirked.

they continued meeting like this for some months, until krystal’s schedule got loaded and then they had to resort to sms-ing.

from: jongin

to: soojung

you looked pretty at today’s performance! ^^v i was at the audience, did you see me?

ps. tell victoria-noona that she looked really y today ㅋㅋㅋ

from: soojung

to: jongin

tell her yourself!

soojung threw her phone at her bedside and sighed. she felt frustrated and she didn’t know why. and that’s how she found herself lying awake on the bed at 3am, debating with herself if she’s in love with jongin. it took her another 30 minutes before deciding that she is.

“i heard jongin’s debuting with the next boy group,” jinri said casually during dinner.

“is he?” soojung asked, surprised at how jongin failed to mention that to her when they’re texting each other all the time.

“yup. with joonmyeon-oppa and sehun and the others,” jinri said, and soojung just nodded.

“i heard the company’s assigning him the y concept,” sunyoung pitched in, “and they were betting that he’d have the most fangirls at the dance room earlier. it was funny.”

“i bet he’d have a lot of noona fans,” jinri said, “he’s the type that attracts those.”

soojung remained frozen on her seat. she should be happy for jongin, but somehow, she’s not. jinri and sunyoung were right, obviously he’d have more fangirls. but it’s not like he’d forget her, right?

“sehun was even joking him that he could date their fans if he wanted to,” sunyoung continued.

soojung stood up immediately and rushed to the one place she knows she’d find jongin – the dance room.

“congratulations. on your debut.”

“soojung? how did yo—“

“oh come on, you think you could hide that? words fly fast,” soojung shrugged.

“oh.”

they stood in an awkward silence for a while before soojung decide to sing.

“seongyeok kkachil maltu ppiddakhae

(you have an unstable personality, you say bad words)

saenggak dansun haengdong gwagyeokhae

(you don't think much, and act however)

museopdago geopnaedo nae nunen ggamjjikhae

(although i seem scared, in my eyes you're still cute)

saranghaejullae my gangsta boy

(can i love you, my gangsta boy?)

gangster monster no

(gangster monster no)

geudaen namanui mister

(you're my only mister)

nae nunen geujeo gwiyeo un haemseuteo

(in my eyes, you're just a cute hamster)

neon meotjyeo

(you're cool)

neon meotjjikeun misoro nal nokyeotjyo

(i've melted because of your amazing smile)

na yojeum geudae ddaemune michigetjyo

(because of you, i'm going crazy these days)”

“wait. was that… gangsta boy? did you—“

“i really like you kim jongin,” soojung said with the confidence she didn’t know she had.

she watched jongin’s eyes widen, and his mouth close and open like a fish. she wondered if she should’ve said that i love you instead, because that’s how a confession is supposed be right? she decided to just continue, “please don’t date a fan then forget about me.”

jongin laughed, and soojung just realized how much she missed that laugh because they can’t meet much because of her schedule and you can’t really hear a laugh when texting. she’s in the middle of debating with herself whether did i make the right decision or should i run away now? when jongin hugged her.

“i really like you too, jung soojung,” jongin whispered.

soojung smiled and hugged jongin tight. she thinks that this is okay for now, because she’s not really sure if she loves kim jongin yet, but she’s sure that she likes kim jongin more than enough to risk her pride and confess to him.

“don’t worry, i would neither date a fan nor forget you,” and jongin laughed.

fin.