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dreamiehrs · 5 years

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deskmates ➛ n.jm

genre: fluff, high school au, deskmate!jaemin, kinda strangers to friends to lovers, reserved!y/n

pairing: jaemin x you

requested: yes

note: this was requested by this lovely anon! I felt a string pull in my heart when you said that the reader isn’t a touchy person bc... I’m the same! so I was really excited to write this hehe o(≧∇≦o)!! hope you enjoy it! (gif credit: @minhaes)

tomorrow is your first day of junior year and to say that you were nervous was... an understatement

even though this was your third year in high school and you should be used to it by now you just!! couldn’t contain the butterflies in your stomach when you thought about it

schedules for your classes had come out a few days ago and you had immediately checked to see if you had any friends in your classes

unfortunately... you didn’t TT

at least you had lunch with all of them though ( ᵕ̤ ‧̫̮ ᵕ̤ )

you spend the rest of the day buying school supplies because you’re... that person

but all of the supplies you buy are really adorable so that’ll motivate you to get your homework done!! and to study!! get on your game y/n

anyways, tomorrow finally comes and you’re super close to pretending you’re sick so you don’t have to go but... you have to get that education ya know?

sophomore bestie jisung picks you up and can see that you’re about five minutes from bawling

he just pats your back and says: “get it together, y/n. it won’t be that bad. I can’t believe I’m a year younger than you and telling you this right now.”

“okay okay, thanks jisungie.” you focus on your breathing during the ride and eventually, you calm down thanks to your friend’s words

“no prob,” he mumbles under his breath and hands you the aux cord “wanna play something to cheer yourself up?”

you excitedly nod and plug the cord into your phone, jamming out on your way there

you guys arrive and when you walk in you meet up with your besties!! aka the dream team as you guys called yourselves

your friend group consisted of ballet dancer and artist huang renjun, soccer player lee donghyuck, ice skater park jisung, boxer lee jeno, and pianist zhong chenle

your conversation is filled with laughter as you guys walk each other to your classes and luckily, you, renjun, and donghyuck are all on the same hall for homeroom

they speedily walk you in your homeroom and you go to wave bye to them but they’re already gone

...such good friends (;¬_¬)

you scan the room for empty seats and see two right next to each other on the far left, middle row and you make your way towards them

you sit down in the desk closest to the window and rest your head on your palm, waiting for the bell to ring

you almost doze off until you hear an angelic voice from beside you “excuse me?”

you flinch to the max and turn your head to the right to see a smiley boy standing to the desk beside you

“y-yes?” you stutter out and you mentally slap yourself in the face

his grin grows wider at your bewildered state and you feel your eyes go wide in embarrassment

“is this seat taken?”

you shake your head side to side, not willing to talk anymore after reacting like a fool

he takes no time to put his bookbag beside his now desk and situating himself in his seat before resting his head on his palm like you were once before; staring at your face like he’ll never get tired of it

“what’s your name?” he softly questions you

he can see the blush on your cheeks and how you’re quietly jumping your leg up and down, but he doesn’t pay too much attention to it as you catch his attention once again by moving your hair out of your face

“my name’s y/f/l/n. what’s yours?”

“I’m na jaemin. it’s nice to meet you.” he emphasizes ‘you’ in his second sentence and outstretches his hand towards you

“likewise.” you glance at his hand nervously before taking it in yours, giving it a firm shake

you two retract hands and you visibly cringe about how clammy yours was

while jaemin’s were... soft, warm, safe

his chuckle rings in your ear and you peer up at him “what?”

“your hands are very clammy.”

this was your face right now: (๑･▱･๑)

you dearly wished for one of your friends to save you from this class TT

jaemin didn’t sense your dilemma and kept on driving you mad instead: “are you nervous?”

“yeah... even though I’m a junior the first day never fails to give me jitters.”

his ears seemed to perk up when he heard the word junior “oh? you’re a junior as well?”

“yes I am... wait a second...” you take a good look at his face before continuing “were you in my sociology class last year?”

“I was!! I sat all the way in the back. you?”

you wrack your brain and you can see him in your mind... sitting in the back, occasionally talking to the person beside him... always asking the teacher questions

wow, this was unexpected

“I sat in the very front. woah, that’s crazy.”

the bell had finally rung for the class to start, and he gestured for you to come closer and whispered: “I thought you looked familiar when I walked in. all the more to get to know you, right?”

you had a hard time paying attention to the teacher after that interaction

after homeroom, you may have bolted out of that classroom as fast as you could, not hearing jaemin suggesting to walk you to your next class

you clashed into renjun and he could just see your expression and wondered... what happened??

you started rambling incoherent things and he just looked at you like you lost your mind... he decides that this isn’t the best place to discuss things and wraps his arm around your shoulder before pulling you along somewhere else

meanwhile, jaemin just watches all this by his locker, unknown to you and renjun

you only have enough time to mention to renjun that a boy sat beside you in your class before you have to head to your next class but he looks... kind of angry? more like peeved

he looks like he’s ready to fight jaemin tbh

renjun was pretty protective of you and the rest of the dream team... so if anyone was causing you trouble he’d be right beside you, ready to deck them out

time skip to lunch!! finally, you get to see all your friends (^-^*)/

except, you have an additional person seated at your regular table and that person is... you guessed it! na jaemin

you quietly grumbled as you plopped down between jisung and renjun

they give you a concerned glance and jisung opts to ruffle your hair to try to make you feel better

it’s not like you disliked jaemin or anything it’s just... this morning he made your heart kind of... explode... it’s not like you have a crush on him or anything... you barely even know the guy

“y/n! my new friend! how’s your classes?” jaemin removes you from your moping, you glance up at him with a fry sticking out of your mouth

you hear jisung chuckle and you gently slap his shoulder

“they’re good. except, I don’t have any of my besties in them.” you pout as you look at your friends at the table

jaemin mimics you, and you hear renjun cough from your right side

“are you okay? I’ll grab you some more napkins.” jaemin leaves the table and renjun looks at you pointedly

“...is that the guy that sat beside you in your homeroom?”

“yeah.” you answer back before picking up another fry and tossing it in your mouth

“oh, I invited him to our table because he’s in my history class.” jeno speaks up from beside jisung “is that okay?”

“n-”

“yeah! it’s fine!” you squeak out, interrupting renjun who just grumbled beside you. you rested your hand on his head before ruffling his hair like crazy, him swatting at your arm in an attempt to make you stop

the rest of the day went by in a blur, and as the week went by, you learned more and more about your deskmate, jaemin

the two of you would text every day, sharing things you found hilarious, talking about your days, and gossiping

renjun was protective as always, but after a while, he got used to jaemin and his front slowly faded

he quickly became part of your friend group and to be honest, it felt like he was always meant to be there, you know?

if you had met him sooner, you would’ve totally introduced him to the guys earlier

the two of you would sometimes abandon the rest of the dream team to go on your own adventures, which consisted of going shopping, watching the stars, stuffing your faces, and/or hanging out each other’s houses

...and yes, sometimes you would give in to letting jaemin cuddle you because he begged you so much, although you weren’t a really touchy person to begin with

your hangouts with him were all careless fun until renjun pointed out to you one day ―

“I think jaemin has a crush on you.”

your brain immediately went on lockdown when those words slipped out of his mouth

“injunnie, that’s not possible. we’re just good friends.”

“friends who hang out 24/7 and can’t seem to get enough of each other?”

you roll your eyes at him. “as if. he probably sees me as his little sister or something.”

he lightly slaps the back of your head. “do you know how ridiculous you sound right now? don’t act like you don’t see the stars in his eyes when he gazes at you.”

“injunnie, don’t rope me into your romantic fantasies.”

“just see for yourself, then.”

after that convo with injun, you couldn’t stop thinking about what he said... no, no. jaemin looked at you like any other friend, not in a gushy, special way

jaemin was already a touchy person as he is, but when he was around you, he seemed to get even clingier

obviously it was something you would have to get used to, but whenever he touched you, you could feel a warmness spread throughout your stomach

....y/n, no. you don’t like jaemin. you would say to yourself

but as the weeks passed by, you found it hard to believe that you don’t like him romantically

“y/n! y/n! how about this movie?” jaemin snapped you out of your thoughts as he hung out at your house one day after school

you took a quick glance at his phone before mumbling “sure.”

you could hear him huff beside you and you glanced at him to see a pout playing on his lips

“what’s wrong?”

“I just feel like you haven’t been interested in anything I’ve been saying today...”

you feel your heartache as he peers at you, trying to search your eyes for a hint on how you feel. “that isn’t true, jaem, I―”

“no, it is true, y/n. something’s been bothering you recently, something big.”

you just stayed silent, proving jaemin right. you look down at the bed underneath you, not wanting to look into said boy’s eyes beside you because if you did, your heart would be gone for good

the two of you stay like this for a while, him gently playing with your hair when you finally decide to speak up. “jaem, I―” you glance at him and he nods before you continue “I think I have a crush on someone..”

he just hums at your confession and you turn to look at him, but his smile is sweet as ever as he looks off into the distance, pondering

you take his silence to explain more in-depth. “I’ve only been best friends with him for a month or two, however, he’s extremely important to me. he’s shown me many new experiences, and at this rate, I would say that my feelings for him undermine the word crush. it’s love, jaem, and I don’t know what to do with these feelings anymore.”

“are you comfortable enough with them to confess your feelings?”

“...I don’t know... I feel like I just did.”

to your surprise, jaemin’s face turns bright red. “a-are you saying that I’m the person you love?”

“yes, jaemin. I’m in love with you.”

you hide your face with your hands and you can hear him moving beside you, which tempts you to peak out from your fingers

he has a heartwarming smile on his face as he opens his arms

you inch closer to him and he gives you a bear hug, holding so tight onto you that you can hear his pounding heartbeat against his chest

“I’m in love with you too, y/n. I’ve been since the first day of junior year.”

you feel your cheeks grow hot as you nuzzle your head into his shoulder

so after this, it’s safe to say that jaemin never fails to give you a heart attack every time he touches you or whispers something sweet into your ear

the next day at school, he drives you to school and you guys walk in, your fingers interlaced as the rest of the dream team look at you two like you’ve grown another head

“what did I say, y/n?” renjun asks with a big smirk on his face and you roll your eyes before a smile reaches your face

“wait, what did he say?” jaemin whispers beside you

“ahem, more importantly, if you ever hurt y/n, you’re going to get messed up real bad by the rest of us, got it?” renjun announces and the others nod their heads in agreement

“also, if you ever make her uncomfortable with your touchiness, just know that we’ll be banging on your door.” jeno states and the others hum along with him

“I understand. and besides, I’m pretty sure y/n is used to my clinginess by now, right, y/n?”

he squeezes your hand and you feel your veins fill with excitement at his touch

you giggle before squeezing his hand back. “right.”

#requested #nct dream imagines #nct dream #nct #nct jaemin #na jaemin #jaemin #jaemin imagines #jaemin scenarios #jaemin blurb #jaemin fluff #nct imagines #nct scenarios #nct fluff #nct dream fluff

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softsichenghours · 5 years

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summer lovin’ {l.j.}

summary: in which the boy your grandma hires to take care of her property, lee jeno, becomes more than a friend for the summer.

word count: 9.8k

warnings: mild swearing i think, mentions of abuse, a bad dad, some suggestive jokes

you groaned internally as the rickety, white house came into view among the thicket of lush pine trees. your plan wasn’t to spend the summer at your grandma’s house in the middle of nowhere, but your parents insisted you spend time with her. you didn’t understand. she worked most days and then when she was home, she hid away in her office doing more work. she was successful and wealthy, so why did she keep this old house and farm? you guessed it had to do with your grandpa who had passed away many years before. you could barely even remember him you were so young, but memories and his voice would always stick in your heart. you knew he loved the farm and always put so much work into it. maybe grandma kept it up and running in his memory. whatever it was, you weren’t happy to be spending the summer there.

“here we are, honey.” your mom glanced over at you as she stopped in front of the house. she had to be back to work for that afternoon so she couldn’t stay to visit your dad's mother, not like she wanted to anyway. you simply glared at her, your arms crossed over your chest.

“listen, i know this isn’t ideal for you, but do it for your father, please? and—i know it’s hard to believe, but she gets lonely out here all by herself. she’ll love having you around for the summer. be good and have fun, okay?” she said softly.

“yeah, yeah.” you sighed and opened the car door. you grabbed your bags out of the backseat and ducked down to look at her in the window. “if you’re not here in 71 days to pick me up, i’m going to run into those woods and become a fairy.”

“____, is that you?” a voice called from the kitchen as you opened the storm door and stepped inside. the smell of fresh pine and pumpkin spice hit your nostrils, the smell of home. you had a lot of memories at this house.

“yeah, it’s me grandma.”

the older lady rounded the corner, flour on her black apron. she embraced you, making you drop your bags and wrap your arms around the frail woman.

“oh how you’ve grown!” she smiled, pulling back and smoothing down your hair. “i haven’t seen you in such a long time.”

“how are you?” you asked, your eyes wandering around the house.

oh, i’m alright. same old same old i guess. how are you?” she took a step back from you, her eyes still examining your face.

“i’m okay, grandma. school’s good but i’m glad to be on summer break.” you laughed.

“that’s good, dear. i’m making something special for dessert, so why don’t you go get settled into your room? it’s the last door at the end of the hallway.” she explained, glancing at your bags on the floor.

you trudged up the creaking stairs and down the hallway, your duffel bag weighing down one of your shoulders, your knapsack weighing down the other. you twisted the doorknob on the last door and opened it to be met with…another person?! you jumped back in shock and an accidental shriek left your lips. the boy turned around with wide eyes and stopped fluffing the pillow in his hand.

“who are you?” you questioned, stepping back in caution. why was there a random boy in your room at your grandma’s house? his wide eyes softened and a grin crept onto his gentle face.

“you must be ____? i’m jeno, lee jeno, your grandma’s… well, i do a bit of everything. i tend to the house, help with the farm, grow the garden, cook sometimes, etc.” he explained, his smile growing wider. grandma hadn’t told you she hired more workers. you knew about the farmhands, but the last time you were there, jeno wasn’t. he seemed about your age, maybe he was keeping grandma company. if so, then what was the use of you being there?

you hadn’t realized that you were consumed in your thoughts and hadn’t spoken.

“sorry if i scared you,” he laughed sheepishly and rubbed the back of his neck. “i was just getting the room ready for you.”

“it’s okay…i just wasn’t expecting someone in here.” you breathed out, noticing the aching in your shoulders.

“here, let me help you with those!” jeno offered and rushed over, grabbing the strap of your duffel and sliding it off your shoulder. you complied, sighing at the weight being lifted off. he placed it at the foot of the bed and you dropped your knapsack there, too. you stood there for a moment, avoiding jeno’s gaze and shifting your weight from one foot to the other.

“i should be going. i live in the guest house, don’t hesitate to come over if you need anything.” he smiled.

“thanks.” you looked at him and grinned, liking his kindness.

“i’ll be seeing you around, ____.” he opened the door and left, but you could still hear him walk down the hallway and down the stairs because of the old house floorboards.

as you unpacked your clothes and put them into the closet and chest of drawers, your phone buzzed in your pocket. there was still service out here in the middle of nowhere? your eyes wandered to the newest notification on the screen. @ leeminha_ just posted a photo. lee minha was one of your closest friends, but lately, she had been very hostile and aggressive towards you. maybe it was because you couldn’t hang out with her all summer. you and her, along with your other bestfriend, park yunhee, had plans for the summer to be the greatest. but when you were told you had to spend it at your grandma’s, she got mad. even though it was out of your power and you had explained that to her, she distanced herself from you and openly made plans excluding you.

you were brought back to the present when your thumb subconsciously tapped the notification. it was a picture of her and yunhee with… hyunji? hyunji was your school’s most popular girl. you and minha had talked about how much she annoyed you with her long clacking nails and her ever-changing boyfriends. and now they were hanging out? your eyebrows furrowed and you double tapped the image anyway, before seeing the caption. “had fun with @ park_yunhee and @ peachyhyunji at the beach. too bad that @ ____ couldn’t make it lmao.”

your heart sank at her seemingly sarcastic tone. she wasn’t missing you. who knows, by the end of the summer, minha and hyunji might be best friends.

you sighed and held down the button on the side of your phone before sliding your thumb across the screen, turning it off. you opened the top drawer of the nightstand and threw the device in, not wanting the negativity of social media to ruin your already bad summer.

“i see you’ve met jeno?” grandma smiled, laying a slice of decadent chocolate cake in front of you after dinner.

“yeah, he made quite the lasting first impression.” you chuckled, delving your fork into the chocolate icing. this was your favourite dessert, she must’ve remembered.

“he’s a sweet boy. very helpful around here. i think you’ll find a friend in him while you’re here.” as soon as she spoke, the back door in the kitchen opened and footsteps sounded on the linoleum.

“did you save me a slice, grandma?” jeno asked with humour in his voice as he walked towards the table. grandma? you didn’t think they were that close.

“of course i did, sweetie.” she cooed and cut a thick slice for him. he grabbed the plate and sat across from you, sending a playful grin your way.

“hey ____,” he shoved a mouthful of cake into his mouth. “you’ve got icing on your face.”

your eyes widened and you picked up your napkin, wiping furiously at your face with your head down in embarrassment.

“oh jeno, don’t tease her.” grandma chuckled from behind you, her hand resting on your shoulder.

“i was thinking after this you could help me in the barn? i have to feed the animals and it would be quicker with two.” jeno suggested through a mouthful of cake. he wanted you to help him? is that what you were sent here for? to do chores and manual labour all summer? was this some form of punishment?

before you could respond, grandma spoke up.

“that sounds good. i have to finish up an article so that should keep you occupied, ____.” she patted your shoulder and headed down the hallway to her office, leaving you alone with jeno.

“y’know, i was just joking about the icing. just wanted to see how you reacted when embarrassed.” he chuckled, scraping icing off his plate and licking it off the fork.

“why?” you furrowed your eyebrows and pushed your empty plate away from you.

he shrugged. “always nice to know how people react.” with that, he stood up from the table and grabbed your plate, putting both of them in the sink.

“you’re really going to make me do chores with you?” you raised an eyebrow and crossed your arms over your chest, watching his every move.

“yeah?” he turned around to look at you. “don’t think you’re sitting around here useless all summer.”

that’s how you ended up with a bag of scraps in your arms as you followed jeno to the barn.

“okay, fill up the trough for the pigs,” he pointed. “and then come meet me in the barn.”

you followed his orders and emptied the food scraps into the long trough, watching the pigs come running.

“here little piggies.” you said monotonously, obviously bored. when you finished that task, you heaved open the barn door to find jeno. for the second time that day, you were shocked with what you found. jeno had opened the chicken coop and now what looked like a million chickens were running towards you. you shrieked and tried to run out of the barn but the door was stuck. jeno just laughed.

“don’t worry, they’re not violent. they’ll just peck your ankles and cluck at you.”

“still!” you cried out.

“don’t open the door, ____! they’ll get out and we’ll have to round them all up!” he scolded. now that the chickens were closer, you realized there was only about 10 or 15. they got too close and you squeezed your eyes shut, ready for your most immediate death. their beaks dug into your ankles and you tried to shake them off without kicking any in the face.

“okay, okay, i’ll get them.” jeno laughed and started scooping the animals into his arms and then putting them back in the coop. you stayed frozen in your position with your arms wound tight to your chest and your eyes squeezed shut. jeno could see how anxious and unsettled you were, so he made his way over to you after securing the coop door.

“you’re still alive, don’t worry.” he teased, grabbing onto your wrists and gently removing them from in front of your face. you frowned and opened your eyes.

“why would you unleash them on me like that?” you huffed.

“oh, please. c’mon, let’s take a walk to cool you off.” he joked and let go of your wrists. he pulled seamlessly at the stuck door and walked into the cool air of the evening. you followed him but he waited for you to join him at his side.

“you ever been to the river?” he questioned, shoving his hands in his pockets and heading towards the dark woods.

“have i? i spent most of my childhood summers in that river, i even learned to swim there.” you replied, glancing over at him.

“oh yeah, i keep forgetting that you’re grandma’s actual grandchild. you’re nothing like her.” he chuckled, running a hand through his thick, black hair. why did he call her grandma?

“is that good or bad?” you asked, a little too aggressively.

“it’s not bad per se. she’s just more free spirited and open to getting a little dirt on her hands.”

you went silent. your lack of connection to nature wasn’t your fault. your dad wanted you to grow up on the farm and when you were younger, you wanted that too. but your mom wanted you to experience the city and have everything at your fingertips. they had settled on the most boring suburb in the whole world and you still disliked it.

you made it to the river and you couldn’t help but smile at the memories returning to you. the soft trickle of the water and the birds chirping reminded you of your childhood.

“grandpa used to love it down here.” you sighed happily, forgetting jeno was even there.

“he did? what was he like?” jeno asked, kicking rocks. you looked at him, wondering if you should open up so easily to the boy you had only met hours before.

“he was nice. you really had to know him.” you said, deciding not to.

“oh…how old were you when he…passed?” he questioned with caution.

“i think i was 10, or around there. i don’t remember it all that well. i just remember leaving the farm and it was the first time i’d seen my dad cry. but i understood. i wasn’t so young that they had to explain everything to me.”

jeno was quiet.

“i’m sorry. i can tell that he was important to you and grandma. she doesn’t talk about him much but there’s a lot of pictures of him around the house.” he said quietly.

you continued walking along the banks of the river, a silence settling over the both of you. you watched the sun set over the horizon and sighed contently. your mind wandered back to the post you had seen earlier. we’re minha and hyunji still hanging out? had they already replaced you with her?

before your mind could go deeper in thought, your ankle rolled underneath you. before you could catch yourself, you were falling into the river and your high squeal pierced the air.

jeno’s head turned at the sudden noise and his mouth hung open as you splashed into the water. he knew it was shallow, a little up past his knees.

“____!” he laughed, rushing to the edge. you landed on your hands, the rocks at the bottom of the river digging into your palms. you shook the wet hair out of your face and huffed.

“are you alright?” he couldn’t hold in his laughter and clutched his stomach as he knelt down.

“i’m fine. can you just help me up please?” you scowled, your eyebrows tugged together and your lips curled into a frown. jeno reached out his hand to grab yours and helped you out of the water. you were soaked through and the cold wind made it feel like your bones were covered in frost. you brushed yourself off, trying to stop the shivers from overtaking your body.

what you didn’t notice is the gashes in your palms from the jagged rocks. jeno noticed when he pulled his hand away and a smear of blood was on his palm.

“hey, did you hurt your hand?” he questioned, his eyebrows furrowing and his hand reaching out again to grab your wrists. he hauled them towards him to see in the now moonlight, causing you to stumble forwards, closer to him.

“you did…i have some bandaids. it’s closer than the house.” he said, gently letting go of your hands. you tried to wipe some of the blood into your wet jeans but jeno halted your actions, saying that the river water shouldn’t get into the cuts.

you trudged back to the guest house and when he ushered you inside, you could tell jeno lived there. it wasn’t messy but also not neat, with sweaters tossed over the couch and in a pile on the floor. you almost stepped over the mat, but realized that you were soaking wet and didn’t want to get water on the floors. jeno proceeded through the house but looked back when he didn’t hear your footsteps behind him.

“are you coming?” he raised an eyebrow and then realized what was stopping you. “don’t worry about getting the floors wet. i’ll get you some dry clothes, okay?”

you nodded and followed him in, looking around the cozy cottage. he disappeared into a room and you almost sat on the couch subconsciously but refrained from doing so because of your damp clothes.

jeno was back in a couple minutes, a white box in one hand and clothes in the other. you watched as he laid the items on the coffee table. he put his hands on your shoulders and pushed you down to sit on the couch.

“hold out your hands.” he commanded, grabbing the box and opening it. you let him take each of your hands into his own and clean out the cuts. you winced at the stinging of the alcohol, to which he mumbled apologies and squeezed your hand comfortingly. your hands continued to shiver, which didn’t help. when he was finished, he gently placed bandaids on each of your palms.

“there, you won’t need your hands amputated,” he joked. “but you might freeze to death if you don’t change out of those wet clothes.” he rose from his spot across from you on the couch and picked up the clothing he had brought out.

“go change into these and throw your clothes in the dryer.”

you found yourself staring at your reflection in the mirror in jeno’s bathroom. the sweater and sweatpants he gave you were too big on you, probably even too big on him. you raked your fingers through your wet, stringy hair, trying to make it look more presentable. you looked down at your hands, the bandaids standing out on your skin. you couldn’t get the feeling of jeno’s hands on yours out of your head. you had only known him for a few hours, why were you feeling this way?

when you got back to grandma’s house, she was still awake. she sat in the corner of the living room in her rocking chair, a book in her hands and her reading glasses sitting atop her thin nose. she looked up when she heard you come in.

“what did you do?” she raised an eyebrow when she saw your baggy clothes and wet hair.

“i, uh, fell in the river.” you admitted.

“now why on earth would you do that?” she laughed, setting the book on her lap.

“i wanted to see if it was too cold for swimming.” you joked. “but jeno was nice enough to give me some dry clothes and bandage my injuries.” you exaggerated, holding up your hands. grandma just smiled, like something was working out in her head.

“i told you he’s a sweet boy. go on to bed, now. i have a feeling you’ll have an early rise in the morning.” oh god.

“____...” grandma’s sing-song voice drifted into your room the next morning. you knew it was way too early to be awake on summer break. the sun streamed through the old windows, making little designs on the walls. you could hear the birds chirping beyond the glass. the smell of fresh bread hit your nostrils when the door opened.

“come on, up and at ‘em. jeno wants you to help collect eggs for breakfast.” she said. you groaned, shoving your head into your pillow. so much for a good summer.

“catch up, ____!” jeno called, walking much faster than you to the barn. you let out a quiet whine. the sun was already beating down on you so early in the day and the buckets he was making you carry were already heavy without eggs in them.

when he opened the coop, the chickens didn’t fly out at you, making you suspect even more that he had unleashed them on you the night before. there were also many more than the ones that had attacked you.

“okay, first collect the ones without chickens on them, then gently lift the hens and grab the eggs underneath them. got it?” he looked over at you with a grin, his dark eyes sparkling.

“got it.” you nodded, wanting to get all the ones without chickens on them before he did so that he’d have to deal with the hens. you went into the coop first, bucket in hand. you were collecting eggs from exposed nests when you heard jeno…murmuring to the hens? you stopped for a moment, just listening to him praise the hens for laying. you tried to stifle your laughter, but failed.

“are you laughing at me?” jeno asked, acting offended. “i will throw one of these eggs at you.” he warned, holding one in his hand.

“i’ll throw all of these eggs at you if you do.” you challenged, holding up your heavy bucket.

you dug into your breakfast, the egg collecting that morning making you hungry. farm breakfasts were always so good. toast made from fresh bread, homegrown eggs and milk, and your favourite, freshly picked strawberries and blueberries. when you were finished, you looked up to see jeno and grandma looking at you.

“what?”

“do they feed you at home, girl? you act like you haven’t eaten in months.” grandma laughed.

“i can’t help it. i missed food this fresh.” you sighed contently, a smile on your face. grandma reached over and plucked a feather from your hair. you chuckled and shook your head for anymore to fall out. soon, she was getting up from the table, having to head out for work. she warned for you two to be good, but she knew you’d be fine.

you continued eating from your bowl of berries, but noticed jeno’s eyes piercing into you. you met them and raised an eyebrow.

“cute braids, pippi longstocking.” he teased, rising from the table.

“oh shut up.” you pouted, shoving a strawberry through your lips.

“hey, at least i said they were cute.” he clucked, tugging on one of the braids as he passed by.

“ouch!” you feigned being hurt but jeno didn’t buy it.

“come help me do the dishes.”

after hanging around and helping jeno all morning, you finally got a moment to yourself. you decided to go up to your room and read the novel the boy in your english class, haechan, had recommended to you. haechan was smart and sweet and always read the best books. this was the third book he had lent to you and there were more in your bag. he was always on the lookout for you in class, looking to tell you about the book he was reading. haechan was intelligent and witty and you had enjoyed the few coffee dates you had with him. whatever you had with haechan was completely platonic, although you couldn’t deny his boyish charm and cute face.

you were a few chapters in when your mind wandered to your phone trapped in the drawer of the nightstand. you wondered what your friends were up to.

you couldn’t help yourself from turning on your phone and standing on your bed next to the window to get the highest signal. the first thing you seen when you opened instagram was a picture of minha and hyunji. they were in minha’s room and hyunji was wearing…your pyjamas?! she was wearing the pyjamas you had left at minha’s for when you slept over! that—that—!

“what are you doing?” you hadn’t even noticed the door open and you jumped at jeno’s voice. you looked over your shoulder and realized how stupid you looked.

“trying to get a signal…?” you laughed.

“what for?” he raised a thick eyebrow.

“um, instagram?”

“what’s that?”

“you seriously don’t know what instagram is?” you couldn’t help but laugh at how naive he was. you plopped down on your bed and motioned him over. he sat across from you and glanced at your phone.

“who’s that?” he asked as his eyes scanned over the picture of the girls.

“oh, that’s—my bestfriend,” you sighed. “well, i guess she is. she’s not too happy with me being away for the summer so she’s hanging out with more popular girls. i guess you think they’re cute?”

“eh,” he shrugged his shoulders and looked at you. “you’re cuter, pippi longstocking.”

you felt your heart flutter at his words, even though he was teasing you. he reached over and tugged on one of your braids, his hand lingering for a moment. it was almost like time stopped, like everything around you went blurry except for his smiling face.

“i’ll let you get back to your reading.” he grinned, glancing at your book. “but i’ll be back later to get you to help feed the animals.”

“don’t be lazy, ____!” jeno called to you as he trudged through the long grass later that evening, you following behind him. you had just finished dinner with grandma and it was time to feed the animals.

“does anyone ever cut this grass?” you asked, a bucket of seed in one hand and a bucket of silage in the other.

“yes.”

“why do i have to carry this?” you whined. you weren’t used to doing work like this.

“because i'm carrying the water? the water’s a lot heavier if you’d rather carry that.”

you groaned in response.

when you finally got into the barn, you placed the buckets on the floor, your arms almost aquiver.

“you’re not done yet. feed the cows, chickens and pigs. i’ve got the water troughs. then i’m going over to the horse stalls to muck them out.” he explained. why did you have to do more work than jeno? you weren’t even getting paid! you sighed, but got to work.

when you finished, a thin layer of sweat had set on your face and you were spitting feathers out of your mouth. the chickens still hadn’t gotten used to you and kicked up a fuss when you opened the coop.

you set out into the cold air of the night, the slight breeze cooling your warm skin. you walked over to the horse stable, wondering if jeno was done yet. the doors were open and you could hear grunting coming from inside. you stepped into the doorway quietly to see jeno working on mucking out the stalls. he had shed his red flannel for the white muscle tank that was underneath. you couldn’t help but watch how the muscles in his arms clenched and moved with each lift of the shovel. you couldn’t help but be entranced by the hardworking boy, so much so that you didn’t notice him stop and look over at you.

“like what you see?” he smirked playfully, flexing his muscles.

“oh shut up.” you rolled your eyes, looking down to hide the blush on your cheeks.

“did you get the work done?” he asked, getting back to work.

“yeah. why’d you make me do it all?”

“why do you complain so much?” he came back at you without skipping a beat. you furrowed your eyebrows and crossed your arms, leaning on the doorframe of the wooden structure.

“i–i don’t complain!” you denied, but knew it was true.

“yes, you do,” he stopped his actions again and looked at you, digging the shovel into the ground next to his foot. “you complain so much over the smallest things. you don’t know what it’s like to do hard work like this because you’ve probably never had to work a day in your life nor will you ever have to.”

his words felt like a knife through the heart. you didn’t take criticism well and you hated people raising their voice at you. you had been so consumed with emotions lately that this sent you over the edge. you looked away from him as you felt tears pool in your eyes.

“you don’t even know me.” you chuckled bitterly.

“i don’t need to know you to see that. you’re a big-city person who can’t get dirt on her hands and can’t go a day without her beloved cellphone. why did grandma even want you here?” he said. another knife in your heart.

“why do you call her grandma? she isn’t your grandma?” you spit, avoiding eye contact.

“she doesn’t mind. she probably likes me more. i actually want to spend time with her and don’t complain about every little thing.” he replied and heard his footsteps in the hay until they were right in front of you.

“and she told me you were ‘such a sweet boy,’” you looked up at him, embarrassed about the tears now rolling down your face. “y’know what, she probably does like you more, you’re the grandson she always wanted.”

jeno was surprised by the tears in your eyes and on your cheeks. he hadn’t meant to make you cry, he thought you could take it. he was just trying to make your skin thicker and didn’t know you were so sensitive about it. he didn’t say anything as you walked back to the house, leaving him standing in the doorway. he should’ve said something. but he had a better idea to apologize.

you were woken up the next morning by knocking on your door. you thought it was grandma just waking you up. you groaned in response and closed your eyes again. then there was more knocking, but this time faster and louder.

“okay!” you called. you glanced at the clock and realized you had slept in, breakfast was done and grandma was already gone to work. you hesitated getting up and answering the door, knowing it was jeno, but the knocking was now loud and persistent. you got out of bed and stumbled to the door, your eyebrows tugged together in frustration. but when you opened the door, he wasn’t there. that little–!

before you could race out of your room to find him, your eyes wandered down to the floor, where there was a tray with breakfast and a vase of flowers on it. you picked it up and went back in your room, kicking the door closed, a confused expression on your face. your eyes landed on the note propped against the vase. “i’m sorry for insulting you like that. i insisted that grandma let you sleep so i could bring you this. please forgive me? -jeno.”

how could you stay mad at him? yes, he said some hurtful things, but doesn’t everyone? your smile grew as you looked at the colourful flowers you knew were from grandma’s garden. you carefully placed the vase on the windowsill and tucked the note into a drawer, not wanting to lose it, before digging into your delicious breakfast in bed. what you neglected to do was realize your newly developing feelings for jeno.

a week passed and the regular farmhands were back, meaning jeno had a lot more free time on his hands and you had to do less work. he still had to feed the animals, but most of his tasks were inside now. cooking, cleaning, keeping you company.

“you should put your hair in those braids again, like pippi longstocking.” jeno chuckled as you read your book. it was the first one haechan had recommended to you and you had a hard time putting it down. you looked over the pages at his form, his head dangling off the couch and his legs curled across the back. his dark hair stuck out, making you giggle. it was obvious that he was bored for once.

“why, you like it?” you raised an eyebrow and set the book on the cushion in your lap.

“yeah, i do. they make you look cute. not that you’re not cute without them–!” he rushed to explain, looking over at you. you glanced at the hair ties on your wrist and combed your hair out of your face with your fingers.

as you braided your hair, jeno watched your every move. he watched the way your fingers moved so delicately, the way you tugged them tight, the way your tongue stuck out of your mouth ever so slightly when you concentrated. he couldn’t help himself from falling in love with each of your little mannerisms.

when you were finished, jeno looked like you had just found the cure for cancer.

“will–will you show me how to do that?” he asked sheepishly. you laughed at his dorkiness and set your book on the coffee table before getting up from the rocking chair to join him on the couch.

“sit up and i’ll teach you.” you laughed. he did as you said and shook his hair out of his face.

“do you know where grandma keeps her yarn?” you questioned. he got up and found it quickly, tossing a ball of it to you. you measured out three equal sections and started to instruct him on how to braid.

an hour later and he still couldn’t get the hang of it. why did he even want to know? whatever the reason, he was determined to succeed. you were mostly sitting back and telling him what to do, but you decided to help him after a while.

“here jeno,” you started, putting your fingers over his. “like this.”

he seemed to perk up at your skin against his. you wove the strands, one over the other, your fingers slowly wrapping with his.

“you think you got it?” you asked with raised eyebrows. when he nodded, you took your hands away, just for him to pull them back immediately.

“i think i need you to show me that again, actually.” he smiled, just wanting an excuse to basically hold your hands.

“this is flicka, rusty, and–” jeno started, but you interrupted him.

“princess.” you smiled, carefully stroking the muzzle of the horse with the shiny black coat. you and jeno were in the horse stables, and he decided you needed to be properly introduced.

“grandma already told you?” he questioned, coming to your side.

“i may be a city girl, but i think i’d recognize my own horse.” you poked fun.

“wait, princess is yours?” he asked, shoving an apple into your hand to feed her.

“yeah. i’ve only ridden her a handful of times but grandpa made sure she was mine, even letting me name her. i was only 6 or 7, so princess seemed to fit.” you laughed, holding out your hand to the animal.

“you know a lot more about things around here than i thought you would.” jeno teased, watching you.

“flicka was my dad’s horse when he was younger. she’s the oldest of them all. princess is mine, and rusty was grandpa’s.” you sighed. you made your way over to the copper coloured horse and smiled at all the memories flooding into your mind.

“he was?” jeno said in disbelief.

“grandpa loved rusty. grandma always said he should’ve made him a show horse, but grandpa didn’t want to put him through that.”

jeno was silent for a moment. “tell me more about your grandpa.” he said softly.

you hesitated. a lot of what you remembered about grandpa you kept held in your heart and the back of your mind, afraid that if you said it, it’d slip away from you.

you cleared your throat and looked back at rusty. “he was amazing. a lot like grandma, but nothing like her at all, y’know? they kept each other in line. he was kind hearted, adventurous, brave. when i was a kid i thought he was a superhero. well, he was my hero. we did arts and crafts together, he would take me fishing, and if there was ever a time i wasn’t glued to his side, it was rare. he was the most gentle soul you’d ever meet. he had this affinity for nature and all things in it, and that’s why he bought the farm. he was a hardworking man who loved his farm, but loved his family more.”

jeno was silent again. had you said too much?

“you okay?” jeno asked softly, moving to see your face. “you miss him, don’t you?”

now it was your turn to be silent. you hadn’t even noticed the tears in your eyes until one softly fell onto rusty’s nose. you let your hands drop from the horse, not wanting to look at jeno. you didn’t want him to see you cry again.

“it’s okay to miss him.” he said quietly, the hay crunching under his feet as he approached you.

“i’m fine.” you said, hostility in your voice.

“____…” he sighed. before you could back away, he wrapped his arms around you and pulled you to his body. you tried to pull away at first but then realized he was hugging you. you limply wrapped your arms around his neck and tried not to cry into his shoulder.

“y’know what? when it gets warmer out, we can take the horses for a ride. does that sound good?” he suggested, pulling away from you for a moment. you looked up into his smiling eyes and couldn’t help your smile from growing, more memories in your mind. now that you thought about it, jeno reminded you a lot of grandpa.

you and jeno were both silent as you sat in the living room a few days later, your nose in a book and jeno’s eyes stuck on you, when he got an idea.

“hey ____?”

you lowered your book. “yes jeno?”

“can you come over later and watch movies with me? it’s no fun watching movies by myself.” he asked, puppy dog eyes pouring into you. you weren’t going to pass up an opportunity to be with jeno, let alone alone with jeno.

“hmm, let’s see if i can fit it into my super busy schedule.” you teased, raising an eyebrow as you pretended to think.

“____!” he exasperated, a goofy grin on his face.

“of course i can, jeno. i’d love to, actually.”

jeno was more than ecstatic for you to come over. you spent most of your days together, but it always felt forced, like you had to be together. but now, you wanted to hang out with him. the truth was, jeno couldn’t care less about movies, he just wanted an excuse to make you laugh and see your smile.

“but he was the bad guy!” you exclaimed, another fit of giggles racking your body.

“but he wasn’t!” jeno argued, leaning in closer to you. you were watching some superhero movie and you weren’t sure if the main character was supposed to be good or bad. the whole setup was quite cute, for jeno at least. he had at least a million blankets and pillows thrown on the couch and had dimmed the lights to the perfect cozy atmosphere. he had popped two huge bowls of popcorn and brought you each a can of soda. it was nice eating junk food once in a while.

even though there were a ton around, you both somehow ended up under the same blanket while watching the movie. your body had found its way to jeno’s side, his arm nonchalantly finding its way around your shoulders. but now, you were sat across from jeno under the same huge blanket, arguing playfully about the ending of the movie.

you watched him ramble on about how his theory had to be true, but couldn’t really absorb what he was saying. you nodded along, but you focused more on how his voice sounded when he got defensive, how his lips formed a pout after every sentence. you couldn’t take your eyes off his lips. they looked so pink, so plush and soft.

jeno only stopped talking when you leaned in to fill the gap between you and attached your lips to his. your eyes fluttered closed at the feeling and you felt utterly intoxicated by him.

“you talk too much.” you teased when you pulled away, your face still inches from his.

“woah…” he breathed out, a blush spreading across his cheeks. you had rendered the lee jeno speechless?

he took your face in his calloused hands and pulled you back into another kiss, wanting to taste your lips again. you were almost unable to pull away from the boy, each tug on your lips making you want to kiss him more. you had imagined this since the first day you met him. when you eventually had to pull away for air, jeno looked very pleased with himself.

“i think that’s the best way you could’ve told me to shut up.” he grinned, caressing your cheek gently with his rough thumb.

“oh shut up.” you laughed.

“shut up? did i hear ‘kiss me again, jeno’?” he teased. you gave him one more kiss, your lips melting with his.

little did you know that jeno had been dying for that moment to happen. when you made the first move, his feelings for you only deepened.

not long after, jeno had decided to put on another movie, but you fell asleep with your head on his chest within 10 minutes. he admired your sleeping state, wondering how you could look so adorable with you mouth hanging open slightly and your hair a mess. when he started to feel himself getting sleepy too, he slipped out from underneath you before taking you carefully into his arms. he brought you to his bed, laying you down slowly and gently, and tucking you in so that you’d be comfortable. he took one last look at you, still not able to believe the events of the night, before retreating to the couch.

you woke up the next morning not aware of your surroundings, but you could pick out familiar voices in the distance. you soon realized that you were in jeno’s bed. you got up, and upon noticing how cold the air was, you wrapped a blanket around yourself before heading out to the kitchen.

“jeno, do you ever turn the heat on here?” you whined as you padded down the hallway, trying to find a thermostat.

“it’s summer, it’s warm enough outside.” grandma’s voice sounded from the kitchen. what was she doing here? when you turned the corner, you saw grandma sitting at the small table with a newspaper in her hand and wearing overalls and a flannel shirt which was different from her everyday work attire. jeno was standing at the stove cooking what smelled like bacon, wearing plaid pyjama pants and a white shirt that clung to his back muscles. suddenly you were reminded of the kisses you had shared the night before and your cheeks started to heat up.

“morning ____.” jeno smiled, looking over his shoulder at you. you huddled deeper in the blanket and sat at the table, not sure of what to say with grandma there.

“morning jeno…” you smiled softly, glancing at him again. jeno soon slid a plate of bacon and eggs in front of you, to which you mumbled a quick thank you. grandma snapped down her newspaper, her eyes darting from you to jeno and back to you. then, her lips formed a pleased grin, like something was coming together in her mind.

later that morning while jeno tended to the garden, you decided to continue your reading. the perfect spot to read was at the picnic table near the house, where the sun could hit your skin. the breeze blew through the trees and the birds chirped nearby, making everything feel so peaceful. you put down your book and closed your eyes for a moment, letting the sun seep into your veins. you took a refreshing deep breath and when you let your eyes flutter open, jeno was in front of you. you flinched back, not expecting him to be there.

“you scared me.” you chuckled, leaning forward on your elbows.

“sorry.” he smiled and you realized that he was holding something behind his back.

“whatcha got?” you raised an eyebrow, grinning at him.

“oh! i found these in the garden and they’re one of the most beautiful flowers that grow there and they reminded me of you.” he rambled on and you felt your heart stutter. he pulled a small bundle of little blue flowers from behind his back and moved closer to you. with one swift movement, he tucked them behind your ear and let his eyes fall to meet yours.

“so pretty.”

“jeno…” you blushed. “what kind are they?”

“forget-me-nots.” he said, his hand cupping the side of your face. he leaned closer across the table and kissed your lips softly. “so, forget me not.”

new message from minha.

your phone buzzed and your stomach twisted when you seen the notification.

minha: “omg who’s the guy on your instagram?”

you had forgotten about the picture of jeno you had posted earlier that day.

you: “his name is jeno. he works for grandma.”

minha: “no way is there boys that cute in the country.”

minha: “i’m bringing this to the groupchat.”

minha sent a photo to you, yunhee and hyunji.

minha: “oh yeah i added hyunji.”

so now hyunji was part of your friend groupchat?

minha: “thoughts on this hunk of hotness?”

you felt yourself getting jealous at the way she spoke about jeno.

yunhee: “who even is that?”

minha: “ask ____ ;)”

yunhee: “____ who is that??”

you: “omg guys his name is jeno and he works for my grandma ok.”

minha: “country boy i love yOuUu.”

minha: “you should get his number for me, ____.”

hyunji: “oh my god that’s one hot yee haw boy.”

you wanted to turn off your phone and shove it in the drawer again. either that or throw it at a wall.

hyunji: “not if i get his number first minha ;)”

you: “guys stoppp.”

yunhee: “lmao does he even know how cellphones work? he’s a country boy.”

minha: “hands off hyunji i have dibs on him.”

you were tired of hearing them talk about him like he was their property or something. so you did something bold. you typed out the words and let your thumb hover over the send button for a moment. then you did something even bolder, you sent it.

you: “no use dibsing him, he’s my boyfriend.”

after a second, your phone started blowing up.

yunhee: “oh my GOD REALLY??”

minha: “shut up!”

hyunji: “HOW?”

minha: “holy crap.”

yunhee: “damn yee haw!”

hyunji: “baby lock the door and turn them lights down low ;)”

minha: “so you’re riding more than horses-”

before you could read anymore of the disgusting texts they sent you, jeno walked into the living room, his white t shirt sticking to his frame with sweat. you quickly put your phone down on the end table next to the rocking chair, not wanting him to see anything they said. he removed his hat and ran a hand through his damp black hair. you tried to rid your mind of their texts as you stared at him.

“hey.” he nodded, collapsing onto the sofa, his chest heaving with deep breaths.

“it must be sweltering out.” you laughed, watching him.

“that, and i had to mow the lawn. all the lawn.” he sighed. there were fields all around grandma’s house, it had to be almost an acre of grass.

“i’ll get you some cold water.” you offered, standing up from your seat. you had forgotten about your phone being on.

jeno got curious at the buzzing coming from your lit up phone screen. he didn’t mean to snoop, but his curiosity got the best of him. his eyes widened as he read the messages, most of them about him. he scrolled up, laughing at some of the dirty jokes. he stopped scrolling when he seen what you had called him. your boyfriend. he definitely didn’t think that your relationship was at that point yet, even though he wished it was. he wanted to be your boyfriend, and wanted you to be his girlfriend. although, he didn’t know how grandma would react… he was shaken out of his thoughts by you entering the room again.

you came into the living room with a tall glass of cold water for jeno, just to see him with his eyes glued to your phone that he held in his hand.

“jeno!” you exclaimed, almost dropping the glass in your hand. you hoped he hadn’t seen anything. he almost dropped your phone and looked at you like he was innocent.

“why were you snooping?” you scolded, taking the phone out of his hand and replacing it with the glass of water.

“i’m sorry, i couldn’t help myself.” he said as he tried to save himself. you looked at the screen and seen that he had scrolled up to your last message, about him being your boyfriend.

“when did we make things official?” he smiled smugly, taking a sip of water.

“i–things aren’t official, jeno. i just had to make them stop talking about you.” you said. his heart dropped with your words.

“why? you want me all to yourself?” he smirked, trying to get his confidence back up. you were silent.

“just keep your nose to yourself next time.” you scolded, turning off your phone and walking out of the living room, your face flushed in embarrassment. yes, you wanted jeno to be your boyfriend, and yes, you wanted things to be official, but you didn’t want to scare him away so soon. you didn’t know he felt the same way.

“so when are we going to tell grandma about…this?” jeno questioned as you brushed down the horses. you had just gotten back from a ride across the lush, green pastures, which was very freeing for the soul.

“about what?” you raised an eyebrow and glanced over at him as he stroked rusty’s mane.

“about us, idiot.” he teased. you thought for a moment. would grandma really want you together? maybe she thought you would be a distraction to jeno and he wouldn’t get any work done, maybe she didn’t want jeno to date her only grandchild.

“she can’t know about this.” you sighed, avoiding his gaze.

“why not? are you embarrassed of me or something?” he chuckled.

“no jeno, it’s just—i don’t know, she just can’t know, okay?”

“but i want her to know! i can’t keep sneaking around with you. she already has her suspicions.”

“wait, she does?” you whipped your head around to look at him.

“yes! when you fell asleep in the guest house and didn’t go back to the house, she came over the next morning and thought it was kind of suspicious that you wandered out of my bed.” he explained. you sighed, knowing she’d end up knowing sooner or later. you turned your attention back to princess and continued brushing her silky mane. jeno opened the stable door to let some light in, but furrowed his eyebrows instead.

“what is it?” you questioned, looking past the horse at him.

“do you know anyone who drives a red pickup?” he asked, confused. oh crap.

“no way…” you muttered, putting down the brush and pushing past him. of course your parents were there. they must’ve already gone to the house, as they weren’t in the truck.

“who is it?” jeno asked, nudging your side.

my parents,” you sighed. “just great.” you raised your arms and let them fall in an action of frustration.

“let me guess, we can’t tell them either?”

your heart dropped at the tone of his voice. you knew he only wanted to be with you, but your parents didn’t want you to have a boyfriend. they wanted you to do well in school and have zero distractions.

“i’m sorry jeno, but we can’t tell them either.”

“so this is the jeno you told me about!” your mom chuckled as you two entered the house. you shot a look at her. she knew and didn’t tell you?

“jeno, this is my daughter in law. ____’s mom.” she smiled, introducing them. you watched nervously as he shook your mom’s hand.

“it’s very nice to meet you.” he smiled politely.

“what did i say? such a sweet boy.” grandma cooed, ruffling his hair. he glanced at you, your silence concerning him.

“hi sweetie.” mom pulled you into a hug. “you thinking about running into the woods to become a fairy still?”

“y’know, it’s always an option.” you said sarcastically. “where’s dad?”

they fell silent.

“is he not here? i know he said he was doing a lot of overtime shifts.” you busied yourself, not wanting to know the reality.

“he’s, um, in one of his moods, ____.” she said lowly, glancing nervously at grandma.

“is he… bad again?” you asked, your voice almost a whisper.

“just—don’t worry about it. i’ve got him under control.”

ever since grandpa died, your dad had been in and out of stages of depression and alcoholism, even violence at times. grandpa’s death affected him the most, but it had been years, and he still got bad moods like it. luckily, there was no alcohol out in the middle of nowhere for him to drink.

“what was your mom talking about? about your dad?” jeno questioned, pulling you aside as you entered the barn to collect eggs before dinner.

“nothing, jeno. don’t worry.” you shook your head and tried to smile.

“no, ____, it’s not ‘nothing’. there’s something going on.” he furrowed his eyebrows and it was the first time you’d seen him look genuinely upset.

“okay, okay, sometimes dad gets in these moods where he just wants to isolate himself and he doesn’t want anyone telling him what to do. if you try to speak to him or try to help him, he gets angry.” you sighed, leaning against the barn door.

“does he get violent?” jeno questioned, his eyes staring into yours. you hesitated.

“____.” jeno urged.

“no! he never gets physically violent. he would never lay a hand on me or mom. he just gets…mean.” you assured.

“what do you mean by that?”

“he just yells and says mean things. he doesn’t hurt us, jeno.” you fidgeted, looking away from us. jeno’s jaw clenched, his stone cold gaze shooting daggers into you.

“verbal abuse can lead to physical abuse—”

“jesus christ, jeno, he’s not abusing us!” you sighed in disbelief, looking back at him.

“i’m sorry for being worried about you,” he said roughly. “it’s just that i only get you for another month and he gets you for the whole year. i don’t know what happens to you when you go home, but i want you to be safe.”

your heart ached because you knew how much he cared about you. you lunged forward, wrapping your arms around his neck and breathing in his scent.

“thank you.”

you slid into the seat next to jeno at the dinner table, the aroma of a home cooked dinner making you smile. it was almost peaceful, until he stumbled in from the living room.

“who’s this?” your dad barked, nodding towards jeno.

“this is jeno, i hired him to help out around the house.” grandma explained. dad just pulled out his chair and sat down, rubbing his face with his hands.

“help out around the house? what are you, sick? are you retiring soon?” he sighed, looking at grandma. jeno’s hand reached for yours under the table. you tried to brush it off, but he trapped your smaller hand in his bigger one, slowly intertwining your fingers.

“i’m fine,” grandma assured. “i just don’t have the time to do some things.”

dad looked at jeno, analyzing him, like he was good at. he was always good at making anyone feel small. you gave jeno’s hand a comforting squeeze.

you stayed quiet during dinner, listening to dad ramble on about how nuclear annihilation will soon end the world. it was nothing new. he was so pessimistic and always had something to complain about.

“all i’m saying is that the government doesn’t know what they’re doing. they’re screwed.” he mumbled, pulling a flask out of his shirt pocket and twisting the lid before pouring some into his drink.

“do you really have to do that here?” your mom interjected, sending glances at you and jeno. you watched jeno’s expression turn from neutral to stone, like he was angry. you squeezed his hand again, looking up at him. he looked back down at you and his face softened, a smile forming on his lips. and you knew everyone noticed.

“____, get in here!” your dad’s voice boomed across the field from the house to the barn where you and jeno has found solitude. you sighed, knowing you probably did something wrong.

“i’ll be right back.” you frowned, leaning up to kiss his cheek. when you did, he turned his head and connected his lips to yours. you blushed, smiling as wide as your face would let you. you hoped your father hadn’t noticed from the porch.

as you entered the house through the kitchen door, your eyes widened slightly in a confused expression. mom and dad were sitting at the table, grandma leaning against the counter.

“what’s up?” you questioned, lingering near the door and glancing between them.

“don’t do this to her, she’s only being a teenager and having fun like she should—” grandma started but dad cut her off.

“sit.” he growled. you obeyed, sitting across from them at the table.

“what is it? stop being weird.” you furrowed your eyebrows.

“whatever’s going on between you and jeno has to stop.” mom sighed, sending a weary glance at grandma.

your breath hitched in your throat and your movements stopped as your eyes went wide.

“w—what are you talking about?” you laughed awkwardly, trying to brush it off. “there’s nothing—”

“cut it with the bullshit!” dad yelled, making you flinch. mom laid a hand on his shoulder, making him calm down.

“don’t act like we don’t see you two being all lovey dovey. the hand holding, the kisses, it all has to stop.” he demanded.

“dad, jeno and i are friends!” you exasperated, but not even grandma bought it.

“i was going to let them be. she’s happy, isn’t that what you want for her?” grandma tried to elaborate with your dad.

“you’re not allowed to have a boyfriend. you have to stop seeing him.”

you were sure you went white, your nails digging into your palms as you held your fists right at your sides. your eyes watered with tears but you didn’t want to show weakness in front of him.

“dad, please.” you said quietly.

“or else you’ll be coming home with us.” he pierced holes into you with his sharp gaze.

“you can’t be with jeno.”

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