Golden ◂ NCT Jaemin

1 ◂ Cookies

oH yOu aRe nAnA

◂ 1 ▸

Jie leaned back in the old, worn-out desk chair. The exhaustion from standing behind the gas station's cashier's desk for hours on end made up for what the chair lacked in comfort. 

Tilting her head back, her eyes fell onto the beige ceiling above. The colour was boring, just like the soft music that danced through the shop. 

"Twenty minutes, right?" Yangyang's voice pressed through the speakers of her phone. He sounded like he was in a hurry. Jie hummed. "Wait for us, don't go home alone." 

There was shuffling on the other end of the call. She could only guess that he and Hendery left the house way too late and were now in a time crunch. The dull sound of car doors being slammed shut sounded. 

"Don't forget the seatbelt," Jie reminded. Just a second later, there was a soft click audible in the background. "You don't have to pick me up, you know." 

"The city is dangerous lately, we're not letting you walk home alone so late at night," Hendery said firmly. He paused, then added in a soft, light voice, "You're on speaker, by the way." 

She smiled to herself at how dorky he could be, then got back on topic. "What if I just... not wait for you." 

It got quiet. 

"I'm not afraid to snitch on you." Yangyang sounded sincere, making Jie gasp. Frankly, she didn't expect this. "I'm lying, but please wait for us." 

She rolled her eyes, closed them momentarily yet soon nodded in agreement. She heard how serious the boy was. "Fine." 

"Great!" he blared through the speaker. "Love you. See you soon!" 

And he hung up. 

The soft sigh that slipped past her lips the next second sounded at the same time as the familiar, shrill, annoying ring of the bell that dangled above the entrance door. 

Jie sat up straight in the chair, head directed towards the entrance where she spotted three boys. They stood still for a moment. 

When one of them hurried to one of the aisles further towards the back of the shop and the other two whispered something inaudible, she raised a brow. The boys started walking through the gas station as if they were looking for something. 

For some reason, they seemed familiar. Jie felt like she knew them. Like she had seen them somewhere. 

They didn't seem to feel the same way though. 

So after some time passed, the two walked up to the cashier's desk, hands empty. One of the two reached for what was stuck between his back and belt, hidden under a baggy shirt and jacket. 

Swiftly, he drew the gun, pointed it at Jie who sat still. 

She frowned as she watched the two carefully. Her eyes jumped to the muzzle and the shining silver, then back to the black-haired boy that held it.

Jie hummed. "What can I do for you?" she asked nonchalantly, voice polite as ever. The boy before her seemed taken aback for a second before he caught himself. 

"Isn't it obvious?" He pushed the gun closer to her. "The money." 

She thought for a second, glimpsed at the deep black at the end of which waited a bullet, eager to rush out. She nodded. 
"Sure. Want a bag with that?" 

The other boy quickly shook his head. He stepped forward, smiled politely as a reaction to her casual behaviour and offered her a bag. She watched him for a moment. He seemed friendly, his smile was warm. It drew over his lips, then up to where it reached his eyes. 

"Thanks." She took it, then briefly rolled back on her chair to get the money and put it in the bag. "You know there are cameras here, right?" 

The black-haired guy hummed. "That's being taken care of." 

"Good for you." Jie briefly glanced at the clock on the wall opposite her. 

"Are you waiting for something?" he asked, warningly almost. Yet, it left the girl unimpressed. She was stressed, though. 

Yes, she thought. For Yangyang and Hendery. 

But she ended up just momentarily looking at him before looking back down. "My shift is almost over, I want to go home." 

Into the silence that stepped between the three after that, only filled by the background music and the dull shuffling of banknotes and coins, suddenly pushed a deep, 

"Hyung!" 

The black-haired one turned around quickly. His tough expression softened for a split second. "Hm?" 

"I can't find the cookies anywhere," the younger one said. He sounded upset, child-like. 

Jie couldn't help but smile at that. Not at how he behaved, not at what he asked for. Just at how these three guys all seemed so different and all a little out of place. 

Even the gunman. His voice was too calm and pretty. Too soothing and sweet to sound dangerous. 

And his eyes. Something about them was familiar. 

"Hey," Jie said suddenly, waved to get the younger one's attention. It worked well, given that she ended up getting looks from all three. Ignoring the older ones, she gestured towards the front of the store. "Second aisle, left-hand side at the very end."

The younger one grinned happily, nodded thankfully and rushed to get his cookies. 

Meanwhile, Jie had made a knot with the bag's handles and gave it back to the boy. Then she looked back at the gun before her and the guy that held it. 
"Mind lowering that?" 

"Why?" the boy asked. He gave her a smug smirk. "Are you scared?" 

At which Jie sighed, leaned forward and pressed her forehead against the muzzle. She hummed, shook her head a little. "Just tired." 

The boy looked at her blankly, then nodded all of a sudden as if accepting a request. "I can shoot you if you want-" 

"Jaemin," the other one warned. But Jaemin hesitated. He seemed like he genuinely considered his options. Whilst he did that, the girl examined his face. 

"You seem familiar," she mumbled, more to herself than to the boy but he heard it regardless. 

He seemed alarmed. "Do you know me?" 

"I'm not sure." She tried to remember. "I don't think I would forget you." 

"Is that a compliment?" She hummed as if she wasn't sure herself.

Before she could answer, the younger one ran out of the aisle with a big grin on his face. Hands full with boxes of different flavoured cookies, he came to a halt behind the other two. 

"They got new flavours!" He sounded so excited. How could the girl not smile at that? 

She nodded towards the pile in his arms. "The new ones are good," she noted. "I'm sure you'll like them." 

The boy grinned wider and nodded. Yet again, she glanced at the clock that was ticking quickly. She got nervous at how fast the time was passing. 

She didn't want Yangyang and Hendery to get involved.

She wanted these three to leave.

So when the friendly-looking one suddenly started talking, Jie had trouble holding back a relieved breath.

"Let's go," he said and took a step back, then stopped when his eyes landed on Jaemin. He kept his gun trained on the girl for another moment. "Come on," he urged.

Jaemin hesitated yet again before he lowered the gun at once, swiftly letting it disappear underneath his bulky shirt again. He frowned but then he turned around, took a few of the boxes the youngest was busy carrying. 

Just as he was about to step outside, Jie smiled politely.
"Please do come again."

◂ Cookies ▸