Jaemin the Icy Prince on Campus - Na Jaemin NCT

41. Wallpaper

"Shall we adjourn to the dining room?" Junnie breaks the silence; her voice is shrill. "Everyone take a seat." She turns to me. "Mina, you come and help me." She practically drags me out of the living room.

"What was that in there?" she hisses at me.

"What?" I open my eyes wide.

"You know what I'm talking about," she looks unhappy. "You - Jaemin - flirting in front of Dahee?" She bites her lip. 

"I thought you wanted me to talk to him," I shrug. 

"That wasn't talking. That was flirting. You were flirting with him. And he was flirting right back." She's frowning. I had no choice, I whisper in my heart. It was either flirt, or cry. And I can't cry, not in front of him.

"I'm sorry I upset you," I say quietly. "I wasn't thinking properly. It's just that we - me and Jaemin - used to do this all the time..."

"Oh, Mina." She looks a bit shame-faced, and worried. Her eyes are filled with concern for me. Maybe it's because of the stricken look in my eyes. "I guess I over-reacted a bit, but I was feeling bad for Jerry. He introduced Dahee to Jaemin." She sighs. "They're colleagues."

"Wow," I say lightly. "Fancy that. It really is a small world."

She stares at me suspiciously. I turn away, avoiding her eyes.

I open the lid of the pot.

"Shall I dish out this curry? It smells heavenly."

"Okay." She is frowning again. "Are you okay? Really, really okay?"

"Don't fret," I say, smiling slightly. "I'm fine. And I'll be on my best behaviour, I promise." I put my hands on my heart. "No more flirting."

I dish the curry into a silver bowl. 

She scoops up two big plates filled with fried chicken and fried noodles, and hurries out. I follow her from behind. I place the bowl of steaming curry next to the plate of fried noodles, right in front of Jaemin.

He stares at my hands, then slowly raises his eyes to mine.

A ghost of a smile plays at his lips. It holds a memory behind it that I want to steal as my own.

"Excuse me," I mutter. "I need to go to the washroom. You guys start without me."

I walk away, and I feel his eyes hot on my back.

I shut myself in the washroom and lock the door.

I stand in front of the mirror.

I'm staring at Young Mina.

She's so beautiful that when she smiles at me, I lean against the sink for support.

She knows her fairy tale isn't how she pictured it would be, but she holds out hope. I can see it in her eyes. Young Mina believed in love. She didn't know that she would become one of the many broken souls who were left behind.

She didn't know.

I reach out and trace Mina's features across the mirror. My heart is breaking.

"What happened to us?" I whisper to her.

She leans in and I brace myself for her to reach out and pull me back into her life.

But she doesn't.

I blink and the image of her is gone, and I'm back to staring at my present self. The bleakness and the emptiness in my eyes stare back at me.

I come out of the washroom, and fill up a glass with water. The next thing I know the glass is lying shattered on the floor. It must have slipped and fallen out of my hands; my mind is a foggy cloud, I can't think straight anymore.