karaoke machine | p.js

2.20

━━ December 2020

Naerin's breath caught in her throat as she stood in front of the NCT Dream dorm. She wasn't sure what convinced her to go to their dorm that night but regardless it landed her in a very uncomfortable position as the one person she had been hoping to avoid opened the door.

Jisung's eyes widened a bit when he saw Naerin standing in the hallway. She looked put together like she was there with a purpose, but the way her eyes flickered away from him was a dead giveaway that Naerin hadn't been expecting to see him.

"Oh, hi," Jisung said softly.

Good going, Jisung. He thought to himself. He wanted to die.

"Hi," Naerin replied, her voice just as soft.

"Jisung, who's at the door?" A voice called from inside. Naerin saw Renjun appear behind Jisung and she felt a flood of relief when he smiled at her. "Oh, you made it! I was worried that you would cancel,"

"Uh, I thought about it," Naerin admitted, she had to force herself to not look at Jisung. She didn't want to see his reaction, she just wanted to disappear into the floor. She really regretted coming to their dorm now.

"You invited her?" Jisung asked Renjun.

His low voice caused Naerin's eyes to immediately snap to him. The look on his face was confused and slightly hurt as he realized that Naerin hadn't come to see him, but instead had come to see his friend. She ripped her eyes away again and looked at Renjun.

"You said you would help me with my music production final right?" she asked Renjun, "Can we get it done quickly? I have to be somewhere at ten."

Renjun nodded and stepped to the side, "I'll wait for you in the kitchen," he said as he left the front foyer.

As Naerin slipped inside, the door shut behind her leaving her and Jisung in silence. Naerin bent down to take her shoes off, very aware of how Jisung's eyes watched her as she struggled to remove her boots.

"You could have asked me for help," Jisung said.

"I wasn't sure if you were busy," Naerin replied, standing up straight and meeting Jisung's hurt expression. His expression was soft, almost pleading for Naerin to speak to him. Naerin looked away and brushed past Jisung to head to the kitchen.

Just as she was about to go inside, Jisung grabbed her wrist and a shock went through Naerin's body. The warmth of his hand holding her wrist sent a wave of relief across her body. Naerin's soulmate tattoo glowed gently at the long-awaited contact from her soulmate. She could see gold swirls and specks dancing in Jisung's eyes but she forced herself to look away.

"You never called," she said, "I just figured you didn't want to talk to me," Naerin pulled her hand away from Jisung and quickly made her way to the kitchen before Jisung could stop her.

Taking a seat beside Renjun, she avoided his curious stare. His eyes drifted from her upset expression to the glowing soulmate tattoo on her collarbone. Noticing his stare, Naerin pulled the collar of her sweatshirt up higher to cover the tattoo.

"Did you listen to the demo I sent you?" she asked Renjun, eager to divert his attention.

Renjun looked at the laptop she had pulled open and he leaned a bit closer to see the programs she was using. "Yeah, it was really good. You should publish music,"

"That's the plan eventually," Naerin admitted, "I'm applying to some companies for internships right now," she passed Renjun a pair of headphones as she plugged them into her laptop.