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SAYA ──────────── ' history lesson '
— THREE weeks. Saya had been able to avoid Jake for 21 days. Sometimes, they'd cross paths when she was leaving the "Park" dorm, but Saya followed her ritual of gliding right past him: and after failing to greet her twice, Jake had begun practicing that tradition too.
It was odd: being the avoider instead of the avoided.
She hadn't noticed that Jake had stopped trying to speak to her until the fourth time they'd crossed paths. Their eyes met for a moment before he pulled out his phone and— not so subtlety— clicked on random apps as he walked by. It was then, when Saya saw his attention on the calculator app, that she became aware that he was actively distancing himself.
For some reason, it stung.
It's what what she wanted. That's what she had asked for. So, why didn't it bring her peace?
When the lingering light after the sunset had finally dissipated, the feeling that she was making a mistake would crawl out of the darkness. With her back against her headboard every night, Saya allowed herself to entertain an alternate route, one where she took the toll road even though she'd have to pay a few dollars. One where she didn't switch out of Jake's lane. Maybe that money would have been worth the trip, but she'd never know, because she decided to take the free-express way instead.
The adult in her wanted to make a U-Turn, but the heartbroken teenager nestled inside wanted to continue going straight.
Saya decided to stop dreaming of different outcomes. She picked her route and now she had to drive.
So, when Saya saw Jake leaving the dorm building with Sunghoon, she immediately texted the latter and asked when they'd be back.
Sunghoon— praise him, who complied so easily with Saya's shit— messaged back with an estimated time so she could head back to her own dorm before Jake showed up again.
It wasn't that she hated him so much that his mere presence made her want to punch him, it was just that she knew one of them (code word for "her") would say something stupid and start another petty argument. For the sake of everyone, Saya stayed away from Jake.
As soon as the two had walked far enough away that they wouldn't see her, Saya made her way up to the infamous dorm, where Jay was.
"Honey! I'm home!"
"Kitchen." Was all Jay replied with.
Saya slipped out of her Crocs and skipped over to the kitchen, utilizing her socks as she slid across the floor to the island. She leaned against it, her chin propped in her hand as she stared at Jay.
