The Playboy

8

The soft glow of the study lamp barely illuminated the room as Y/N sat on one side of the small wooden desk, Jungkook on the other. It had been a week since the kiss—since the slap—and Y/N had been doing her best to avoid any real confrontation with him. But now, here they were, forced into proximity by Jin’s insistence that Jungkook tutor her in math. She cursed her brother internally for being so considerate, yet so clueless.

The air between them was thick with unspoken tension. Y/N kept her head down, pretending to focus on the math textbook in front of her, even though her mind was a million miles away. She was twirling a strand of her hair absentmindedly, her gaze drifting off to the side. Jungkook, sitting right next to her, was explaining something about functions and equations, his voice steady, yet tinged with a hint of frustration as he realized she wasn’t paying attention.

"Y/N," he called softly, then again, louder this time, "Y/N?"

She blinked, pulled out of her daze. "Huh?"

"I said, do you understand how to solve for x?" Jungkook’s voice was calm, but the look in his eyes told her he knew she hadn’t been listening.

Y/N shifted uncomfortably in her seat, her heart racing just being this close to him. It felt strange seeing him like this, in a quiet setting, rather than across the room with Taehyung or with that smug smirk on his face. Her mind flashed back to the kiss—the softness of his lips and the way her hand had instinctively slapped him. The memory still sent a wave of heat through her, but she pushed it down.

"Uh, yeah... solving for x, right," she mumbled, trying to focus on the equations in front of her.

Jungkook raised an eyebrow, clearly unconvinced. "Are you sure? Because I just spent the last ten minutes explaining it, and you haven’t written anything down."

She bit her lip, feeling the awkwardness between them deepen. It had been a week since that night, and they hadn't spoken about it since. Every time she saw him with Taehyung, it was like an unspoken battle of glares, their eyes locking in silent conflict. And now, here they were, sitting side by side, forced to interact. She could feel the tension radiating off both of them.

Her gaze flickered to him, and she couldn't help but notice how focused he was, the way his brow furrowed slightly when he was concentrating. She hated that he looked so effortlessly good, even in a simple black t-shirt and jeans. It was irritating.

"Look, if you’re not ready to work, we can reschedule," Jungkook said suddenly, breaking the silence. "I know this is... awkward, but we need to get through this. Jin asked me to help you, and I’m not going to let him down."

Y/N stiffened at the mention of her brother. Of course, Jungkook would throw Jin into the mix. Jin trusted Jungkook, and despite everything, she had to admit he was good at this—good at math, good at teaching. But that didn’t change the fact that he had kissed her without her consent. And no matter how many times she replayed it in her head, she couldn’t shake the mix of anger and confusion it had left her with.

"Jungkook," she started, her voice low, "about what happened last week..."

He paused, his pencil stilling in his hand, eyes slowly lifting to meet hers. The room seemed to grow quieter, the air thickening with the weight of the topic neither of them had addressed until now.

"You kissed me," Y/N continued, her voice shaky. "You kissed me without asking, and that’s... that’s not okay."

Jungkook’s expression softened, the cocky edge he usually carried falling away. He set the pencil down and leaned back slightly, exhaling slowly as if he'd been expecting this but dreading it all the same. "I know," he said quietly. "It wasn’t right. I crossed a line, and I’m sorry."