After (Jikook version)

Chapter 63

Pulling into the spot next to Jin, I text Namjoon to tell him that I have arrived. He writes back immediately with a note to meet him at the far left corner of the field.

I tell Jin where he'll be as he and Irene walk up.

"Sounds good," he says, but he seems less than thrilled.

"Who's Namjoon?" Irene asks.

"He's my . . . friend." He is just my friend.

"Jungkook's your boyfriend, right?" she asks.

I look over at her. She doesn't seem to be implying anything, she just seems confused. Welcome to the club.

"No, babe." Jin laughs. "Neither of them are."

I laugh, too. "It's not as bad as it sounds."

Right as we get to where everyone is, the school band begins to play and the field becomes more and more crowded. I'm relieved when I spot Namjoon leaning against the fence. I point him out, and we head over there.

"Oh," Irene squeals as we get close. I can't tell if she's surprised by his tattoos and piercings, or his good looks. Maybe both.

"Hey, beautiful," Namjoon says, beaming, and hugs me. I smile at him, returning the hug.

"Hi, I'm Namjoon. It's nice to meet you both." He nods toward Jin and Irene. I know he's met Jin before, so maybe he's just trying to be polite.

"Have you been here long?" I ask.

"Only about ten minutes. A lot more people here than I expected."

Jin leads the way to a less crowded area near the enormous mound of wood, and we all sit on the grass. Irene sits between Jin's legs and leans back against his chest. The sun is going down and the breeze is picking up. I should have worn long sleeves.

"Yeah, have you been to one of these before?" I ask Namjoon, who shakes his head.

"No, this isn't my typical scene," he says with a laugh before adding, "But I'm glad to be here tonight."

I smile at his compliment and right then someone walks up to the central bandstand and gives us all a warm welcome on behalf of the school and the band. After a couple of minutes of rambling on, they finally count down to the lighting of the fire, and three, two, one . . . the fire ignites and swallows the mound of wood fiercely. It's actually quite beautiful being this close to the flames, and I can tell I'll be warm enough after all.

"So how long are you here?" Namjoon asks Irene.

She frowns. "Only the weekend. I wish I could come back for the wedding next weekend."

"What wedding?" Namjoon asks.

I look at Jin, who answers, "My mother's."

"Oh . . ." He pauses and looks down, as if thinking about something.

"What?" I ask him.

"Nothing. I'm just trying to remember who else said something about a wedding next weekend . . . Oh yeah-Jungkook, I think. He was asking us what he should wear to a wedding."

My heart stops. I hope I don't show it on my face. So Jungkook definitely still hasn't told any of his friends that his father is the chancellor, or that he's marrying Jin's mother.

"Bit of a coincidence, right?" he asks.

"No, they are-" Irene begins, but I interrupt: "Quite a coincidence, but, then, in a town this size, there are probably a few every weekend."