mr. socialite. | 희승 √

CHAPTER 26

"Are you ready for your tutoring session?" I hear from the other end of the hall, the voice causing my eyes to perk up. There, Heeseung waves from his class as everyone starts to pour out, watching him intensely.

I chuckle before closing my bag, waving at him, and nodding. He immediately runs for me, slowing down before intertwining my fingers with his.

"C'mon!" Heeseung pulls me along as I laugh, both of us storming down the halls to find a vacant classroom. He looks at me as we run—and for a second, I feel like I'm in a movie. My heart starts to beat rapidly as we climb up the stairs to the third floor, the halls dim but the classrooms bright. He pulls me into a classroom as he slams the door behind me, his face looking down at me.

His eyes peer down into my soul, his arms on either side of me. His soft exhale sends shivers down my spine, my stare immediately breaking with his. I can hear his soft chuckle as he pushes closer against me, grabbing my chin. I blink as he pushes my head up, his eyes inspecting me. "What? Are you shy?"

"Absolutely not," I say proudly, leaning forward. His eyes widen as he breaks gazes with me, my lips starting to perk up. "Maybe it's you that's shy."

"Stop pushing it," He moves away as I laugh, holding my laptop in my free hand. "Now come sit down—don't you have a literature project to finish?"

I nod happily, sitting down on a desk. He stands behind me, sitting on the tabletop of the adjacent desk. Opening my laptop in a quick panic, I click tabs to the long paper I have to submit by the end of the week. Heeseung sighs, rubbing his temples. "I already finished this and you haven't even started!?"

"Hey! Some people don't study well..." I trail off, frowning at him. "Now help, it's literature."

"Okay, well, what do you want to write about?"

"You," I flirt. He rolls his eyes, hitting me upside the head. "Ow!"

"Focus!"

"I will! I just wanted to flirt..." I frown, starting to type. Even if I was a literature major, this was too hard for me. "We are rereading Romeo and Juliet. So, I decided to do my project on that. All I need to write for this portion is in-depth, why did Juliet stab herself for Romeo?"

"Didn't Romeo poison himself because he thought that Juliet was dead from the sleeping potion, so when he died, Juliet killed herself by using his weapon and pushing it into her heart?"

"Correct."

"Well, since Shakespeare originally wanted that story to be a tragic romance, Juliet did it for true love. Well, not only that but because Romeo died for her as well.  It's hard to ever stay by someone's side when all odds are against them. Besides, even when they were different people with different statuses or whatever, they stayed loyal to each other. In this case, their love blossomed and stayed strong despite all that weird crap, so they naturally are capable to do so."

"To do what?"

"Fall in love. Every person should be able to," Heeseung explains, causing me to stare at my laptop. "Friar Lawrence was supposed to tell Romeo that his lover wasn't dead, but fate had other plans. Shakespeare had plans too- while he is an author, he has planned their consequences well—even if it was rushed. Although they were sworn enemies, they were sworn... lovers."

Sounds like something that's happening with me right now. His hand lands on my desk and I feel the tension between us. I look up at him to see him already looking down at me, his other hand gripping the back of my chair.

"Shall we be Romeo and Juliet? For love?"

"Excuse me?" I question, narrowing my eyes. I stifle my laugh, pushing him away. He rolls his eyes, leaning back against a desk. "Listen, love, I don't want to die over a boy. Dream on."

"But I'd do it for you," He sighs, shaking his head. "Guess it isn't true love."

I shake my head, going back to typing. "Thanks for your help, you're free to go."

"What? That's all?" Heeseung groans, leaning his head back. "Don't forget the other part of the contract—you still have to stay by my side."

"I got it, Mr. Socialite," I chuckle, seeing his sulking face from the name. "Now, you're free to go—or you can continue to watch me type and listen to music."

"I'll stay. I don't want to leave you here."

"'Kay!" I exclaim, placing in my earphones. I hear him scoot a desk next to me, the slight push causing me to turn his way. He grabs the earphone, listening to my music with me. I paid no attention—but I was seconds away from being a red mess.

So I keep typing and typing for hours and hours until dark—Heeseung watching me closely. He's already asleep by the time I turn in my papers, falling asleep on the desk as the earbud barely stays within his ear. I turn off my computer and close it silently, laying down on the desk next to him.

I finally had a chance to admire him closely—his features that quite surprised me up close. He looked great under shining moonlight, even as the light seeps through the windows. I brush back his hair carefully, hesitant to touch him again. Lee Heeseung... what are you doing to me?

I inhale sharply, holding back my smile as I stare at him. As I go to touch his cheek, my fingertips tinger and become hesitant.

"The day I told you that I loved you—" He truthfully answers, clearing his throat. "Sure, I drank, I felt drunk—but by the end of the day, next to you as you carried me to my room... everything I said to you that day was genuine, Jae Iseul."

"So... when you said..."

"I meant it, Jae Iseul," He repeats, sighing. "I love you."

"I know you don't know your feelings about me yet," He answers every concern, letting go of me. "I know you don't know whether to choose me or my hyungs but—I'm going to give it all I've got to pursue you, Jae Iseul—"

Sunghoon's words... I wish I could choose—but in this case, Moon Ji-Hun was right—I was being greedy. So, I close my hand, fingertips still aching to caress him. I exhale softly from the breath I was holding back, grabbing my laptop and standing up.

I had to choose eventually—but again, it was better if I give it time. Jake, Sunghoon, Heeseung... it's certainly a love square at this point. The classroom door opens and I see a tall figure—but at closer inspection, it was Sunghoon.

I widen my eyes as I step back, seeing him enter the classroom. He suddenly takes my hand, urging me to come with him. "Wha-?"

"C'mon—I have something to discuss with you," He pulls me, making me panic—what if it was bad?!

However, another hand intertwines with my free one, causing me to groan—catching Sunghoon's attention. As we both look the other way, Heeseung stands there, jealousy writhing in his eyes.

Oh god, this was going to be bad, bad.

And I had to be in the middle of it.