Matchmaker: BOOK I [Y/N X KAI]

✨ Chapter 55✨

"Hold up, what about you?" her eyes brightens up in the idea. She looks me up to down.

And there she said what I was afraid she'd say.

"Me? Model?" I gasp.

"You’d be perfect for that! Just look at you, tall, curvy, gorgeous structure - you really are a potential model! I'm sure you’ll pull these wedding dresses really well!" she claps.

"Piyuu, I've never done anything like this and I didn’t sign up for this," I say. She doesn’t respond. Oh, no, she looks disappointed.

I drop my voice "Please don't mind. It’s kind of you to think that way and I really appreciate this offer but-"

"It's not an offer, Niki. It's a request! I can't afford to hire a model and without a model, I can't participate on the fashion event. And I'm honestly very confident that you're going to pull it off amazingly. Please?" she mutters and gives me those soft eyes that I can't seem to ignore.

"Well, okay. I'll do it for you. I'll try my best to not trip and bust my face," I add. That's a very real possibility.

She laughs, "Great! It's settled, then. I'll sign up for the fashion show and you’ll be modelling for the new wedding dress that I've been working on."

Gosh, when she says it like that, it suddenly makes me so nervous. I can picture all these images of me terribly turning it into a failure and ruining the dress in the process.

I shake my thoughts away, "I'm excited to see your new wedding dress. I'm sure it'd be amazing."

She nods, "..Let's hope so."

Before I can say anything else, my phone suddenly starts to ring.

Professional mode: On.

"Hello. This is Nikita's Wedding Plannings. We plan spectacular weddings!"

Oof, that spectacular weddings part sounds way too cheesy. I swear, it sounded less cheesy in my mind.

"Hello, Niki.." a beautiful male voice pops from the other side "It's Nini. How've you been doing? It's been quite a while."

"Um, has it been?" I say confusedly.

"I've last seen you in the bridal shower, and that was like, almost a month ago," he says.

Really? It feels like it was two weeks ago at most. It really proves how hard I've been working, even time seems to fade away fast.

But that's not important. The important part is Nini called me. I'm pretty sure he won't just call me to ask how I've been doing. I doubt he likes me enough to care about that.

"I've been well, working really hard. How about you? What do you want?" I ask. Damn, was it too rude to ask What do you want so directly?

"Well, Aria's wedding is coming up soon now. And as her best man, I'll need a tux. Since you're the wedding planner and all, I thought you might want to come along and help me purchase one?" he asks.

"Um.."

Okay, this is definitely not a part of my responsibilities as the wedding planner. Aria and Luhan would've said so if it was. And judging by Nini's appearance, he doesn’t look like he needs my assistance to buy his clothes. Then why'd he ask me that?

I know my goal was to avoid him as much as possible on the whole Aria and Luhan's wedding planning process, but it seems like the opposite is happening. It seemed like he was warming up to me some after the bridal shower. And it'd be a lie to say I'm not liking being around him. So..

"I'd love to help you, Nini," I answer.

"Really?" his voice sounds surprised.

"What? You just asked me yourself, why are you so surprised?" I question.

"No, I mean, that's wonderful. Thank you. I'll meet you 7 o'clock this evening. And I'm messaging you the address," he says before declining the call.

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I'm not sure why Nini bothered typing the address. He could've just said The Ritziest Gucci Store in the City and I'd have known which one he meant. We meet up and head to the men's formal-wear department, which takes up half a floor because that's the kind of place this is. I approach the counter.

"Excuse me Sir, do you think you could help us pick out a tux?" I say.

The man behind the counter glances our way, and his eyes light up when he sees Nini.

"Jongin! You're back already! To what do I owe the pleasure of your visit today?" he smiles brightly and stretches his hand out for a handshake. Wait what the heck is going on here?

Nini gladly accepts the handshake with much comfort, like they've known each other forever and they meet up daily "Good evening, Taemin. My sister's getting married next month."

"Aria, right?" The Taemin guy tosses his head, "Tell her congrats from me. Now, let's see, how about a tailcoat this time?"

"That might be a bit too much for this particular occasion. Niki, what's your take on that?" he asks.

"Hang on, I'm sorry. I'm still trying to process the fact that you somehow know the staff here by the name! Nini, how many tuxes have you bought from here?" I gasp.

"This will be the fifth. The first one was for prom, the second and third were both for award shows, the fourth was for Chanyeol's wedding," Nini shrugs.

"And this clerk knows you just from that?" I ask.

"Jongin, you haven’t told her?" he asks.

I shake my head, "Clearly not."

"He used to work here, this is how I met him. We're friends!" Taemin smiles.

"Wait, what?!" I feel like I've said that more dramatically than I should've.

"I like this one, Jongin," he whispers to Nini. Why's no one minding to explain to me?

"Yes, Niki. Taemin and I used to work here together when I was in high-school and he was in college," Nini gives me this this very unpredictable information very casually.

✨To Be Continued✨