The New RFA

Rehearsal Time

"I... I know this is sudden and all but I really like you! I've liked you for a while and you may not feel the same but I just needed you to know this! I've thought you've always looked really good and you treat me nice and I'm in love with you!" Laon stared at Jisu, taken aback at her sudden outburst. He blinked a couple times, his cheeks burning as he looked at the brunette, a dumb expression in his face. Laon was not expecting Jisu to just walk up to him and say all that, even if it was in a rush. She smiled at him and giggled a little bit. "So, how was that? Did it make your heart jump?"

Now Laon was extremely confused. He raised an eyebrow at her, asking silently what she meant. "Wait, what?"

"My rehearsal confession! How did it make you feel? I want to make my crush feel certain emotions when I tell them. So, I had practiced on you without notifying you so you can have the most honest emotions ever. How was it?" What could he say to her? Was this a trap? Laon didn't know if he should truly say what he felt or not. On one hand, it could make Jisu be happy she achieved her goal but then it could indirectly make him confess his own small crush on her.

"Um..." Laon searched for the words he had to say. He couldn't think straight after this, honestly. He couldn't give her a half assed answer but he felt he also couldn't give her a full one. "Well, yeah, my heart jumped slightly. I was slightly confused. I was surprised. My cheeks burned,"

"Yeah, your cheeks matched your hair for a moment," Jisu said, laughing at her own joke. Laon rolled his eyes at her.

"Shut up. You're not funny," Laon said, beginning to walk home with Jisu. She was following him today instead of the other way around. It was a small mutual thing they had where they didn't have to say anything to know they were going home with one another. Of course, it was harder to go to Jisu's place because the boys and girls were separated with it being on campus. Yet, it was a shorter walking distance so Laon just went along with it. Besides, as long as her roommate wasn't there, Laon could spend the night if they were careful.

Today, however, Jisu was following him to the house he shared with Gyeong. Gyeong always loved when Jisu came with Laon, what with loving his gaming buddy to no end. Honestly, Laon didn't know who hogged Jisu more when she was there, him or Gyeong. It was always a friendly little fight between them.

"So, who's this crush you're going to confess to?" Laon asked, putting his hands over his head. He had a small idea of who it was but Jisu had kept it very vague. She didn't use pronouns or say anything to tip him off that it was a boy or a girl. After all, Jisu could easily be attracted to both.

"Eunha. Though.... I feel like I shouldn't do it at all. I may not be someone she likes. I mean, she's perfect in everyway. She's beautiful and smart. I mean, she did drop out of college but look at her! She is still so freaking smart and it's amazing! She's also really kind and sweet and she just treats everyone so nice even if they're shitty to her. I just feel like I don't compare. Like, do I even deserve such an angel?" Jisu said, blushing slightly after her rant in embarrassment. "Sorry. I ranted for too long. Anyways, the point is that I don't know if I'll go through with it,"

Laon hummed slightly before speaking. "Okay, first of all, who the hell do you think you are? Thinking that you can't compare to anyone is a crime because you're perfect too, you got that?" Laon said, making sure Jisu gave him a nod before continuing. "Okay, and second of all, Eunha loves you. You've got to be joking. If you think she doesn't have a massive crush on you then you've got a serious problem with reading people," Laon said, picking up a stick and twirling it around.

"Thank you, Laon,"

"I can see you're really trying. I admire that. I'll be cheering you on," Laon said, smiling at her even if a jealous pang stabbed him slightly. It wasn't enough to make his smile falter but he noticed it. He ridiculed himself for being a tiny bit selfish of Jisu. After all, she wasn't his.

-----------------

Laon looked at Jisu as she was talking to Eunha, hyper aware that she was confessing at that moment. Laon made it a point that neither Jisu nor Eunha knew he was there. He smiled, so proud that Jisu was brave enough to say such a heartfelt confession. The one she said to Eunha was much better than what she said to Laon. Probably because her attitude with Laon changed a lot than how she is with others.

That's my girl

Over and over, Laon kept thinking that because, despite indirectly being rejected, he couldn't feel bad about himself. If anything, he thanked Jisu for giving him such an experience. She had shown him what it's like to love and to lose. He couldn't feel bitter about it, not even when he became a slight third wheel.

Because after all, he'd rather have Jisu as his best friend than not have her at all.