boyfriend for rent • kim yohan

002

Jiwoo woke up in the morning to the smell of freshly made pancakes. She groggily rubbed her eyes, then her nose. Was she still dreaming? She had been craving pancakes ever since last week, but hadn't gotten the chance to buy them.

Besides, the smell of any kind of freshly made food in her house was something Jiwoo didn't experience in a long time. Usually if she didn't buy takeout on her way home, then she would eat cup noodles. Rich or not, Jiwoo didn't like having too many people around in her house. She grew up in an environment with few people surrounding her, especially with her parents away most of the time, so she usually preferred solitude.

Jiwoo quickly got dressed and ran downstairs to the kitchen. A Yohan in a light pink apron greeted her, and he was cleaning a pan in a sink. Jiwoo's eyes landed on two plates of delicious looking pancakes on the clean white dining table, and a maple syrup that rested by the side.

She didn't have a proper breakfast in a long time, and this... this was kind of nice. The girl swallowed a knot forming in her throat.

"Morning." Yohan greeted her with a bright smile on his face, forming creases around his eyes. "I made us pancakes! I hope you don't mind, but I love cooking! I can cook us dinner too, if you want-"

He stopped talking midway, as if remembering something. He finished washing the pan, and walked to Jiwoo, who was still feeling surprised and touched.

Yohan, with a composed look on his face, extended his hand towards her. He tilted his head to one side, and with a voice that was deeper than just now, he said, "Shall we?"

Jiwoo couldn't help but blush at the gesture, a little awkward. Sure, she wanted to experience this with a cool guy, but when it really happened, she was also a little girl on the inside. She wanted to scream her head into the pillow and roll around her bed like a blushing mess.

But since she wasn't anywhere near her bed, she put her hand in his, noting how great their hands fit together. Her eyes were on anywhere but the guy in front of her, so she couldn't see the light blush forming on his cheeks when his eyes were glued to their hands.

It was a while before anyone move, then Yohan seemed to remember that they were supposed to have breakfast.

"H-here!" He said, almost dragging her to her seat.

He was almost as nervous as she was, perhaps even more nervous, but Jiwoo didn't say anything. The two ate in comfortable silence and when they were done, Jiwoo put the plates into the sink.

"Thanks for the breakfast." She said with a small smile. "It was really good."

"Ah," Yohan scratched the back of his neck in mild embarrassment. "It's no problem."

Jiwoo linked her arms around the teenager in front of her, watching as his face went pink. "Let's go to school together, shall we, sweetie?"

Yohan seemed to try to rake his brain for an answer. "Go." He coughed into his hand. "Yes, go to school. Together."

"Do you have your new student documents?"

"The company already sent them over to the school office, so I'm ready to start classes today."

"That's great!" Jiwoo beamed.

The two walked to school together, side by side. Jiwoo decided that linking arms with him would cause more damage to him than her, so she decided to take physical contact slow. It was a little disappointing, to be honest, because she signed up for a cool and suave boyfriend that could handle physical contacts well.

"Do you live alone?" Yohan questioned, his eyes curiously looking over to the girl beside him.

"Most of the time, yes. My parents usually come back once a year during New Years." Jiwoo said. She didn't really hate her parents for not spending time with her. They still tried to provide her the best life she could have, spoil her even, but work came first.

"I see." There was something similar to understanding in his tone, like he was empathetic, but Jiwoo decided not to question it. She had made up her mind to terminate the contract after a month. No hard feelings, but he just wasn't the boyfriend she wanted to try.

Jiwoo decided that she only lived in high school once, and she desperately wanted to have a boyfriend in her teenage years. In university, she would probably be too busy with her studies, especially with her mind set on medicine. So the girl wanted to have a taste of what romance was like, especially with a guy who was cool and composed, like the ones portrayed in kdramas and manga.

"Park Jiwoo!" A voice shouted from afar, and the two of them looked up to the school gates to see a figure standing there.

"Yuvin, my dude, you're early!" Jiwoo greeted her best friend, giving him a fist bump.

Yuvin eyed the boy next to her and Yohan couldn't help but fidget uncomfortably. "Who's this?"

"This is my boyfriend, Kim Yohan."