PLAYMATE ✔️

TWENTY ONE: Love & Lies

"They had never before avowed their inclination so openly, and Ethan, for a moment, had the illusion that he was a free man, wooing the girl he meant to marry. He looked at her hair and longed to touch it again, and to tell her that is smelt of the woods; but he had never learned to say such things."

— ETHAN FROME, edith wharton

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"Should I get a smoothie instead?"

Your eyes fluttered from one menu item to the next, attempting to figure out what you wanted before the family in front of you was done ordering. Beside you stood Yeji, who already had her order in mind ever since she got in the car.

The two of you were at WEKI, a popular cafe spot on campus. The building was decorated beautifully with tropical decorations despite it being almost October. Still, the environment was fun, and it brought a childish smile to your face when you noticed a flamingo figurine resting on top of the tip jar.

"Good afternoon! What can I get started for you?" The worker at the counter asked, snapping you back to reality. You were too focused on the flamingo to finalize your order.

Yeji began, stating that she wanted a yogurt parfait— "With no bananas, of course," she made sure to specify.

When it came to be your turn, you settled for a green apple smoothie. It wasn't what you necessarily wanted, however, you were overly picky, and you didn't want to annoy the six people in line behind you.

In seconds, a cold, green apple smoothie was whisked into your hands. Your friend paid with a smile on her face, then guided you over to a table towards the front of the store. You slid into the booth side while Yeji took the chair in front of you.

That morning, Yeji convinced you to spend the day with her. She had made a good point, saying that in the past few weeks, you had never got out of the dorms that often. She wasn't aware of the fact that you had a large computer science project due soon, but to ease her annoyance, you decided one day without working wouldn't hurt.

"So, Y/N," Yeji began, mimicking that of an annoying child, "How's the dorm room? Is it getting any better?"

In a matter of seconds, the entire few weeks you've spent with Jungkook in the dorm flashed through your mind. You could still remember every conversation, every embarrassing moment, every angry moment, but most importantly, you could remember his touch against your skin from just a few nights ago.

A cold chill ran down your spine, but you felt the need to blame it on the cold smoothie lingering in your mouth.

"It's been... I don't know, as good as it could be, I guess? How great can rooming with a guy be?" You chuckled, quickly taking another long sip of your smoothie.

You felt bad for not telling Yeji the truth about the past few weeks, but out of sheer embarrassment, you couldn't bring yourself to do so. The thought of telling her how he kissed you, or how you were technically pretending to be his girlfriend made you sick to your stomach.

"You know, I read this book a while ago. It was a romantic book, where this girl and a guy get roomed together for a business trip—"

"Yeji," You cut her off with a sudden laugh, "I don't want to hear about your smutty romance books."

"Oh, come on! This one wasn't even that dirty! They only fu-"